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"The discovery of gold on his land was actually a disaster for Swiss pioneer
John Sutter (1803-1880). While building a sawmill on the South Fork of the
American River, Sutter's employee John Marshall found the flakes of gold that
kicked off the California Gold Rush. Sutter tried to keep the discovery quiet,
but the news leaked out. Gold seekers overran Sutter's land, destroying his
goods and livestock. The courts declared that Sutter's land grants were
invalid, and Sutter, ironically, ended up bankrupt.
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