Miners at a Camp
This photo shows miners sitting at a camp. During the Gold Rush, the miners found camp wherever they could. The land was saturated with people with dreams of getting rich, but most of them would end up being sadly disappointed. Thought people DID find wealth, it was generally from setting up businesses to meet the needs of the miners, including restaurants and hotels.
Looking for a Lot
With so many small towns popping up throughout the West, there were plenty of opportunities to find a place to build a home. The problem is, however, is that there was a lot of competition, and the lots were not cheap. If you had the money and you got there at the right time, you could choose which lot to build on, just like this man is doing in the photo below, which was taken in Guthrie, Oklahoma in 1889.