The topic of our lecture today is the history of the gold rush. I will talk mainly about california in the years immediately following 1848. But gold has played a very Important Role in American History. If you think back to the conquistadors, one of the things they were fascinated by was the quest for gold. And the history of their conquest, first of the aztecs and then of the incas, is an unquenchable desire for Precious Metals. Gold and also silver. When the first english settlers came to jamestown in 1607, what they were hoping to find was the same kind of supplies of gold that had been found by the spaniards. It was a source of bitter disappointment to not to find gold in whats now virginia. They brought with them jewelers and goldsmiths. But americas first gold rush took place close to where we are now in georgia in 1829. This was the georgia gold rush in north georgia. If you have been about 100 miles north of here you will have seen the old county courthouse has been converted
To thank you for joining us this afternoon. I will introduce david and he will introduce the other panelists. Im not afraid to say i consider columnistseminent affairs in the country. Also, i commend if you want to get a understanding of the middle east, read the novels. They are very understanding of the subtle and byzantine trends. Oing on in the middle east david will go ahead and. Ntroduce the other panelists thank you all for coming back after your coffee break. This is kind of the conspiracy of old friends. College orgo back to we begin as journalists together at the hartford crimson in addition to being outstanding journalists with time and newsweek. It is annow inside theort to get extraordinary difficult personality and evan is going to the coldn historian of issuesnking about the the book being nix on. Is absolutely extraordinary. Evan will discuss a historian of the cold war. Thinking about the issues that underlie the reading list would begin i will save more discussion abo
To thank you for joining us this afternoon. I will introduce david and he will introduce the other panelists. Im not afraid to say i consider columnistseminent affairs in the country. Also, i commend if you want to get a understanding of the middle east, read the novels. They are very understanding of the subtle and byzantine trends. Oing on in the middle east david will go ahead and. Ntroduce the other panelists thank you all for coming back after your coffee break. This is kind of the conspiracy of old friends. College orgo back to we begin as journalists together at the hartford crimson in addition to being outstanding journalists with time and newsweek. It is annow inside theort to get extraordinary difficult personality and evan is going to the coldn historian of issuesnking about the the book being nix on. Is absolutely extraordinary. Evan will discuss a historian of the cold war. Thinking about the issues that underlie the reading list would begin i will save more discussion abo
First is john quist, the tall one standing behind michael birkner. History. Rofessor of he teaches classes in 19 century u. S. History and 20th century as well. He studied at the university of michigan. A student of james mills important portend. John has published a very important book entitled the social roots of antebellum reform in alabama and michigan. And his cospeaker today is michael birkner. Michael is the Benjamin Franklin professor of liberal arts and professor of history at Gettysburg College. Many of you might remember that michael was the interim director of the Civil War Institute. He played a pivotal role in the transition. Let me just say, there is not a person on this faculty that i rely more on than michael birkner. He has been indispensable to what i have done here, with my staff has done, and the way we have been able to connect with Gettysburg College students. And they are students who adore him. I hear time and time again that michael birkners class on historica
First is john quist, the tall one standing behind michael birkner. History. Rofessor of he teaches classes in 19 century u. S. History and 20th century as well. He studied at the university of michigan. A student of james mills important portend. John has published a very important book entitled the social roots of antebellum reform in alabama and michigan. And his cospeaker today is michael birkner. Michael is the Benjamin Franklin professor of liberal arts and professor of history at Gettysburg College. Many of you might remember that michael was the interim director of the Civil War Institute. He played a pivotal role in the transition. Let me just say, there is not a person on this faculty that i rely more on than michael birkner. He has been indispensable to what i have done here, with my staff has done, and the way we have been able to connect with Gettysburg College students. And they are students who adore him. I hear time and time again that michael birkners class on historica