James H. Carson

James H. Carson was serving as a sergeant in a western regiment of the U.S. Army when, while on furlough in 1848, he began prospecting in the region south of the Mokelumne River. Eventually traversing the length of the great San Joaquin Valley, Carson discovered one particularly rich location for gold digging at a creek a few miles north of Robinson's Ferry on the Stanislaus River—a creek that would eventually bear his name.

In 1852, Carson recounted his adventures in what was to be the first book published in Stockton, California—Recollections of the California Mines. Tragically, Carson died in 1853, shortly before his wife and daughter arrived in California to join him. The colorful and comedic writing style that marked Carson's exposition is evident in the following excerpt from his book.

In the tide...