Disaster and Triumph: Sacramento Women, Gold Rush through the Civil War

Finalist in historical nonfiction, 2013 Next Generation Indie Awards.

With rare exception, history throughout the ages is his-story-the narration of men's successes and failures. What about the women?

Disaster and Triumph: Sacramento Women, Gold Rush through the Civil War is the first to highlight the women who helped shape history in California's capital city during and after the great California Gold Rush. Expecting to get rich quick and return home, few of the tens of thousands of fevered gold-rushers brought wives and families. Two years into the Golden Immigration, less than eight percent of Sacramento's residents were women.

Yet these women made their mark, proving their mettle as decision makers and breadwinners in a uniquely masculine society. Displaying spunk and determination and skills honed by new experiences, their successes altered women's perceived traditional roles in a turbulent city beset with major fires, devastating floods, two cholera epidemics, and a squatter's riot.

Not all of them were sweet sunbonnets, either. "Soiled Doves" flocked in to make fortunes from lonely men who were far from home.

Meticulously researched and visually written with spirit and wit, Disaster and Triumph: Sacramento Women, Gold Rush through the Civil War is for history buffs, students, women's discussion groups, or anyone who savors an entertaining and educational read about the struggles and attainments of pioneer women.