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Journal of Western Travel
by John McTurk Gibson
edited by Weldon Hoppe
September 9th, 1859 -- Started for Placerville, stopped at a sawmill to see them work. The teams went past and got a mile ahead, tried to overtake them, could see nothing of them, got to Placerville or Hangtown, found two of the other boys, bought as many peaches as we could eat, waited till sundown still no teams. Went back about a mile, found from description that our teams had passed about 2 o'clock, struck out in pursuit on the Coloma Road, lost it and took the trail, made a beeline across the country and got to Cold Springs about 11 o'clock and there found our teams. The whole country is dug, washed, tore and heaved up in every conceivable shape and form. Placerville is quite a thriving place and numbers about 3000 inhabitants. Cold Springs is a small dilapidated mining town plentifully sprinkled with Chinese and I should think consists of some 200 or 300 inhabitants.