3. Merchants of the Gold Rush
As gold fever swept California, Jewish entrepreneurs seized the chance to build fortunes—not by mining, but by supplying the miners. In boomtowns like San Francisco and Sacramento, they opened general stores, supply depots, and even early banking houses. By providing essential goods—from boots to shovels—they became indispensable to prospectors. Many Jewish merchants, through savvy business sense and hard work, often prospered far more than those digging for gold, leaving a lasting mark on the economic landscape of the West.
