Written By Glenn A. Walnum
History Journals
The Georgia
Gold Rush
Stories Based On History
nothing like it. That's right I
said Georgia not California.
Why gold been sought after
here in Georgia since the mid
1500's before any one cared
about any California. The
Spaniards came over looking
for gold and teamed up with
Indians of the time and
formed small mining camps
around the Georgia hills.
Panned and mined for gold
till the early 1700s.
I don't know why, but the
Spanish were forced out of the
area and most of the mining
came to an end. It still went on
here and there but the interest
just wasn't the same again
until around 1818.
Peoples interest in gold started
growing again. A lot of folks
came up the Unicoi road. That's
where I like to stay while in this
time and area.
What I liked about it was being
able to meet alot of the pioneers
and miners that marched up the
road to settle and search for
riches of gold that was in the
Georgia hills. Of course not
everyone was here for the gold,
there were those that came hear
just to enjoy the riches of nature.
The streams, hills, waterfalls,
wildlife and such or was looking
to start a new life.
You could tell the ones coming
looking for gold though. They
had that nieve excitement and
fire in thier eyes that comes
with the hope of getting rich the
easy way. It doesn't matter
always the same, people
with get rich quick sceams.
It's always the same
result, a few get rich at
the expense of the many.
For most it just didn't pan
out.
I didn't bother talking
people out of it. I just
chuckled to my self and
told them what they wanted
to hear. "Thars gold in
them thar hills". Thats
right, that saying got
started right here in
Georgia.
The starting of this gold
rush was also the
starting of some of the
most bitter times in
America. The Cherokee
Indians in 1938 was
ordered removed from
the lands A little over
a half century after the
making of the us
declaration of
independence declaring
that all are created equal
and should have the same
rights. I don't know why
this didn't apply to the
Cherokee. It seems it
was a combination of
greed and prejudice that
caused the hatred.
Prejudice, something else
that has always been
around. I can understand
why in this time they felt
the way they did. The
Cherokee siding with the
British against the colonist
in the fight for independence
not to long before.
