#63 The 1859 Gold Rush and A Lonely Heart

#63 The 1859 Gold Rush and A Lonely Heart

From Diary Discoveries by Sally Ivey and Jeff Richards

August 19, 2025 · 39 min

About this episode

This episode explores the 1859 gold rush to Colorado through the diary of a newly married woman, reflecting on love and longing during a time of separation.

The 1859 gold rush to Colorado is on! "Pike's Peak or bust!" was the saying of many a fortune hunter who headed out west, but what about those left behind? In this episode, passages from a newly married woman's diary are read, and we discuss some aspects of the gold rush itself. Mira missed her husband Ziba dearly and she wrote down her deepest thoughts. Imagine today having to wait months to learn about a loved one's situation, or possibly hearing nothing at all until they returned. There we...

People in this episode

Hosts: Sally Ivey, Jeff Richards

Topics covered

  • gold rush
  • diary
  • personal letters
  • history
  • relationships
  • loneliness

Keywords

  • gold rush
  • Colorado
  • Mira
  • Ziba
  • diary
  • loneliness
  • history
  • relationships

Mentioned in this episode

Places: Colorado, Pike's Peak

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