Pike's Peak Gold Rush

When and where was the Pike’s Peak Gold Rush?

In Kansas Territory in July 1858.

News reached east and gold fever broke out again. A trade slump in the east made more people venture west.

Who occupied Kansas territory at this time?

The Cheyenne - a powerful Plains tribe.

• Huge numbers came to Pike’s Peak - over 100,000 by 1859.

What were the 3 main routes to Pike’s Peak?

• The Northern Route via Fort Kearny.

• The Central Route

• The Southern Route via Bent’s Fort

Why did more people come to Pike’s Peak than to California?

• It was easier to get to due to the rail lines up to St. Joseph.

• Town boosters encouraged people to move to their towns.

What was the impact of the Pike’s Peak Gold Rush on gold miners?

• Gold miners made money when gold was discovered at Pike’s Peak.

• More miners came to Pike’s Peak than California. 100,000 people made the journey to Kansas in 1859.

What was the impact of the Pike’s Peak Gold Rush on development of Plains?

• Mining towns in west Kansas needed food. Thousands more people set up farms in the east of Kansas territory. Led to Kansas becoming state in 1861.

• Settlement of Kansas showed Americans could live on the Plains. Western half of Kansas (including Pike’s Peak) renamed Colorado. Denver became a huge town in Colorado.

• St Joseph became a hub for settling in the centre of the USA - mass migration west had begun.

What was the impact of the Pike’s Peak Gold Rush on Indigenous Peoples?

• Led to a shift in relations between White Americans and Indigenous Peoples.

• Fort Laramie Treaty of 1851 created routes across Indigenous Peoples’ Lands. Now white settlers wanted to live on the Plains. White farmers allowed animals to graze on Cheyenne and Arapaho hunting lands. Miners moved into areas were Cheyenne and Arapaho lived.

• US government expected Indigenous People’s to give up lands.