The Gold Nugget and the California Gold Rush

Grade Range: 9-12
Resource Type(s): Primary Sources, Interactives & Media, Lessons & Activities
Date Posted: 11/7/2009

This object-based learning activity revolves around the gold nugget that began the California gold rush. In this resource, students will learn how examining the gold nugget can help them understand the story of the gold rush and its importance to the story of westward expansion. After exploring the gold nugget and its importance as a source of historical information, students will visit the forum section of the site to hear the Museum's curators and historians discuss the object and then use what they have learned to complete the Virtual Exhibit Activity.

This resource is part of The Object of History, a cooperative project between the Smithsonian's National Museum of American History and George Mason University's Center for History and New Media.

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