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.
Dec. 15th.
Disagreeable weather. Business dull on the str. Looked anxiously for letter again by the Senator. Apleton went down. Got a situation. Inquired at the post office. No letters for us.
Sunday, Dec 16th.
Rainy, cold & disagreeable. No place to go but the gambling to warm us. Sick of such a life. More than 300 monte & roulette tables in the city that take the continual working of 3000 miners to support them.
The 17th.
Concluded to let or sell the house thinking we would make something by it as we had not funds enough to carry on business.
The 18th.
Fine day. Senator due this eve. Look for letter. Did not arrive.
The 19th.
Goodrich arrived from the mines. Pd me 12$ for the Curtis gun, the most he could get for it. The Senator arrived. Heard from Apleton. The express etc. No letters for me or Baxter or papers in the office at S. Francisco. Gave up all hopes of receiving any till time for a letter to go home to have my name altered J.N. White and to return. Commenced blowing violently from the SE. Blowing down in the course of the night many tents & rag houses.
Thursday the 20th.
Rained steadily all day. The sts very muddy & nasty. Stayed in all day. Felt very disagreeable all day. One of those blue days and was told by Waldron that San F. was much worse place than this for mud being 2 ft of mud. Very unpleasant compared with this.
The 21st.
Continued storming. River rising very rapidly. Three feet more & it would flood more than one third or more of the city. Gloomy day. Cleared away towards night.
The 22nd.
Wrote letters to Charles & Abby, D. Rollins. Very pleasant day.
The 23rd.
Finished letters etc. Stormy day. Kept in.
Monday Dec. 24th, 1849
Great fire at San Francisco. Hundreds of thousands dollars worth burnt up, the Parker House and whole square. First fire in that city of importance. Pleasant day. Waiting for B--r to get a place having had some encouragement of J.B. Starr, auction & commission merchant. Concluded to hirer the house or buy out Baxter & go into business myself if he got a place.
Tuesday 25th.
Stormy. A blue day. Baxter to have an answer the next day of Starr yes or no. Wished it might be yes as there would not be business enough for two.
The 26th.
Baxter got no place. We both concluded to go into business if ever so small. Meant to make a start on the morrow. Visited the auction rooms to speculate.
The 27th.
Bought lumber to build on back end of the house & for counter & shelves. Lumber falling & everything else. Merchants selling out at auction. Many of them. Pd 18$ for sheet iron stove. Predict a great fall in the prices before march next.
Friday Dec 28th.
Pleasant day sewing canvas etc. for the extra room. River falling rising.
The 29th.
Completed the house--Got New York papers up to the 16th. of Nov. News of 30 more Quincyians coming out. Poor victims got taken down at the last moment with the fever. They will wish themselves to home. River rising. Several drowned out. Ferry across several of the streets.
Sunday the 30th.
The old year is fast drawing to a close. Pleasant remembrances of home, New Years & Christmas days & eve, pleasant hours & days past and gone.
The river still rising. Fears of its inundating the city. Everyone predicts it before the season is over.
Wednesday Dec. 31st.
Another year expires. How swift its flight & yet recollections of the different scenery, the agreeable & disagreeable hours, the expedition etc. It seems an age. Thus my journal for the year 1849 closes. May 1850 be as even as the figures it represents and pleasant to me as the past : JNW [his initials]
Sacramento City
Tuesday January 1st., 1850
A new year has commenced, and I wish with me and all related & all my friends a happy one. I am determined, if I have my health, to make it a profitable one. Yes, now is the time to make money. Baxter gives up again for want of confidence, not liking to begin small. I am willing to do anything that is honest to make money. Baxter offers to sell out to me. Determined to buy if he within reason. Bevins not p’d up yet. Expect $60 by dividend this week. Eaton offered to loan me one hundred.