Frank Carlson Library

In 1851 twelve-year-old Sarah is a free Black, happy living with her parents, grandparents, and brother on their own farm in Iowa; but her father has been bitten by the gold bug and wants to take the trail west to California, and after some argument it is decided that the grandparents will stay on the farm, but the rest of the family will go; the journey will be difficult and dangerous, but if they survive extreme weather, difficult terrain, illness,...

"Her heart seeks safety. But will trouble find her even here? After her sister's marriage, Michelle Stiles is left hiding at Two Harts Ranch with the handsome but stubborn Zane Hart. She's managed to stay one step ahead of her stepfather and his devious plans, but if he finds her, she will no longer be safe.Zane has problems of his own. Having discovered a gold mine on his property, he must figure out how to harvest it without kicking off a gold rush....

"For fans of Ian McGuire's The North Water and Michael Punke's The Revenant, Child in the Valley by Gordy Sauer is a coming-of-age story set in the harsh landscape of Gold Rush America, centering on a orphan's journey to California in a wagon train of ruthless 49ers. Seventeen-year-old Joshua Gaines is suddenly orphaned in 1849, and after discovering that his foster father has left him deeply in debt, he flees his St. Louis home for Independence,...

The small piece of gold which Anisett carries in her pocket causes grave danger for her family living in the rough world of the California gold camps.

Hitty, a wooden doll, travels with ten-year-old Annie and her father from New York City to California in 1849 to search for gold and to start a new life.

"The Gold Rush is about to change lives forever. It's the booming California Gold Rush of 1849, and the toughest man in town is ready to face his truth. Truitt Emerson wants out. Enough fighting and terrorizing gold miners, he wants to leave Hangtown for good. But now, stranded with two young women from back East who his boss expects delivered to Hangtown, things just got worse. He'd like nothing more than to leave the thin, red-headed woman to the...

"In 1851, being kidnapped off of a ship might be the worst thing for an innocent young woman. For Emery, she thought it was her salvation until the kidnappers only took her and left her younger sister on the ship. The angry miners seeking revenge on the greedy baron, Arnold Snider, who stole their savings in gold, believe they have kidnapped his wife. It's simple: if he gives their gold back, he can have his wife back. But how will the trade work...