Gold Rush Era Letters

they find none Peter Recd a letter from dela this mail and I Received on from catharene & I ntended to write to dec Rertrou this mail But am tired of writing tonight and the mail starts tomorrow so do not write only to you and my father in New York tell munsen he may look next mail for a letter I Expect Peter has written tell Nicholas N Ryerson to leave that money for the dust on my account in the goshen Bank I was Sorry that he did not send all the Butter But it is two late now I donot want any thing more sent to me for it may be two late here & before I come home Amos M Ryerson I am Inhopes you will be good boy in my absence and attend to busness like a man I am In hopes you have been to school this winter and learnt Something to benefit you Remember that all you do is for your self B;ut I cannot give you any direction what to do your [?] must all do as well as you can for your own intrests I Expect Nicholas has made some thing out of the Butter that he did not send here if it Brot over cost show Nicholas & his Wife and lorenda and all this letter and tell some of them to Write to me I have Expe ted letters from some of your folks a long time but have received none I will write to you as they all can hear from me and see my tethers and I am in hopes the rest will not think hard of me not writing to them for it is tiresom to write more that one goo long letter to you being they dont write to me I Rec Nicholas letter With the Bill of the Butter in it O how I should lik to be home a little while to see you all and have the children hanging a bout me and asking me questions But I try and make Myself contented as I can we have good living here and I take my share of that But N Feather Beds I have N D Direct all your letters to Sacremto Citty Calaforna

But We have had a serrous time here and Sacremento Citty with the cholra thousands died with it But we had good health through it and I am as fleashy as I was at home Ever since I got over My panama Sickness I understood by your last letter that I had left my gold Batches under the Bed & [?] had put them in carpet Bags I wish you both to have good health I can see you both face to face Name it Anna By all means tell hannah & ellarry & Betsy to Kiss you and the baby for me and tell them if I live Eight months from this time if nothing turns more than I Know of just now I will star to divide Equal what we make in the country Except for our own make of Butter I am at sanfrancisco the most of the time to Buy the goods and buisness at Sacremento is [?] on in his name But we are to divide Eequal what we made from the time we started from home we are doing quite well I think we have made some money and if we keep good health & have No Bad luck we may get Paid for our labor tell I save R bar gelder that I was much Pleased to Receive his letter that Ihave made up my mind that I would not Reccomand any man to come to this country for fear that they might have bad luck and thenm they might blame me I have seen more misery here Since I have been here than Ever I seen before it is a hard country to be sick in here is to all others Nor famailys to take care of them But here is some men that make money verry fast by trading and diging two some has dug up fortunes in a few Days But they are few and far between But Hard working and steaddy men can dig on most of the rivers from four to Eight dollars a day common labor in the citties and towns are about five dollars a day and not much Work at that here is a great many men are hunting for Work & say

CALIFORNIA STATE LIBRARY Ryerson, John N.

Sanfrancisco March 13th 1851 Dear Wife & Children I sit down this night at Sanfrancisco this nightto write a few lines to let you Know that myself & Peter I Broun is Well hoping these few lines may find you all the same I was In hopes this mail to have received Some letters from some of you But Received none I Inclose in this a Setificate from Adams Express for two thousand dollars in gold dust and also I sent in my letter of the 1st of Mach a Sertificate for one thousand by adams Express line Both to be delivered to the goshen Bank and when you receive them tell Mr Murry to get it Put in coin and make Out of it as much as he can and and put it to my credit and I Expect to send some the nxt mail and I Expect if we live which I have Written in my other letter that myself and Peter Will be home as soon as July if we can get our buisness arranged as some as May or June things looks now as though we would be through as soonas that we have sold our store house that we ocupy and Expect to wind up our buisness in the course of a few weeks things looks quite favorable at present as if we had made some thing they are this week just unloading the third lot of Butter at Sacremento Citty so three lots are safelyu landed at Sacremento and if it all turns out as well as that I have seen it Will make I think myself that it is the Best lot of Butter take it all together that has Ever arrived in calaforna I have seen a great deal & We have Got and sold a good deal of Butter within three months and this Brings from 15c to 25 cents a pound more than any I could buy [?] is verry low here almost all Kinds of goods loose money for them that send them here from home Almost all articles like Boots and Shoes & pork pails flown [?] is as cheap here as at home so the loss on some is

verry heavy But Butter that comes here nice makes money so I am In luck with that so far But of late I have got a little homesick and I think Peter has also so we have made up our minds to come home as soon as we can close our buisness to a good advantage this Winter has been a most butiful winter here Just cool a nough to be comfortable a little white frost now and then I think I have seen Ice about as thick as a pain of glufs But hardly any rain which is not common in this country they say But they is a severe summer coming to be without Rain for Eight months to come may make hard times for hay and graps hay sells here no for $100 to $120 per ton or from 5 to 6 cents a pound I want you to show this to all for I cannot write to Each so they must Excuse me I Was glad to hear that abraham had been up to see amos last fall I am in hopes they will - both of them be good boys for their own sake I cannot give many particulas in this letter for when I write so often I cannot hardly fill them up with new things so not to write one thing over two often But I am Inhopes soon to see you all face to fase then I can tell more than I write soon I Am boarding at the National Hotel at Sanfrancisco where I have boarded almost all the while I am at Sanfrancisco at $25 a week for Board and lodging the Board is quite good But no fether beds here I have not slep on a feather bed since leaving new York I have not seen one I cannot give any directions But do as well as you can for your own sakes and all will be well Peter Received a letter from John Brown that the speccimens of gold that was sent to you and delia and catharen had arived Safe to paterson and I am Inhopes you have received them Before you receive this No More so good Night give my love to all my friends and Kiss all the children a good night for me you affectionate Husband John N Ryerson

CALIFORNIA STATE LIBRARY Ryerson John N.

San Francisco Cala Monday Eve Apl 14, 1851

Dear Father,

The mail steamer "Panama" which arrived here on the 2nd inst brought me your letter of Feb 10th that being the fate of a letter from Mary to Mr. B. arrived by the previous Steamer. My letter must therefore have been "stored for a time at some point along the route & if you wrote per Steamer, which left NewYork the latter part of Feb said letter must have met with the same fate as the latist Dates recd by th last steamer were of I think to Feb 25th

I am gratified to learn of the continued good health of all at home & particularly of Mother's unusual good health During the past winter. My health continues good & I almost begin to think that I shall escape the initistory sickness usually experienced in so great a change of Climate, as this is Compared with that of New York or the Western States.

I did intend to write a passable letter so far as length is concerned, by this steamer but having put it off until this evening & being unexpectedly & unusually detained in the store until late, I shall have to beg off with

a very short one. The fact of my sending this by private hands will not detract much from its real value. The bearer is Mr. Ryerson who resides when at home just over the boundary line of the town of Warwick in the state of New Jersey. His given name I cannot now bring to mind, but he is the son of the old Mr. Ryerson in that section of the Country who has always been a speculator in grain Cattle &c. He is a man forty five or fifty years of age & inherits to a full degree the speculation propensites of his father. He this partner A. J. Brown, have been, no doubt very successful in this country I have no positive information on the subject but I am inclined to think that they take home with them not less tha $10,000 apeice.

They have made it in trade, at Sacramento City within the past nine or ten months. I do not wish this estimate of their good fortune to be Known as Coming from me as I think my friend Ryerson would not thank me for this announcement whether correct or incorrect.

I am somewhat surprised to learn by your last letter that you had about given up the idea of shipping butter to this country as in two or more of your previous letters you stated that you had made the necessary precuniary arrangements. I do not wish to infer, by my surprise, that you have missed it in giving up this enterprise - but your seemingly settled

determination in the matter as expressed in Your former letter & the unexplained statement in the last create surprise in regard to your change of mind.

This market is no doubt the most uncertain & unsystemized in the world. I was shipper of merchandise to this country must "go it blind" & therefore runs much risk. But I Know of no article consumed inthis country, in which there is less risk in shipping here, that good Butter, that is, so far as the sale of it here, is concerned.

The risk in the transportation of it, in good order is probably as great if not greater than any other article. This opinion, however, is not designed to influence any change of your settled convictions in the matter.

I am pleased to learn that Dermont has at last published his Hand Co. Map & hope he will be prudent enough to secure a handsome Compensation for his time, expense & trouble in bringing it out in a useful form. If he will send me a copy of if by mail I will be much obliged & will return the favoe, with something Salifornian

I wrote to you by the steamer of the 1st inst. Mr. B. is in bed & asleep & I cannot say whether he writes to Mary by this Steamer or not

I have not seen or heard directly from Henry Edsell, Neuson or [Cos] since I last wrote. Will send one or two steamer papers per Steamer tomorrow.

Give my love to all Affectionately Ur Son Nathe. Jones. Jal. B. Jones.

Sac City June 29 1851

Dear Uncle John

At last I have started to write you a letter. I have promised myself evry mail for the past two months that you should be the next one that I should write a letter to from California but it is now near the first of July and the [?] of the case is. this is the first one I have written you since you left us. One thing I have to say and that is I have sent you Papers regular by evry Steamer so that you have been Kept posted as well as any one could of what has been going on before the public generally.

The Steamer of the first of July will carry the listings of the burning of San Francisco Again. Yes again has that beuutiful Cit. in Past been [?] in ruins. On Sunday morning June the twenty second about eleven A M the cry of fire was heard and as usual it spread like a thing that [?] all the Power of man to stop it in its [?] career. On & On it swept from street to street until Ten whole squares and a [?istion] of

Pettyman of the Firm of P. T Banell was burried two weeks ago today. Bob and myself attended the wedding of one of [?] zabsespl's Daughters to [?] Neely Johnson on Wednesday last but I shall be obliged to give you for the time givenly but to tell the truth I have not written you anything yet but I fear I have already taken to much of your good naure by filling this one sheet your Butter [?] not turn out good not saying a [?] [?] Extra [?][?] [?] comment this time you must write me as often

six others were left in ashes. I will not attempt to give you any of the particulars as you will have them in full in the Papers I will send you in connexion with this letter. You will learn thus these was not much of what was burnt by the fire of the third of May last burnt now. You will notice among these that were sufferers by the [?] the name Bue Keyes He left for the Street on the 10th it will be very [un?] news to many of course. But just recovering from the sad news of the previous conflagration and instantly upon its heels coms the news of another. Now Uncle John but San Francisco is an ill fated City for burn she has and I fear that burn she will. I am fearfull that our lovely Cit. will be the next victim. but we will Keep a good lookout I can assure you we have an extra watch on evry night. I hope however that I shall not be a witness to a fire in this Cit. But Uncle. I must be more brief or I shall not get the rest of my letter written for the mail tomorrow. I suppose you would like to Know how are we getting along. Well I will tell you. As in-regards Truth I must say that we ought not to complain for I believe that we have since you left As was the case when you was at our house done been

Birdsaw has never been to a Elk Grove formerly with Hains on K Street. Bulluver Ann Fizz. is not driving quite as fast as us (?). Miles & a have stifens ours. MacNuez is as farmerly not selling much but when he does sell, he gets a whopper of a profits. Mrs. R. McCall has been rushings things a little. B.B. Barney & a are doing a big business they occupy the brick building next to the [?] (Oh by the way, The Nordacks is often arguin' but I guess your balance is a gone keen there.) Massens is the same old fu fu! (?) is in the old mansion house on the corner, has opened a regular (?) stove, goods of all kinds Burke & Warren are about so so, not harming anyone. Hamilton Wheaton & are first best neighbours. They have done a good buisness [business] since they have been here. (?) is as lazy and good natured as ever and doing business alone Gummons having left him. Maddax & Rice are going a better buisness [business] than ever, doing very well. The auction houses are going as when you left. Cavest & Hill, Mrs. Hill * my (?) for it are not selling as many goods as when Cavest was at the Helm Sprange has his fast horse and fancy woman. The result I know you can (?). All the rest to [too] numerous to mention are about as when you left!

[written on margin:] The (?) of Jenkins at 8am (?) you will get in the (?) of course