Johann
August Suter was
born
in Kandern, Germany, on 15th February,
1803. He served in the Swiss Army before emigrated to the United States
in 1834. After arriving in St.
Louis
he changed
his name to John
Sutter.
Sutter
made trading trips to Sante Fe (1835 and
1836) before deciding to live in Oregon
in 1838.
The following year he visited Fort
Vancouver and
San
Francisco.
In 1841 Sutter purchasing
49,000 acres at the junction of the Feather and Sacramento rivers
in 1841. This site dominated three important routes: the inland waterways
from San Francisco, the trail to California across the Sierra
Nevada and
the Oregon-California road.
He now decided to build a frontier trading post. Completed in 1843
Sutter Fort had adobe walls eighteen
feet high. The fort had shops, houses, mills and warehouses. He also
had blacksmiths, millers, bakers, carpenters, gunsmiths and blanket-makers.
Sutter
also established the colony of Nueva Helvetia (New Switzerland), which
became a centre for trappers, traders and settlers in the region.
The venture was a great success and within a couple of years Sutter
was a wealthy businessman. Sutter had tremendous power over the area
and admitted: "I was everything, patriarch, priest, father and
judge."
On 24th January, 1848, one of his employees, James
Marshall, discovered gold on Sutter's land. This started the Californian
Gold Rush and by the end of 1849 over 100,000 people from all
over America had arrived in search of gold. Sutter's men also joined
the Gold Rush and he was now unable to protect his
property. His sheep and cattle were stolen and his land was occupied
by squatters. In 1852 Sutter went bankrupt and it was not until 1864
that he received compensation from the state of California.
John
Sutter died on 18th June, 1880.
(1) John Sutter, diary entry
(April, 1838)
I left the State of Missouri (where
I has resided for a many years) on the 1th April, 1838, and travelled
with the party of men under Captain Tripps, of the American Fur Company,
to the Rocky Mountains; from there I travelled with six brave men
to Oregon, as I considered myself not strong enough to cross the Sierra
Nevada and go direct to California (which was my intention from my
first start on having got some informations from a gentleman in New
Mexico, who has been in California.
(2) John
Sutter, diary entry (August, 1839)
It took me eight days before
I could find the entrance of the Sacramento, as it is very deceiving
and very easy to pass by. About 10 miles below Sacramento City I fell
in with the first Indians which was all armed and painted and looked
very hostile; they was about 200 men, as some of them understood a
little Spanish I could make a kind of treaty with them, and the two
which understood Spanish came with me, and made me a little better
acquainted with the country.
All other Indians on the up river hid themselves in the bushes. On
my return all the white men came to me and asked me how much longer
I intended to travel with them in such a wilderness. I saw plain that
it was a mutiny. I answered them that I would give them an answer
the next morning and left them and went in the Cabin.
The following morning I gave orders to return,
and entered in the American River, landed at the former tannery. I
gave orders to get every thing on shore, pitch the tents and mount
the three cannons, called the white Men, and told them that all those
which are not contented could leave on board the Isabella next Morning
and that I would settle with them immediately and remain alone. Of
the six men, three remained and three of them I gave passage to Yerbabuena.
The Indians was first troublesome, and came frequently, and would
it not have been for the cannons they would have killed us for sake
of my property, which they liked very much, and this intention they
had very often, how they have confessed to me afterwards, when on
good terms. I had a large bulldog which saved my life three times,
when they came slyly near the house in the night: he got hold of and
marked them most severely.
(3) John
Sutter, diary entry (March, 1840)
The Indians began to be troublesome all around me, killing and wounding
cattle, stealing horses, and threatening to attack us. I was obliged
to make campaigns against them and punish them severely. I left with
six brave men and took them by surprise at daylight. The fighting
was a little hard, but after having lost about 30 men, they was willing
to make a treaty with me, and after this they behaved very well, and
became my best friends and soldiers, with which I has been assisted
to conquer the whole Sacramento and a part of the San Joaquin Valley.
(4)
John
Sutter, diary entry (28th January, 1848)
Marshall
arrived in the evening, it was raining very heavy, but he told me
he came on important business. After we was alone in a private room
he showed me the first specimens of gold, that is he was not certain
if it was gold or not, but he thought it might be; immediately I made
the proof and found that it was gold. I told him even that most of
all is 23 carat gold. He wished that I should come up with him immediately,
but I told him that I have to give first my orders to the people in
all my factories and shops.
(5)
John Sutter, Hutchings’
California Magazine (November, 1857)
It was in the first part of
January, 1848, when the gold was discovered at Coloma, where I was
then building a saw-mill. The contractor and builder of this mill
was James W. Marshall, from New Jersey. I was very much in need of
a new saw-mill, to get lumber to finish my large flouring mill, of
four run of stones, at Brighton, which was commenced at the same time,
and was rapidly progressing; likewise for other buildings, fences,
etc., for the small village of Yerba Buena, (now San Francisco.)
It was a rainy afternoon when Mr. Marshall arrived at my office in
the Fort, very wet. I was somewhat surprised to see him, as he was
down a few days previous; and then, I sent up to Coloma a number of
teams with provisions, mill irons, etc., etc. He told me then that
he had some important and interesting news which he wished to communicate
secretly to me, and wished me to go with him to a place where we should
not be disturbed, and where no listeners could come and hear what
we had to say. I went with him to my private rooms; he requested me
to lock the door; I complied, but I told him at the same time that
nobody was in the house except the clerk, who was in his office in
a different part of the house.
I forgot to lock the door and it was opened by the clerk just at the
moment when Marshall took a rag from his pocket, showing me the yellow
metal: he had about two ounces of it; but how quick he put the yellow
metal in his pocket again can hardly be described. The clerk came
to see me on business, and excused himself for interrupting me, and
as soon as he had left I was told, “now lock the doors; didn’t
I tell you that we might have listeners?” I told him that he
need fear nothing about that, as it was not the habit of this gentleman;
but I could hardly convince him that he need not to be suspicious.
Then Marshall began to show me this metal, which consisted of small
pieces and specimens, some of them worth a few dollars; he told me
that he had expressed his opinion to the laborers at the mill, that
this might be gold; but some of them were laughing at him and called
him a crazy man, and could not believe such a thing.
(6) John
Sutter, diary
entry (19th May, 1848)
The great rush from San Francisco arrived at the fort,
all my friends and acquaintances filled up the houses and the whole
fort, I had only a little Indian boy, to make them roasted ripps etc.,
as my cooks had left me like every body else. The merchants, doctors,
lawyers, sea captains, merchants etc., all came up and did not know
what to do. They left their wives and families in San Francisco, and
those which had none locked their doors, abandoned their houses, offered
them for sale cheap. Some of the merchants visited the mines and returned
immediately and began to do a very profitable business, and soon people
came from every where with all kind of merchandise. All found a good
market here.
(7)
William Sherman visited Sutter's Fort
in July, 1848.
At that time there was not
the sign of a habitation there or thereabouts, except the fort, and
an old adobe-house, east of the fort, known as the hospital. The fort
itself was one of adobe-walls, about twenty feet high, rectangular
in form, with two-story block-houses at diagonal corners. The entrance
was by a large gate, open by day and closed at night, with two iron
ship’s guns near at hand. Inside there was a large house, with
a good shingle-roof, used as a storehouse, and all round the walls
were ranged rooms, the fort-wall being the outer wall of the house.
The inner wall also was of adobe. These rooms were used by Captain
Sutter and by his people. He had a blacksmith’s shop, carpenter’s
shop, etc., and other rooms where the women made blankets. Sutter
was monarch of all he surveyed, and authority to inflict punishment
even unto death, a power he did not fail to use. He had horses, cattle,
and sheep, and of these he gave liberally and without price to all
in need. He caused to be driven into our camp a beef and some sheep,
which were slaughtered for our use.
Already the gold-mines were beginning to be felt. Many people were
then encamped, some going and some coming, all full of gold-stories,
and each surpassing the other. We found preparations in progress for
celebrating the Fourth of July, then close at hand, and we agreed
to remain over to assist on the occasion; of course, being the high
officials, we were the honored guests. People came from a great distance
to attend this celebration of the Fourth of July, and the tables were
laid in a large room inside the storehouse of the fort. A man of some
note, named Sinclair, presided, and after a substantial meal and a
reasonable supply of brandy we then began the toasts. All that I remember
is that Folsom and I spoke for our party; others, Captain Sutter included,
made speeches, and before the celebration was over Sutter was enthusiastic,
and many others showed the effects of the brandy.
(8) John
Sutter, Hutchings’ California Magazine (November, 1857)
Soon as the secret was out
my laborers began to leave me, in small parties first, but then all
left, from the clerk to the cook, and I was in great distress; only
a few mechanics remained to finish some very necessary work. The Mormons
did not like to leave my mill unfinished, but they got the gold fever
like everybody else. After they had made their piles they left for
the Great Salt Lake. So long as these people have been employed by
me they have behaved very well, and were industrious and faithful
laborers, and when settling their accounts there was not one of them
who was not contented and satisfied.
Then the people commenced rushing up from
San Francisco and other parts of California, in May, 1848: in the
former village only five men were left to take care of the women and
children. The single men locked their doors and left for “Sutter’s
Fort,” and from there to the Eldorado. For some time the people
in Monterey and farther south would not believe the news of the gold
discovery, and said that it was only a ‘Ruse de Guerre’
of Sutter’s, because he wanted to have neighbors in his wilderness.
From this time on I got only too many neighbors, and some very bad
ones among them.
What a great misfortune was this sudden gold discovery for me! It
has just broken up and ruined my hard, restless, and industrious labors,
connected with many dangers of life, as I had many narrow escapes
before I became properly established. From my mill buildings I reaped
no benefit whatever, the mill stones even have been stolen and sold.
My tannery, which was then in a flourishing condition,
and was carried on very profitably, was deserted, a large quantity
of leather was left unfinished in the vats; and a great quantity of
raw hides became valueless as they could not be sold; nobody wanted
to be bothered with such trash, as it was called. So it was in all
the other mechanical trades which I had carried on; all was abandoned,
and work commenced or nearly finished was all left, to an immense
loss for me. Even the Indians had no more patience to work alone,
in harvesting and threshing my large wheat crop out; as the whites
had all left, and other Indians had been engaged by some white men
to work for them, and they commenced to have some gold for which they
were buying all kinds of articles at enormous prices in the stores;
which, when my Indians saw this, they wished very much to go to the
mountains and dig gold.
By this sudden discovery of the gold, all my great
plans were destroyed. Had I succeeded for a few years before the gold
was discovered, I would have been the richest citizen on the Pacific
shore; but it had to be different. Instead of being rich, I am ruined.
Before my case will be decided in Washington, another year may elapse,
but I hope that justice will be done me by the last tribunal - the
Supreme Court of the United States.
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