William R. Olden

Twenty-two letters from William Rodman Olden in California to his family in Bucks County, Pennsylvania. The first letter is addressed to his wife and dated from Panama on May 13, 1849. The rest of the letters were sent to his sister, Mrs. A. Murray McIlvaine, and date from 1849 to 1877. This small collection richly documents the California pioneer experience. It begins with a sea journey via Panama and Olden's letter to his wife describing his impressions of the country and its people. In California Olden heads for the mines and meets with mixed success. ** Please note that historical materials in the Gold Rush Collections may include viewpoints and values that are not consistent with the values of the California State Library or the State of California and may be considered offensive. Materials must be viewed in the context of the relevant time period but views are in no way endorsed by the State Library. The California State Library’s mission is to provide credible information services to all Californians and, as such, the content of historical materials should be transcribed as it appears in the original document.