Jump to navigation

Picture This:
California Perspectives on American History
  • Home
  • Browse Pictures
  • Picture Map
  • Log In
  • Activities
  • Teaching Resources
  • About the Website

Search form

Gold Rush: 1848–1860: "I Saw the Elephant"

Click image to zoom in.
Or view larger version.
Untitled (Miner with Shovel). ca. 1850. Photographer unknown. Daguerrotype. Collection of Oakland Museum of California.

This photograph is a portrait of an anonymous 49er with his shovel. During the Gold Rush, a miner’s most important tools were his pick, shovel and gold pan. The 49ers tools were simple. They used pickaxes to break up the rock, shovels to move earth and stone, and gold pans to wash away the soil and gravel.

  • More information about this Topic
Timeline: Gold Rush: 1848–1860
« previous picture
next picture »

Browse By Timeline

  • Early California: pre-1769–1840s
  • Gold Rush: 1848–1860
  • Early Statehood: 1850 – 1880s
  • Progressive Era: 1890–1920s
  • Depression Era: 1930s
  • World War II Homefront Era: 1940s
  • Homogenization, Protests & Outright Rebellion: 1950s
  • Unforgettable Change: 1960s
  • Cultural Realignment & Economic Recession: 1970s
  • The Reagan Years: 1980s
  • 1990s to Present

Also, browse by Theme or by Most Useful

California.  Many Voices.  Many Stories.  Oakland Museum of California
Picture This is a project of the Oakland Museum of California