Walter Colton

The Reverend Walter Colton was serving as a chaplain aboard the U.S.S.Congress when it arrived in California in 1846. For most of the three years he remained in California, Colton served as the alcalde, or provincial governor, of Monterey. After returning to the East Coast in 1850, Colton published some of his journals and letters in his memoirThree Years in California.

In a May 29, 1848, letter sent to his relatives on the East Coast, Colton somewhat skeptically reports the news that gold was discovered on the American Fork of the Sacramento River. In a subsequent series of letters, the last of which was dated September 16, 1848, Colton relates the incredible transformation he observed in the area during the short span of three and a half months after the discovery was confirmed.

MONDAY,MAY 29. Our town was startled out of its quiet dreams...