Historical Marker
The Big Strike
Historical marker location:
109 The Embarcadero, San Francisco, California
( Marker is on The Embarcadero near Howard Street, on the right when traveling west.)
The California Gold Rush of 1849 brought a huge influx of people to the state. In just two years, the population of San Francisco grew from 1,000 to 25,000. However, only a small percentage of gold-seekers actually struck it rich, and many ended up in debt or poverty.