Brothers Ethan and Hosea Grosh left Pennsylvania in 1849, joining young men from all over the world intent on making a fortune in the Cali­fornia Gold Rush. Their search for wealth took them across Mexico, by land and sea to San Francisco, to gold country in the Sierra foothills, and finally into Nevada’s Gold Canyon, where they discovered a deposit of silver near the fabulous Comstock Lode. Never before published, the Grosh brothers’ letters are among the most historically significant documents of the Gold Rush era.

The letters—disintegrating, scorched by fire, and nearly illegible—were preserved as evidence to be used in family lawsuits in which shares of the brothers’ wealth were contested. The Nevada Historical Society purchased them in 2007 after ten years of negotiation with the Grosh family. With their publication, the true story of the Grosh brothers is finally told in their own words. Greatly enhanced by the annotations and introductions of editors Ronald James and Robert Stewart, the letters constitute an essential contribution to Gold Rush history, separating harsh reality from romantic myth. In the end, these letters are the real treasure: fascinating, insightful, and poignant.