Original subtitles

(dramatic percussion)

(dramatic music)

- [Voiceover] "The far reaching, the boundless future,

"will be the era of American greatness

"in this magnificent domain of space and time,

"the nation of many nations

"is destined to manifest to mankind

"the excellence of divine principles."

John O'Sullivan.

- [Voiceover] It's always been

and will always be a predominant theme

of the American people's psyche to seek out new horizons

and reach as far as their will

and determination can take them.

And then, to reach out a little further.

The nation as a whole,

and right down to the very individual,

has forever sought out what new frontier lies

just over that next hill,

or what is waiting to be discovered

just beyond our sight lines.

We came west across an ocean to make a new home,

where we could live our lives free

from religious persecution.

And then we pushed further,

till we were met with the Appalachian Mountains.

With the purchase of the Louisiana Territory,

from the French,

our nation doubled in size overnight.

And with the return of a small band of explorers

called the Corps of Discovery,

the hearts of the American people

were slowly set aflame with the possibilities

that this vast new tract of land

offered to them and to the nation.

We have always moved west,

forever on towards the setting sun.

The early settlers' spirits had been embued

with a certain wanderlust

since the very moment they set foot on the natives' land.

Americans have not always treaded softly or respectfully

toward those who came before them,

and their relationship with the land

has been one containing both reverence

and the desire to tame it at almost any cost.

Those two simple words,

the West,

have come to symbolize progress itself.

Americans have packed up their lives

and set off into the wilderness for a multitude of reasons.

They've left their homes

for the promise of greater freedom and adventure,

for a chance at hope, rebirth, and love.

And even for gold.

In the beginnings of the 19th century,

the United States of America is still a young country,

just a generation removed (muskets popping)

from the fire, loss and triumph

of the Revolutionary War against the British.

This bright young nation finds itself in a position

to gain new territories through a land purchase from France.

In December of 1803,

France transfers its authority over the Louisiana Territory,

which more than doubles the size of the United States,

overnight.

President Thomas Jefferson

purchased the 828,000 square miles

of land west of the mighty Mississippi

for less than a mere 5¢ an acre,

a bargain for such rich and fertile,

yet unexplored lands.

(sweeping, dramatic music)

The territory stretches from New Orleans

all the way up into Canada,

and west to the Rocky Mountains.

This historic deal sparks a heated debate within the U.S.

as to the constitutionality of the purchase,

a political move,

which even Jefferson questions within himself.

But, in the end,

he rationalizes the purchase as such:

- [Voiceover] "It is the case is the case of a guardian

"investing the money of his ward

"in purchasing an important adjacent territory,

"and saying to him, when of age,

"I did this for your own good."

Thomas Jefferson.

- [Voiceover] Six months after

the Louisiana Purchase is completed,

a group of explorers who would soon come to be known

as the Corps of Discovery

will leave Missouri on a mission from Thomas Jefferson

to obtain as much knowledge as they can

about this newly acquired tract of land.

President Jefferson wants to establish

a United States Presence in the newly acquired territory

before Britain and other European powers

can attempt to lay their own claim to it.

The secondary motives for the group's expedition

are scientific and economic in nature.

The small band of explorers

are in search of a Northwest water passage.

If discovered,

this passage could open up

many trade opportunities with Eastern Europe,

and keep the growing nation moving ever westward.

President Jefferson recruits Meriwether Lewis,

who was serving as the President's personal secretary,

to lead the expedition.

Lewis gladly accepts the mission,

and receives much training

by some of the greatest minds in the country

in such practices as medicine, botany, zoology,

and navigation by celestial observations.

- [Voiceover] "On the acquisition of Louisiana

"in the year 1803,

"the attention of the government of the United States

"was early directed towards exploring

"and improving the new territory."

Meriwether Lewis.

- [Voiceover] Lewis writes to his friend,

a former army colleague, William Clark,

and he invites him to join the expedition as co-captain.

Clark responds to Lewis's request.

- [Voiceover] "This is an undertaking

"fraught with many difficulties,

"but my friend,

"I do assure you that no man lives

"with whom I would prefer to undertake such a trip."

William Clark.

- [Voiceover] With the combined talents of these men,

the wheels are set in motion for what becomes quite possibly

the greatest peaceful exploration expedition

in American history.

The Corps of Discovery,

led by Meriwether Lewis and William Clark,

along with 31 others,

succeed in their mission,

which takes them over two years to complete.

They succeed in so much

as the party does reach the Pacific Ocean,

and in doing so,

they create that much-coveted presence for United States

in these newly acquired lands.

Along their journey,

the Corp of Discovery creates

over 120 maps of the area crossed,

and returns with catalogs of hundreds of botanical,

insect and animal specimens,

which are new to American science.

The band of explorers do not, however,

find a clear-cut water passage to the Pacific Ocean.

The elusive Northwest Passage did not exist.

The group encounters many native tribes and peoples,

with whom they establish good trade relationships

and an overall sense of good will.

Thomas Jefferson's desire

to establish the much sought-after U.S. Sovereignty

over dozens of native tribes along the way

is accomplished.

Before the group's departure,

President Jefferson give the group peace medals,

which have his image on them,

in addition to a message of friendship.

These are given to perceived tribal leaders

as a show of good faith and non-violence.

- [Voiceover] "The first white men of your people

"who came to our country

"were named Lewis and Clark.

"They brought many things which our people had never seen.

"They talked straight,

"and our people gave them a great feast,

"as proof that our hearts were friendly."

Chief Joseph of the Nez Perce.

- [Voiceover] Along their journey,

Lewis and Clark meet a young Shishone woman named Sacagawea,

and her French Canadian husband, Toussaint Charbonneau.

The two accompany Lewis and Clark on their mission,

and soon after joining the group,

Sacagawea give birth to her son, Jean Baptiste Charbonneau.

Sacagawea proves to be a valuable asset

to the Corp of Discovery,

by affirming to the native peoples

that the group was one of peace.

It would have been unheard of

to have a woman in a war party,

let alone one with a small child,

and this settled the minds

of many whom the group encountered.

- [Voiceover] "A woman with a party of men

"is a token of peace."

William Clark.

- [Voiceover] President Jefferson

sees the mission as a success,

and information it provides is a seed that is planted deep

in the subconsciousness of the American people.

America has set its sights West,

and the Corps of Discovery are among the first of many

who will see the grandeur and promise

that the newly acquired and untamed lands have to offer.

As the trade with Europe continues across the Atlantic,

American merchant ships bound for France

begin facing consistent assaults from the British Navy.

Because of Britain's ongoing war with Napoleon's France,

these American ships become entangled in British blockades.

In addition to these blockades,

American's vessels are enduring the effects

of a practice called impressment.

American ships are continually being boarded

by British sailors.

These sailors say that they are looking

for deserters from the British Navy.

All too often,

they are taking off with and imprisoning these men,

many of whom are not deserters,

but in fact are American citizens.

This,

along with the British restrictions

on U.S. trade with France,

brings the tensions in our nation to a breaking point.

On June 1st, 1812,

President James Madison asks Congress

for a Declaration of War.

He is the first President to make such a request.

(sweeping, dramatic music)

President Madison knows full well the risks

that come with this bold declaration,

but he also realizes the danger his nation faces

If he does not take action

against those who show aggression.

Though this declaration is unpopular

with many in New England,

because of the adverse economic effects

that a war with the British would have on the region,

President Madison still gets his war.

He sees the issue of impressment as just the beginning

of what could become a second attempt by the British

to conquer the people of America,

and keep them under their rule.

- [Voiceover] "Perhaps it is universal truth,

"that the loss of liberty at home

"is to be charged to provisions against danger,

"real or pretended, from abroad."

James Madison.

- [Voiceover] The war of 1812 (muskets popping)

carries on for 32 months,

causing over 20,000 American and British

casualties combined.

Though the war eventually ends in a stalemate,

with the Treaty of Ghent,

signed December 24th, 1814.

Many of Great Britain's motives for the war

quickly dissolve once they defeat Napoleon's army

and there is no longer a need to restrict

the U.S. trade with France.

The was is seen by some as a second War for Independence,

and it brings about an Era of Good Feeling

in a nation, on the whole.

It emboldens the young nation's sense of sovereignty

and boosts the esteem of the nation.

- [Voiceover] "The was has renewed and reinstated

"the national feelings and character

"which the Revolution had given,

"and which were daily lessened.

"The people are more American.

"They feel and act more as a nation,

"and I hope the permanency of the Union

"is thereby better secured.

Secretary of the Treasury, Albert Gallantin.

(dramatic, sweeping music)

- [Voiceover] One particular battle also bears the fruit

of what would one day become our national anthem.

Francis Scott Key

pens the lyrics to the Star Spangled Banner

while being held captive on a British ship

as it attacks Fort Henry in Baltimore.

When he awakes in the morning,

he's inspired by the sight

of the American flag's broad stripes and bright stars,

still waving high above the fort

after a night of intense bombardment by British warships.

The great expanses of what would one day become

the Western United States

were filled with countless creatures

whose pelts would fetch more than a fair price

by those living back East and across the Atlantic.

As is so often the case,

money is the catalyst and the fuel

which blazes new trails into the unkown

and entices men to take risks

they might not have otherwise taken.

John Jacob Astor is one of those men.

From humble beginnings in his music shop in New York City,

which he started with his wife, Sarah Todd,

and her modest $300 dowry,

he eventually becomes one of the richest men in America.

His Pacific Fur Company affects the course of history

with its bold movements westward.

Fort Astoria, in what would later become Oregon,

is a prime example of the Americans' innate belief

in Manifest Destiny,

and the country's ever-present desire to reach out farther,

take possession,

and tame their surroundings.

Robert Stewart, a partner of John Astor,

is stationed at Fort Astoria.

Stewart leaves the confines of the fort,

bound east for St. Louis.

His journey leads him along the Columbia River,

and then the Snake River,

in a southeasterly direction.

Stewart meticulously maps the details of his journey

and collects a wealth of knowledge

about the environment around him,

much in the same way Lewis and Clark did,

ten years earlier with the Corps of Discovery.

Without realizing the gravity

of what his journey will come to mean,

Stewart has completed, in reverse direction,

the path that would soon become known

as the Oregon Trail.

He presents his meticulously kept journal of the trip

to Astor and President James Madison,

and it is published in France.

But it is years before the path

is widely used by the masses.

Slowly,

the word of the untamed lands and all the promise they held

would leak out to the general population back East,

and these weather-worn mountain men

would soon give way to families, farmers,

and those seeking new hope and new lands.

- [Voiceover] "How long the trail,

"how far the goal?

"Last year the moons might come and go

"like dancing shadows on the snow.

"My heart was light,

"my heart was strong.

"I cared not, though the way be long."

A song of the Oregon Trail, by Helen Hay Whitney

(sweeping, dramatic music)

- [Voiceover] Roughly 22 hundred miles long,

the Oregon Trail is the iconic path

that hundreds of thousands of Americans would traverse

on their journey Westward,

into the fertile valleys of Oregon.

Just mention of the trail illicites, to this day,

pastoral images of covered wagons driven by teams of oxen

crossing the great American Plains.

The fur trappers and traders (soft conversations)

that cut the path from 1811 to 1840

would now yield to wagon trains of farmers,

bankers, businessmen and miners,

many of whom would bring along their families

for this great American migration.

Since the Lewis and Clark expedition,

the temperature of the nation's Oregon fever

had been slowly rising,

thanks to propaganda from those brave few

who had made the trip already.

To travel Westward along the Oregon Trail

is a journey born from independent minds and hearts,

and the trip begins, fittingly enough,

in a small Missouri town

by the name of Independence.

Independence, up until now,

had been the farthest point westward

along the Mississippi River,

where a steamboat could safely travel.

It becomes the jumping-off point for many

who choose to undertake the long journey ahead.

1841 sees the first small group of pioneers,

numbering no more than 70 persons,

strike out from Independence

along the Oregon Trail.

Their goals were to set out and reach

the lush agricultural regions and farm the land.

By 1843,

the number balloons to over 1,000.

It becomes known as the Great Migration,

and word begins to spread.

They pilgrimage west would take the travelers

roughly four months,

which was eight months shorter

than the quickest route by sea,

thus making the land journey

a much more appealing option to the average citizen

who wished to change their current situation.

Each Spring,

pioneers flood into the town of Independence, Missouri.

During their sojourn,

they seek out friends and family

and make any last minute purchases

of necessary gear and supplies

that they will need to take with them for the trip ahead.

This influx of temporary citizens does not go unnoticed

by the merchants and shopkeepers of Independence.

With every Spring, there's a boom in business.

That businessmen and shopkeepers capitalized

on those who are Westward bound

is a theme that runs throughout the American expansion.

There will always be those who seek out an adventure,

and there will always be those there to supply them

with the tools they require along the way.

Those Westward bound pioneers

who set out from Independence Missouri too early

soon would discover that not enough grass

had grown along the plains

to feed their oxen and other livestock.

Those who leave too late in the season

face the harsh winters and the closing of mountain passes

further west along the trail.

They're timing would have to be just right

in order to make the journey with the best weather possible.

Even with a departure timed perfectly,

travelers still faced tremendously violent summer storms

that would batter their wagons,

which were covered with nothing more

than linseed oiled cotton cloth.

During such storms,

fatal lightning strikes were not uncommon.

And overloaded covered wagons could be pelted

with hail the size of cannon shot.

All who traveled the Oregon trail would bear witness

to the hazards that Mother Nature set before them,

and those hazards which they, themselves,

often needlessly created while on their journey.

Many of the travelers fear attacks from native Indians.

While this threat is, in fact, present,

the pioneers were much more likely

to fall victim to the elements of nature

or their own ineptitude.

Accidental gunshots, broken limbs, and disease

were common occurrences along the trail.

The Oregon Trail would continue to be used

by those who were Westward bound until 1884,

when the Union Pacific Railroad Company

laid tracks along the route.

(soft, sweeping music)

Perhaps the most remembered and tragic group

of American pioneers

who faced the unforgiving elements of the West

is the Donner-Reed Party.

The group sets out from Independence Missouri

in the Spring of 1846,

at the tail end of that year's batch of settlers.

The core of the group centers around three families,

George and Jacob Donner, and James F. Reed.

Several other families join the wagon train along the way.

The news had spread of a quicker way to the West.

Travelers were handed pamphlets,

and some had copies of Lansford Hasting's

Emigrant's Guide to Oregon and California.

Speaking of a cutoff at Fort Bridger,

which claimed to save many miles.

The cutoff leads travelers south of the Great Salt Lake

and across the Salt Lake Desert.

The early stages of the journey for the Donner-Reed Party

passed with little incident,

and the group reaches Fort Laramie in late June,

fully intact and generally in good spirits.

While there,

James Reed meets an old friend from Illinois,

a mountain man named James Clyman.

Clyman has just come East using the Hastings Cutoff,

and he warns Reed not to take the route,

telling him, "Take the regular wagon track,

"and never leave it."

Despite the advice of his good friend,

Reed chooses to stick to his original plan,

and use the Hastings Cutoff.

It is this decision that will steal away precious days

in the journey west,

which will ultimately seal the fate

of those in the Donner-Reed Party.

On the 17th of July, near the Continental Divide,

the party encounters a lone rider

who has a tattered letter from Lansford Hastings

encouraging the emigrants to press onwards

towards Fort Bridger.

All but 20 wagons heed the warning of James Clyman.

The Reeds and the Donners do not.

(soft conversations)

The Hasting's Cutoff claims to shorten the travel distance

by 350 to 400 miles,

and be a much easier path,

but it will prove to be nothing of the sort.

The Donner-Reed Party faces barely passable trails

through the Wasatch Mountains,

harsh weather,

and the Great Salt Desert,

which cost them half their livestock and many wagons

before Lansford Hastings shortcut

would meet up with the old trail.

The Great Salt Desert drives their cattle mad with thirst,

and steals them away into its vast emptiness,

where most of them are never recovered.

The wagons get stuck in the salt-crusted mire,

and the supposed two-day journey across the desert

takes five grueling days to complete, instead.

The party crosses the desert

and stops at the foot of Pilot Peak to rest,

and to search for its lost cattle.

It's five days until they are fresh enough to set out again.

With some of their strength reclaimed,

they're ready for the final push

through the Sierra Nevada Mountains.

An inventory is taken,

resulting in the knowledge that they do not have enough food

to make it to California.

Charles Stanton and William McCutchen

are chosen to ride ahead to Sutter's Fort

to request additional provisions.

Just before reaching the Truckee River,

which will guide them up to the Sierra Nevada Mountains,

more hardship strikes the travelers

when Piaute Indians kill 21 of the Donners' oxen.

A small glimmer of hope comes

in the form of the returning Charles Stanton.

He brings seven mules worth of much-needed provisions,

along with two Indian guides,

and promising word that the pass through the Sierra Nevadas

should remain open for yet another month.

The weather-worn group starts up the river again,

and on October 31,

the front axle of George Donner's wagon breaks.

While fashioning a new one out of cut timber,

he gashes his hand,

and he and his family fall further behind

the rest of the group.

- [Voiceover] "We pushed on as fast

"as our failing cattle could haul our almost empty wagons,

"and at last,

"we reached the foot of the main ridge near Truckee Lake.

"It was sundown.

"The weather was clear,

"but a large circle around the moon

"indicated an approaching storm."

- [Voiceover] The party rests for the night,

and waits for the Donners to catch up,

but the family does not come.

During the night,

in the darkness and the ominous silence of the foothills,

the weather breaks and it begins to snow.

When the members of the Donner Party awake,

they see how the environment around them

has been transformed.

Feet of snow have fallen.

Their wagons can find no purchase

upon the barely visible path.

They slip. They get stuck.

And their Indian guides cannot find the road.

After thousands of miles of troublesome paths,

and seven months of arduous travel,

the Donner-Reed Party's fate is sealed

as they fall short by one day and only 150 miles

from Sutter's Fort in California.

(soft piano)

The party will make camp back at Truckee Lake,

and will then endure five months

of bitter isolation in the mountains,

before relief is finally able to reach them.

(quiet music)

When their provisions run out

just a few weeks into their icy imprisonment,

the members of the party search

for the livestock that had starved and were now frozen

and buried under countless feet of snow.

When they cannot find them,

they eat the hides they used

as makeshift roofs and blankets.

(soft music)

After the hides were gone,

the gnawing hunger would cause the desperate travelers

to turn towards grimmer options in order to survive.

(soft, sad music)

Of the 87 souls who set out

from Independence Missouri in the Spring of 1846,

only 48 survived.

Out of desperation,

the Donner-Reed Party had to resort

to the cannibalization of some of its fallen members.

Careful labeling measures were taken of the fallen pioneers,

so people did not consume their own kin.

The survivors of the party

are eventually extracted by four relief groups

over the course of 55 days.

But the brutal winter's damage had been done.

Some of the widows quickly remarried,

and would refuse to ever speak of the experience.

(soft, mournful music)

The tragic story of the doomed Donner-Reed Party

remains one of the most vivid tales

of this period of American expansionism

into the West.

It serves as a cautionary tale

and an example of the deep sacrifices made by those

in the name of promise, hope,

and Manifest Destiny.

Their plight would not soon be forgotten by the country,

but in the coming years,

the idea of the West

would lure thousands to make rushed decisions

when it came to the balance

of their own personal well-being,

and those around them,

in exchange for a chance at a richer, better life.

- [Voiceover] "Mexico has passed

"the boundary of the United States,

"has invaded our territory,

"and shed American blood upon American soil.

President James K. Polk.

The Mexican American War begins to take its shape

when on April 25th, 1846,

Mexican Troops fire on U.S. mounted soldiers

who were moving along the northern bank

of the Rio Grande River.

President James K. Polk considers the Rio Grande

to be the official border between

the United States and Mexico.

But Mexico considers the Nueces River,

which is 150 miles to the north,

to be the true border.

Eleven Americans are killed in the skirmish,

and over 50 are taken prisoner.

When the news reaches Washington,

President Polk jumps at the chance

to ask congress for a Declaration of War.

The President had been jockeying his soldiers

into positions of provocation,

and now he had that spark to set fire to the dispute

over the Rio Grande Border.

President James K. Polk had been elected two years earlier,

on a platform of expansionism,

and he firmly believed in the concept of Manifest Destiny.

President Polk feels that

it's part of God's plan for the United States

to expand and inhabit the continent

all the way to the Pacific Ocean.

- [Voiceover] "Peace, plenty, and contentment

"reign throughout our borders,

"and our beloved country

"presents a sublime moral spectacle to the world."

James K. Polk.

(soft piano)

- [Voiceover] This moral spectacle would fall suspect

to the coming actions of the Polk administration.

The lands that he most desires are all controlled by Mexico.

President Polk attempts to bully Mexico

into negotiating the all-out sale of these coveted lands

for the paltry sum of $30,000,000.

These lands include most of present-day California,

Nevada, Utah, Arizona as well as New Mexico.

President Polk is unprepared for the zeal

with which the Mexican people resist his advances.

In February of 1845,

the U.S. annexes Texas,

which had been an independent territory.

Upon doing so,

Mexico completely cuts off its diplomatic ties

with the United States,

and the rift between the two nations deepens

to a point beyond visible repair.

President Polk sends Congressman John Slidell to Mexico,

in the hopes that he can urge Mexico

to sell their Northern Territories for the $30,000,000,

as well as persuade them to agree that the Rio Grande

is the true border between the two nations.

If John Slidell were to succeed in his mission,

this deal would result in Mexico losing over half its land.

Mexican officials catch wind of the details

of Congressman Slidell's true purpose for being in the city,

and they send the envoy home before talks can even begin.

(soft piano)

In response,

President Polk sends troops into that disputed territory

between the Nueces and Rio Grande Rivers.

In his mind,

he's doing no wrong

and simply moving men into Southern Texas.

But, he knows all too well by now,

the Mexicans consider this land to be part of their nation.

Troops build a fort,

and after a month, station there.

The tensions boil over,

and the U.S. provocation works in forcing Mexico's hand

into action.

On April 25th, 1846,

the Mexican Cavalry attacks the group of soldiers

stationed near the Rio Grande River,

and they kill about a dozen U.S. soldiers.

Under the command of General Zachery Taylor,

and with the help of reinforcements and superior firepower,

the U.S. soldiers are able to prevail

at the battles of Palo Alto

and Resaca de la Palma. (muskets popping)

Following these battles,

President Polk tells the Congress,

- [Voiceover] "The cup of forbearance has been exhausted

"even before Mexico passed the boundary

"of the United States,

"invaded our territory and shed American blood

"upon American soil."

- [Voicever] Just two days later, Congress declares war.

The declaration is pushed through,

despite harsh opposition

from some of the northern lawmakers.

Mexico never officially never declares war

upon the United States.

As the wheels of war begin turning,

Mexico sees that they are in a corner,

and they turn to their old General,

Antonio Lopez de Santa Anna.

He is living in exile in Cuba,

and convinces President Polk

that if he is allowed to return to Mexico,

he could end the war swiftly

and on terms that the United States would see as favorable.

Polk agrees to allow his return,

and the moment he sets foot on Mexican soil,

he betrays the President

and takes control of the Mexican Army,

and leads it into battle.

Santa Anna's army suffers heavy losses

at the Battle of Buena Vista,

and they are forced to withdraw.

Despite the setback,

he takes up the Mexican Presidency the following month.

The United States eventually overtakes Mexico City.

General Santa Anna resigns,

and the United States forces Mexico

to sign the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo

on February 2nd, 1848,

which details the sale of Mexico's Northern Territories

to the U.S. for half of its original offer of $30,000,000,

plus certain damage claims.

The territories surrendered in the treaty

include present-day California, Nevada,

Utah, New Mexico,

as well as most of Arizona and Colorado,

along with parts of Texas, Oklahoma,

Wyoming and Kansas.

This shrinks Mexico by almost half.

Mexico also loses Texas permanently,

and is forced to recognize the Rio Grande River,

not the Nueces,

as the true border between Mexico and the United States.

(soft wistful music)

The Mexican American War lasts roughly

two years. (muskets popping)

The fighting drags on longer than President Polk expects.

The expense is, as well as the loss of American life,

is greatly criticized in Washington.

But President Polk achieves what he sought out to do,

but at a much higher cost to the United States

than he originally intended.

The conflict is seen as one of conquest by some in the U.S.,

including anti-imperialists,

anti-slavery people,

and the Whig Party.

The war is a defining moment in time

for both Mexico and the United States.

While the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo

is signed on February 2nd,

just a mere nine days earlier,

in the waters of the American River in California,

a man by the name of James W. Marshall

finds a few pieces of gold near the mill

he has been contracted to build and run for Mr. John Sutter.

(dreamy music)

This small and completely accidental discovery

would soon fundamentally alter the course of our nation.

Within two years,

California would become a state,

as well as a magnet,

to tens of thousands of Americans and Foreigners alike,

all of whom seek success and riches

in these mountains and rivers

of this newly acquired territory.

Two small nuggets of gold become the catalyst

for the largest migration in the history of our nation.

John Augustus Sutter,

born Johann August Sutter,

is a Swiss-born pioneer

who leaves his wife and five children

and comes to America to escape his personal debts back home.

Like many who came to America,

the country lent them the opportunity to start over,

a new life on new soil.

Sutter eventually settles himself in California,

which at this time is still a provence of Mexico.

So he ventures to the capital at Monterey,

to ask permission from the Governor, Juan Bautista Alvarado,

in order to settle.

To be able to qualify for land ownership,

Sutter becomes a Mexican Citizen on August 29th, 1840.

He soon thereafter receives title

to 48,827 acres of land

on the Sacramento River.

He names his new settlement New Helvetia,

New Switzerland.

With the help of the Maidu Indians,

Sutter builds the fort that, one day,

the doomed Donner Party would reach out to for aid.

His sights are set on building his New Switzerland

and creating an agricultural empire.

James W. Marshall is a New Jersey-born farmer and carpenter

who, much like John Sutter,

finds himself kicking around the Middle West of the nation,

seeking to find a way to establish himself.

After droughts foiled his attempts at farming,

and falling ill with malaria,

Marshall joins a wagon train that's headed west,

destined for Oregon's Willamette Valley.

Marshall makes his way down into California,

where he reaches Sutter's Fort.

John Sutter places him under his employ,

and Marshall finds his financial fortunes on the upswing.

He once again becomes a farmer.

Soon after, though,

the conflict and tensions between Mexico and the U.S. begin,

and John Marshall joins

Captain John C. Fremont's California Battalion,

in the short-lived Bear Flag Revolt.

He returns home to his ranch

and finds that his cattle have either strayed

or have been stolen.

With no source of income, he loses his land.

Marshall soon enters into partnership with John Sutter.

to build and operate a sawmill in Coloma, California

on the American River,

just 40 miles upstream of Sutter's Fort.

While under construction,

in January 1848,

it's discovered that the ditch which drains the water

away from the water wheel is much too narrow and shallow

to handle the amount of water that is needed

to keep the saw operational.

Marshall opts to use the river's natural force

to do the excavating for him,

in order to enlarge the tailrace.

There was no other choice

than to take this action over the course of the night,

because if done during the workday,

the process could endanger the lives of his men

working on the mill.

On the morning of January 24th,

Marshall goes out to examine the progress

of the channel below the mill.

As he his surveying the developments from the night before,

he notices a few flecks in the water,

catching the light of the sun and shining back at him.

(dreamy music)

James Marshall's primary focus and responsibility

would remain to be the completion of the saw mill,

so he sees no harm in his permitting his crew

to search for gold in their free time.

Perhaps this is why it takes four whole days

before he travels to Sutter's Fort

to show his findings to his partner, John Sutter.

There, the two men examine the gold further,

and even reference an encyclopedia

to make sure of its properties.

They agree to keep the discovery quiet,

but little do they know that it's already too late.

A young journalist by the name of Samuel Brannan,

who owns a general store,

has employees of John Sutter purchase goods from him,

and these men pay with gold flecks

that they have taken from the American in their spare time.

This encounter ignites

Brannan's curiosity, (soft conversation)

and he travels to the mill

as a representative of L.D.S. church,

where receives tithes of gold

from the L.D.S. workers.

Soon, the news that there is gold being harvested

from the American River

will spread far and wide

faster than the metal can be pulled from the ground.

Samuel Brannan takes his newly acquired information

and wastes little time in molding it into a means

by which he can turn a profit.

His general store will soon be selling

picks, pans and shovels

to any and all who crossed his threshold

with the glints of gold swirling in their eyes.

The events that take place in the coming years

give rise to perhaps one of the greatest human migrations

in modern times.

The world is in love, obsessed,

enchanted by the promise of gold.

Never before,

in the years that follow,

has the world been mobilized and drawn to one place

with such speed, zeal and recklessness.

An accidental discovery in the American River

will end up seducing the entire world.

(slow, dramatic music)

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