James White was a 21 year old farmer from Quincy, MA. In 1849 he sailed from Boston around Cape Horn to San Francisco and the gold diggings of California. In all he spent 6 months at sea and a year in California. I've transcribed his journal and am publishing it here as well as on Amazon/Kindle and Apple/iBooks.
Well. Here it is, the culmination of a wearisome six month sea voyage in the naive hope of acquiring spectacular riches.
Thursday the 26th.
Commenced to get ready to start on our journey. Had to repair the wagon. In the morning visited by Commodore Jones, Persiver Smith and Gen Rily bound to the Mokelumne River. Camped near us. There was fifty six men in the party and large train baggage wagons & mules.
Started at 5 o'clock P.M. Came to a camp ground in a beautiful wood. Had a dispute wether we should go on or not about 10.
Friday July 27th
Started on our journey at 4 o'clock in morning. Came to Willow Creek campground. Very pleasant camping place. Good water. Distance traveled 18 miles. Left here at 4 P.M. Came to watering place near dry creek at 8 P.M. Dr. Abbe lost his at this place. Offered $10 if any one would find him. I found him after a little search. Wore me out in trying to get him along. Shot a hare ? riding along. Got ahead of my bedding. Slept in the open air. Wagons broke down again.
July 28th
Felt rather unwell & tired. Started at eight. Camped at Sutter's Creek. Distance traveled 5 miles over steep & bad hills. Felt unwell. Symptoms of the dysentery. Felt very weak. Felt very thirsty. The sun parch. Very hot. Stayed over night at this place. Camped in the open air. Thought to myself the difference between sleeping here on the damp ground and in a comfortable house. diarrhea
July 29th.
I started off early in the morning in hopes to get through. Felt very unwell. Rode Dr. Abbe’s horse. Chafed & jared me very much.
Got through to the Mokelumne River at 4 P..M. Felt very much fatigued & sick. In the eve took some pills. Teams lost the road. One broke down. Had very bad luck from the beginning.
Monday July 30th
Sick all day. Company laid still recruiting. Some went prospecting.
July 31st.
Very sick. Dysentery. Company commence digging. Came in with rather discouraged continuances. My mess was the most fortunate.
Wednesday Aug. 1st.
Very sick. Applied to Dr. Abbe for medicine. Gave me some opium pills to check it. Company came in at night growling.
August 2nd.
Sick. Not gaining much. The Company in an uproar. Strong talk of dissolving. Some were prosperous. Others not. Majority no luck at all.
Friday Aug. 3d
Sick, but gaining a little. Company still in an uproar. Had a meeting for the purpose of dissolving in the eve. Adjourned without doing much. It is my belief that they could not do anything together and for the good of the whole, it was best to break up.
Today a man was prosecuted by having his ears cut off, head shaved & 100 lashes for theft.
Saturday Aug. 4th
Gaining a little from sickness with the help of wine & - Today the mail bag arrived. Looked anxiously for letters. Baxter brought in tent two, but on opening them to my great dissatisfaction they were not mine, but from a love sick dejected damsel of Oswego, N.Y. Sent them back to a gent of my name who she expects will get a pile.
This eve a meeting was held of the Company, near 100 in number, for the purpose of dissolving. I was just able to attend being very weak. After discussing the matter a little, the question was put and carried only three voting against it.
I for one done my best from the beginning of the excitement onboard the ship to keep the Company together up to the present time, but I am fully convinced that it is impossible for the Company to hold together & prosper as it was for the sun to rise in the west from these facts being shown the past week. Some were determined not to work. Some did not know how to work & some too lazy & those that did work were dissatisfied with those that did not & kept up a continual uproar. Therefore I voted in favor although down sick & a poor hand for weeks probably at mining.
Chose J.S. Bates, IC. Whipple & Mr. Bryant as commissioners for the settlement of the affairs of the Company. Voted that on and after Monday the 20th the Company be only responsible for the support of those taken sick on or before that time, and that the Directors and such of the Company as were not notified who were working on the steam boat and boats in the river should draw pay for their services up to that date, the pay to be left to the commissioners above. That they should make their own individual ways.
Voted that each member should have if he wished it $60 worth of provisions & tools entrusted to him to be deducted from his share of the profits & that such of the members who were not up should be taken up free & have the same privileges that the rest have had.
And so it was. In an earlier post I pointed out how young the men of the company were and said their lack of experience would bring trouble.
If there is such a thing as the wisdom of old men, it's principle tenant must be that very few worthwhile projects are successful on the first attempt. Initial failure is inevitable and is nearly essential in that it informs the redefinition and reformation of a project that eventually leads to success. More experienced leaders would have easily anticipated this result and prepared the Company for disappointment and reformation. At this time the gold rush was young and there was tremendous wealth to be discovered. One hundred and fifty men organized to explore and exploit the rivers of the Sierra Nevada would have had an excellent chance of success. The personnel problem within the Company was a management problem that could have been resolved had there been a leader knowledgable and motivated to resolve them.
Pity.
Next week Mr. White's journal continues. He has yet another year's worth of adventures to record.