“GOLD HERE AND I AM BOUND TO HAVE SOME”:
A MAINER ON HIS NEW LIFE
AND PROSPECTS IN CALIFORNIA

An earnest letter by a gold miner from Maine on the difficulties and hopes of his new life in California, as well as the broader gold rush scene.  Writing from Mormon Island to his brother John H. Oliver, who lived in Bath, Maine, Henry M. Oliver (1808–1876) begins this letter.....