To chinese immigrants, in the mid-1800s, california was “the land of the golden mountain.” in their homeland they had heard the words, “there’s gold in california.” they sailed 7,000 miles to join the gold rush and strike it rich. between 1849 and 1882, more than 30,000 chinese came to california. most were men. they had been farmers in china. they came here to be miners and laborers. they ended up doing many other jobs, too. like many other immigrants, they did not plan to stay in america. they came because of their ties to their homeland and their families. they planned to return to china with their fortunes and help their families. only a few chinese gold miners struck it rich. most picked over the areas that had been mined already. but still, white miners resented the chinese. slowly, they drove the “yellow peril” from the mining camps.