Early Settlers - Week 18

What attracted many Americans to the land of California?

• The land provided a rich, opportunity to live life

• Some people wanted to come to CA for hunting and trapping furs

• Some people others saw the opportunity that mining natural resources had to offer (The Gold Rush)

• All of the above attracted Americans to California

Who was the last Mexican governor of California that was worried about all the U.S. settlers claiming land in California?

• Jose’ Figueroa

• Pío Pico

• Luiz Vergara

• John Bidwell

How did Mexico allow settlers from the United States to receive land grants and make California their new home?

• They had to become a Mexican citizen and covert to Catholicism

• They had to marry a Mexican

• They paid their debt in gold

What man was once a slave that became a mountain man, trapper, explorer, and trader? He discovered a pass (route) that made traveling through the dangerous Sierra Nevada Mountains much safer.

• John Beckwourth

• Elisha Stephans

• John C. Fremont

• George Donner

John Bidwell, a teacher, left Missouri and became one of the California's greatest _____________________ .

• fur trappers

• soldiers

• farmers

• college professors

Why was Jedediah Smith not welcomed in Mexico-controlled California?

• He had a lot of money

• Jedediah Smith had no interest in becoming a Mexican citizen, so Mexico believed he was a spy for the U.S.

• He was a Spanish priest

Sacramento, California became successful due to what?

• silver that was discovered in the American River

• natural grape vineyards

• a great climate for growing crops

• natural reservoirs that provided water for the dry areas of California

Sacramento is farther inland, so the climate is _______________ than other cities.

• cooler and wetter

• hotter and wetter

• cooler and drier

• hotter and drier (like Fresno)

What fantastic writer convinced many people to travel to California due to the excellent description of the land he surveyed ? (someone who marks and measures the land)

• John C. Fremont

• George Donner

• John Beckwourth

• Elisha Stephens

Who was the Donner Party?

• A group of 77 settlers led by John C. Fremont

• A group of 87 settlers, led by George Donner, who traveled to California

• A group of 50 mountain men searching for new land