The discovery of gold in1848 unleashed the largest migration in United States history and drew people from a dozen countries to form a multi-ethnic society in California.
Not long after Mexico and the U.S. signed a treaty, news that gold had been discovered in northern California spread, and Californios like Coronel began digging.
By 1850, the idea that the extermination of the native population of California was inevitable had been firmly settled in the minds of many white Californians.
The native tribes of California saw themselves as stewards not owners of the land. The white settlers who arrived during the Gold Rush brought a different view.
