SOURCE: "Romantic Poet" and "The Romance of Joaquín Murieta" in John Rollin Ridge: His Life and Works, University of Nebraska Press, 1991, pp. 76-94 and 95-112.

Below, Parins assesses Ridge's love poetry and examines the history behind Joaquín Murieta and Ridge's depiction of the main character.

Romantic Poet

By 1851 Ridge was writing seriously and attempting to have his work published in publications that circulated more widely than local newspapers. He began writing for the Golden Era in its first year of publication. The Golden Era was begun in San Francisco in 1852 by Rollin M. Daggett and J. Macdonough Foard. The literary journal's circulation and fame went far beyond that city, however. It was popular with farmers and miners all over California, and Horace Greeley called it "the most remarkable paper."¹ Its content ranged from novels, short stories, and poems to jokes, local gossip, and rumors. Besides Ridge...