John Sutter

Hello! My name is John Sutter. A long, long time ago, in the year 1834, I went on a big adventure. I sailed across a big ocean to a sunny place called California. I dreamed of building a wonderful new home. I wanted to create a special town where my family and many friends could live and be happy.

When I got to California, I found the perfect spot to build. Around the year 1841, I built a big, strong fort and named it Sutter’s Fort. My fort was a safe place for people to rest after their long, long trips. I also built a special building called a mill with my good friend, James Marshall. A mill is a place near a river that uses water power to help cut big logs into wood. We used the wood to build houses.

One sunny day in 1848, my friend James saw something sparkling in the water at our mill. He reached in and pulled out a shiny, yellow piece of gold! It was so exciting! We found more and more. Soon, everyone heard about the shiny gold in California. People came from all over the world, rushing to find some gold for themselves.

I lived to be 77 years old. Even though my life had many changes, people can still visit my fort today. The shiny gold found at my mill helped California grow into the amazing place it is, and my story became a big part of America's history.