Ohio History Journal

An Ohioan's Letter from the California GOLD Fields in 1850 The discovery of gold at Sutter's mill in California's lower Sacramento Valley in 1848 precipitated one of the most massive and spontaneous westward migrations in American history. Responding to the avalanche of propaganda emanating from the California gold fields and spurred on by numerous exaggerated newspaper and magazine accounts of the alleged untapped and unlimited yellow treasure of the Far West, thousands of easterners left family and home to make the trek to what they considered to be the fabled El Dorado.1 Unfortunately for many if not most of these eastern adventurers and fortune seekers, disappointment and disillusionment greeted them upon their arrival in California. By mid-1849 most of the best mining sites already had been appropriated and all that remained were abandoned mines and worth- less marginal regions. Confronted with these circumstances, many would-be miners wandered from camp to camp in search of employment, hoping there- by to earn enough money to return home. Such was the case of Dr. Philip John Hines, a resident of Van Wert, Ohio, who began his journey to California on March 12, 1850.2     NOTES ARE ON PAGES 179-180

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Dr. Hines was born in Fredericktown, Maryland, on August 11, 1815.

Educated in Washington, D.C., and at the University of Maryland, where

he received his M.D. in 1837, Hines read medicine under Dr. Thomas Miller,

attending physician to every president of the United States from Washington

to Lincoln. The recipient of an eighty-acre federal land grant in 1835, he

and his family migrated to Ohio in 1838 and, after a brief sojourn in the

Bucyrus area, permanently settled in the frontier community of Van Wert.

In addition to practicing medicine and teaching school in Van Wert between

1839 and 1847, Hines also took an active interest in local and state politics.

In 1847, for example, he was elected to the Ohio state legislature, where he

served a single term.

Like many other Ohioans, Hines was struck by gold fever in 1849. In the

following year, he optimistically embarked upon what he later referred to

in his diary as "the most foolish act of my life." Finding that California

was not the promised land he had anticipated, Dr. Hines returned to Ohio

in 1852, where he resumed the practice of medicine and, until 1856, served

as postmaster of Van Wert. He died in Van Wert on September 12, 1884.

The following letter vividly illustrates the frustration and disillusionment

which Dr. Hines experienced in the California gold fields. This rather lengthy

letter to his family is reproduced as he wrote it, replete with misspellings

and oddities of capitalization and punctuation. Only the minimum of editorial

interpolations have been added.

 

New Town, Yuba Co. California

October 1850

My Dear family, Wife, children, father & Sister,

Here I am at last in the Gold

diggings & had I the tongue of the most eloquent or could use the pen as

readily as a Dickins I should despair of giving you an accurate statement

of how matters have been, are, and from appearances will be with me  I

am sometimes ready to exclaim better for me had I not been born than to

have to endure so many sorrows. After travilling one of the longesest

[longest] roads -- beset with dangers, starvation staring me in the face --

sickness surrounding -- Indians killing, to arrive at the end of my journey

to meet with disappointment in expectations was I should think ennough to

make me long to hear from those I'd left behind me. for me thought of the

comfort of Home & a thrill of joy tingled through my veins as I grasped

your letters, which I sent for to Sacramento, for I anticipated cheering News.

but Alas for me, sorrow and sighing appears to be my portion for life, my

little one was dead, my family had been sick & their -- Is it possible, that

the little babe, that required so much care when just born & who afterwards

appeared to thrive so finely, sleeps in the silent tomb & her roving father

shall ne'er more on earth see those sparkling eyes or hear the pleasant laugh,

or kiss again her sweet lips. My God sustain me -- for I feel this to be the

severest trial I have ever had to pass -- when at home I can see my [patients]

leave, wipe the clammy sweat from off their brows with apparent composure,

satisfied that I have done all in my power for them, but not so now, for if

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I had staid possible my child might yet have been living, O what pangs

rend my bosom -- little prattler sweetly sleep beside thy unseen brother --

perhaps its better thus, sickness can no more reach thee, nor thy fathers

tears recall thee to life  I arrived here 3 weeks ago from the plains & the

reason I have not written before is Sickness. you may indeed perceive from

my writting that my hand is anything but steady. I shall not attempt to

give you a detailed statement of my travils from the time I wrote you on

the plains until my arrival, for it would be a futile undertaking -- The night

I wrote (28 May) we were camped near ft. Kearney [Nebraska], & just

after I had sent the letter such a Storm came upon as it has never been

my lot to witness before or since -- the wind blew down all our tents &

we had to take the peltings of merciless hail without shelter. That night

I shall never forget -- the next day we resumed our journey towards the

rocky mountains   day after day with but few exceptions we trudged on

until the 3rd day of July when we crossed the South pass. from thence

we took the road to Salt lake as we understood the grass on the cutoff3

was entirely eaten off & our provision pile began to look small, we got to

the City of the Great Salt lake on the 19th of July. here Wm. & Ed Parkinson

left us, & here let me remark en passant [in passing] that travilling over

the plains of all other places in the world is the best calculated to show

who are and who are not friends -- but more anon -- we tarried with the

Mormons about 2 weeks. I found many old Marylanders among them &

they tried their best to induce me to stay for the winter -- The vally in

which they live is a most beautiful place & as fertile as land [can] be -- On

the 3rd of August we again commenced travilling. we took a new road be-

cause it was thought by some to be the nearest, but it proved to be much

longer than the old road -- We crossed the summit of the Sierra Nevada

Sept. 17. and got to the Diggings the 23d -- The country generally through

which we passed is a desert waste naught of vegitation growing save wild

sage -- The soil generally sandy -- I was much disappointed in the appear-

ance of the Rocky Mountains, for I supposed I should see large hills covered

with huge trees & here & there a Rock, but there is no timber & instead

of merely seeing here & there a Rock judge of my surprise on finding en-

tire hills of Solid Stone, as smooth externily almost as glass -- we had

some very bad waters to cross, 3 of them had ferries the rest we forded,

many persons were drowned. The Sierra Nevada Mountains are covered

with tall pine, spruce & cedar trees, & very rockys -- The Indians were

very bad stealing stock & murdering all they could, I saw some just after

a battle laying dead along the road. the emigrants not thinking it worth-

while to bury them, by vigilance we escaped without loosing any thing -- &

the road we came we crossed 3 deserts -- one 93 miles -- one 35 & the

last 40 miles across -- the last which to all who have written was the chief

bug bean I consider no desert at all -- I cannot attempt to give you an

Idea of the amount of suffering on the road from sickness & starvation.

when I think of it I feel an involuntary shudder -- I have seen stout men

lay down at night well & in the morning their bodies wrapt in a blanket

& thrown into a hole scarce 1 foot deep, & a few shovels of dirt thrown

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over them, so that the wolves might have a little harder work to get the

body    I have seen the delicate female glad to get for herself & little ones

a little meat from off a worn down ox or starved cow, to sustain life, indeed

I have known hundreds to live for weeks alone on meat not a particle of

any thing else to eat -- finaly if the emigrants this year have not seen hard

times there can be no such thing -- California so far as I have seen (I

have not been to Sacramento because I have not been able to afford the

expenses of conveying my things there and have not had bodily strength

to pack them) is no country for me. indeed it has been much overated by

Fremont & others who desire to gain political distinction -- Gold is scarce

& thousands are here now who would gladly go home had they the means --

A few and but a few make fortunes. I see men daily who have been here

for years & are poorer now than they were when they left home  I tell

you the talk about gold is a perfect humbug, to be sure its here, but its

like pepper on ham in spots here & there & if you happen to strike it you

enrich yourself if not you are ruined -- The Mines dig from 3 to 70 feet

deep -- The Quartz rock story is likewise a humbug -- occasionally you find

a rock with a little gold in it but they are few & far between -- I say let

all who can earn a living stay at home but this advice I know many will not

take, then let them come & see for themselves but bring with them enough

to take them home in case they dont like the appearance of things. Morals

are entirely unknown here.⁴ The Sabath is the chief day for trade. I have

seen the Preacher in the pulpit preaching, the Auctioneer on his stand,

the Merchant behind his counter & the Gambler behind his money shuffling

cards, at one glace of the eye & within one hundred yards of each other on

Sundays. indeed a man that leaves here unscathed, is one tried in the fire --

The Indians here are the filthiest set of beings I ever saw. I have seen

them eating lice -- I have not seen nor heard of the Parkinsons or any of

the others who came from Van Wert since my arrival -- As I must soon

close permit me to finish with a few words relative to myself -- I got here

without funds   I had one yoke [pair] of oxen, they did not bring me

as much as I gave for them   I only got $50 for them, I was out of pro-

visions. now let me give you the prices of some articles -- flour 25 ct. per

lb. coffee $1. potatoes 25 per lb. onions $1 per lb. cheese 1 & $1.25 per lb.

butter $125 per lb. sugar 40 cts. per lb. porks 40 cts. per lb. vinegar $1

per qt. molassas 1$ per qt. Etc. I tried hard to get into some employ

such as digging driving cart or the like but could not. in fact although I

was sick & worn out yet I would have laboured at any thing to make money.

I finally concluded to try pill pedling, (doctors are as plenty as Grass-

hoppers in a Meadow) & have located for the time being here in hopes of

being able to earn my board.⁵ thus far I have done it & I hope by watch-

ing opportunities to find some way to get enough to start home & just as

soon as I do you may expect me, but I cant tell you when that will be -- I

send you some few specks of gold I washed out for the purpose merely to

let you see the article. I likewise send the seed of a peculiar species of

prickly pear found on the plains. if they grow you will say they are the

prettiest things you ever saw -- they grow in sand and dont require much

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LETTER FROM THE GOLD FIELDS                  163

water -- Now my dear family what shall I say to you. I thought I was leaving ample means for you & am not able to advise you what to do, & I think best go to boarding so long as there is any property left. I dont want father to kill himself at work nor do I wish  I like not the idea of living in Van Wert, where I have suffered so much -- do for the best & directly I can raise anything to send I'll send it -- And now for a while farewel1 -- When you repose on your feather beds fancy you see me with my blankets on the ground rolling from side to side trying to find a soft side -- I live off of Bread & Molassas. I have not tasted coffee for a long time -- My health is very poor. I should not have said this much about my health had I not been disheartened on my account. I'll try and get along & if I die here I will try & leave a name you need not be ashamed of -- Farewell, May heavens choisest blessings be poured on you, may your lives & healths be spared Write soon. Direct to Sacremento yr aff Husband father Son & Brother P. J. Hines   THE EDITOR: Robert Ralph Davis, Jr., is Assistant Professor of History at Ohio Northern University.

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