The California Gold Rush “In a small Californian city of Coloma, January 28, 1848, one event occurred that would change the course of world history and American history (Axon 1)”. A new mill (Sutter’s mill) was put up on the American River, and was doing its job of sweeping away the rubble from, the crystal clear water. James W. Marshall, the mill’s owner, caught something gleaming at the corner of his eye in the water. As he reached over and scraped up some of the silt with his fingers, yellow flakes caught his eye. Many thoughts went through his head such as; what are these flakes doing in my river, or he though it w