The Georgia Gold Rush

When thinking of the phrase “gold rush,” the words "California" or "Klondike" may come to mind. Well before prospectors traveled out west, many tried their luck in the mountains of the state of Georgia. Author David Williams sifts through many obscure resources and historical documents to paint a picture of the Georgia gold rush and its impact on the local Cherokee beginning in 1828 and throughout the subsequent decade. The mining and minting of gold led to heated debates about the forced removal of Cherokee from their land, and eventually to a lottery system to distribute said land among white prospectors. Presidents Andrew Jackson and Martin Van Buren authorized and enforced various Cherokee removal laws, culminating into the infamous Trail of Tears. The U. S. Mint was one beneficiary of the Georgia mines, with the Philadelphia Mint receiving well over a million dollars’ worth of gold.