Why California Gold Miners Used To Cuddle In Bed With Their Sourdough Bread Starter
A very popular modern food item became a common American staple nearly two centuries ago despite horrible conditions
There are any number of bread options available for consumers visiting bakeries and sandwich shops. One of the most popular types is sourdough, which is particularly prevalent in the San Francisco area. It originally became popular during the California gold rush in the middle of the 19th century, but the horrible and disgusting ways the gold miners made and treated their loaves made it a miracle that it survived to become the food staple it is today.
There was a mad scramble around the United States to rush to California after James W. Marshall of Coloma found the first widely publicized gold nugget in the region in 1848. As many as 300,000 dreamers hoping to get rich quickly traveled west in an attempt to get their portion of the gold pie. Many of these miners were new to mining altogether and were single men with often only a rudimentary understanding of how to care for themselves when on their own.
Sourdough bread’s popularity in California is strongly connected to the gold rush, although it did not technically originate there (It’s believed that the origins…
