The Age of Gold: The California Gold Rush and the New American Dream (Search and Recover) - Softcover

Brands, H. W.

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0385720882 ISBN 13: 9780385720885

Publisher: Anchor, 2003

Synopsis

The California Gold Rush inspired a new American dream—the “dream of instant wealth, won by audacity and good luck.” The discovery of gold on the American River in 1848 triggered the most astonishing mass movement of peoples since the Crusades. It drew fortune-seekers from the ends of the earth, accelerated America’s imperial expansion, and exacerbated the tensions that exploded in the Civil War. 

H.W. Brands tells his epic story from multiple perspectives: of adventurers John and Jessie Fremont, entrepreneur Leland Stanford, and the wry observer Samuel Clemens—side by side with prospectors, soldiers, and scoundrels. He imparts a visceral sense of the distances they traveled, the suffering they endured, and the fortunes they made and lost. Impressive in its scholarship and overflowing with life, The Age of Gold is history in the grand traditions of Stephen Ambrose and David McCullough.

About this title

Review:

Texas A&M University professor H.W. Brands enhances his reputation as one of America's great popular historians with The Age of Gold, which tells the story of the California gold rush through rollicking narrative and intelligent analysis. "James Marshall's discovery of gold at Coloma [in 1848] turned out to be a seminal event in history, one of those rare moments that divide human existence into before and after," he writes. It launched "the most astonishing mass movement of people since the Crusades" and "helped initiate the modern era of American economic development." Brands describes how thousands of people from all over the world hazarded the journey, faced the scientific challenge of extracting precious metal from the earth, and finally struggled "to sink roots" where so many came merely "to strip the land." This book is something of a departure for Brands, who most recently has written biographies of Benjamin Franklin and Theodore Roosevelt (both of them excellent). Yet he tackles this new topic with confidence, telling dozens of stories about John Fremont, Leland Stanford, and less famous forty-niners. He concludes by describing why these tales have a national and even global importance. The Age of Gold is magnificent in its sweep, and not to be missed by fans of American history. --John Miller

From the Back Cover:

“An engrossing, multifaceted history.” –The New York Times

“A barn burner. . . . Masterfully sketched historical figures, subtly developed themes, and epically well-braided stories. . . . There’s only one thing to say . . . and that’s ‘Eureka!’ ” –San Francisco Chronicle

“Exuberant. . . . Entertaining, lively. . . . Brands [is] a wonderfully skilled narrative historian.” –Los Angeles Times

“Highly readable and entertaining. . . . History titles loom large, and perhaps none larger than The Age of Gold.” –Houston Chronicle

“A triumph. . . . Brands has struck gold.” –The Oregonian

“[H. W. Brands] will change the way you see history. . . . The Age of Gold brilliantly pans the historical record for nuggets of hardship and, in the process, hits upon a mother lode of a story.” –Austin American-Statesman

“Gripping. . . . Thoroughly researched. . . . An eminently readable, detail-filled book.” –Chicago Tribune

“A serious, comprehensive study, filled with memorable visions and interesting observations. . . . A book that explores history, politics, geology, adventure and industry with omnibus enthusiasm. . . . Its author, like the miners of the gold rush themselves, leaves no stone unturned.” –The San Diego Union-Tribune

“A fine, robust telling of one of the greatest adventure stories in history.” –David McCullough, Pulitzer Prize—winning author of John Adams

“Brands assembles a colorful collection of people swept into this craze from around the world . . . in[to] a dazzling setting that conveys the world-changing effects of this era. . . . [He is a] master storyteller.” –The Christian Science Monitor

“Few historians can tell a tale better than Brands.” –Dallas Morning News

“Populated with colorful California characters. . . . Brands makes a convincing case that the discovery of gold was a seminal event in American history.” –Boston Herald

“Fascinating. . . . Brands brings the era and its characters to life in a remarkably entertaining narrative that is meticulously researched and crisply written. . . . The Age of Gold is historical reporting at its best.” –Arizona Daily Star

About this edition

• Publisher: Anchor
• Publication date: 2003
• ISBN 10: 0385720882
• ISBN 13: 9780385720885
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 592