A Magnolia Township farmer went to California gold digging.

The evidence

• “Magnolia; born April 15, 1830, in Herkimer Co., N.iY., where he was educated. In 1844, he began to work on the Erie Canal ; in the fall of 1848, went to Illinois and worked on the Illinois Canal, and visited Wisconsin ; went home, and, in the spring of 1849, returned to Wisconsin and settled on land he had bought the previous winter in Magnolia Township ; he remained here farming till the spring of 1852, when he went to California, gold digging; in 1855, he returned and has since been farming, but, at different time.<, has followed other occupations in connection ; from 1858 to 1861, a store in Magnolia Village with his brother, and from then till 1866 bought grain and stock to ship to Chicago and Milwaukee. His farm consists of 130 acres of land, on which he raises grain and stock ; be also makes creamery butter for the market; he built his homestead in 1868.”

  1879-history-of-rock-county/33-bios-magnolia.md, PDF p. 875 / book p. 879

  Butterfield, C. W., et al. The History of Rock County, Wisconsin: its early settlement, growth, development, resources, etc. Chicago: Western Historical Company, 1879. Cornell University Library via the Internet Archive, archive.org/details/cu31924028871585.

  Grade A: Found on a page of one of our sources