santa cruz wharf

26 January 2008

Thursday Thirteen ~ Forty Niners

this was SUPPOSE to post on Thursday 24 January....however....due to technical and logistical difficulties beyond my control....et cetera...
smile

Thirteen Random Facts about the Forty-Niners....

1. The San Francisco Forty Niners Football Team was named in homage to the prospectors of the great California Gold Rush of 1849.

2. On 24 January, 1848 gold was discovered by James Marshall. Marshall was foreman building a lumber mill for pioneer John Sutter. They kept the find quiet for some time. Sutter knew his plans to build an agricultural empire in Northern California would be overrun by gold crazed prospectors.

3. Another young owner of a Northern California lumberjack business....Anthony Morabito...campaigned tirelessly for years to be given permission to form the first professional sport team franchise to be based in San Francisco. The Forty-Niners were originally part of the All American Football Conference in 1946. In 1950 when the AAFC folded the Forty Niners were awarded the NFL franchise.

4. Gold rumors were first confirmed by San Francisco newspaper publisher and big mouth Samuel Brannan in March of 1848. In August of 1848, the New York Herald was the first major east coast newspaper to report the California Gold Rush.

5. In an address to Congress on 08 December 1848, President James Polk confirmed the discovery of Gold in California.

6. Approximately 90,000 people arrived in California in 1849....50,000 to 60,000 were Americans...although California was not yet a state of the United States of America. Ultimately over 300,000 people would rush to California to find their gold.

7. San Francisco....home of the Forty-Niners...had a full time resident population of approximately 1,000 people in 1848. By 1850 it would be over 25,000.

8. The San Francisco Forty Niners Football Team scored a measly 24 touchdowns in the past 2007 season. (yeah...that sorta sucks)

9. The gold rush of '49 did indeed ruin John Sutter....his workforce deserted in search of gold...the prospectors trashed his land, his crops and cattle were stolen.

10. On 24 January 1848...when gold was discovered at Sutter's Mill, California was still technically part of Mexico, under American military occupation. On 02 February 1848 the war ended and California became a possession of the United States as a territory, and did not become a state until 09 September 1850. California existed in the unusual condition of a region under military control. There was no civil legislature, executive or judicial body for the entire region. Local residents operated under a changing mixture of Mexican rules, American principles, and personal dictates. (kinda like now)

11. Historian H W Brands wrote:
"The old American Dream . . . was the dream of the Puritans of Benjamin Franklin's Poor Richard. . . of men and women content to accumulate their modest fortunes a little at a time, year by year by year. The new dream was the dream of instant wealth, won in a twinkling by audacity and good luck. This golden dream . . . became a prominent part of the American psyche only after Sutter's Mill."

12. The San Francisco Forty-Niners are the ONLY football team to win the Vince Lombardi Trophy five times....say what you will...it is still FIVE times baby....

1982 (26 Forty-Niners ~ 21 Bengals)
1985 (38 Forty-Niners ~ 16 Dolphins)
1989 (20 Forty-Niners ~ 16 Bengals)
1990 (55 Forty-Niners ~ 10 Broncos)
1995 (49 Forty-Niners ~ 26 Chargers)

13. One hundred and sixty years after gold was discovered on January 24, I turned Forty-Nine years of age.

18 comments:

katherine. said...

I apologize for being awol....all is well...just tons of minutia...thank you for all the comments...questions...concern and complaints.

It's gonna take me a MONTH to catch up with all of you....

Mel said...

*whew!*

Tons of minutia -- THAT, I know about! Just glad to know you're okey dokey fine.

((((((((((( Katherine ))))))))))))

AND--happy belated birthday wishes to you!

The gift has already been given, of course--(that'd be me NOT singin' to ya. LOL)

*hugs and more warm, happy thoughts*

Sandee said...

I've always been a big fan of the Niners. I've been to Candlestick Park (hey, I don't care what else they try to name it)many, many times. Excellent post. :)

Linda said...

Oh good - a post! I was planning on popping by today and leaving a "Where in the wide, wide world of sports are you??" message but it's good to see that you have resurfaced on your own from underneath the tons of minutia. Was beginning to worry a bit there!

Schmoop said...

Well slap me on the ass and call me Sally...Happy Belated 49th Kat. May all of your days be made of gold, and your nights give you quite the rush. Cheers!!

Jeff B said...

She's baaaack!

Nice to see you're alive and well. Happy birthday young lady.

RW said...

Good to see you Katherine!! Hope your weekend is going well! :D

Travis Cody said...

Sorry...Dallas and then Pittsburgh also have won 5 Super Bowls. But SF was the first to win 5 and is still the only franchise to participate in more than one Super Bowl and not lose a game.

So Pittsburgh may be 5-1 and Dallas may be 5-3, and NE may have won 3 of the last 4, but SF goes on top as the only multiple appearance undefeated franchise.

(the Ravens, Jets, and Bucs are all 1-0, technically undefeated but just the one appearance)

Vinny "Bond" Marini said...

My brother's was the 25th of the month...

Happy Birthday Katherine... we have missed you...your seat on The Couch is secure though

The Ferryman said...

Wow...they are still around? I thought the team disbanded :)

The Teamster said...

how the curt warner led rams..i believe they're 1-1....

and how many world series have the "san francisco" giants won? relative to the "los angeles" dodgers? and don't flip me off or you'll be writing more lines on the chalk board...

The Teamster said...

forgot the "about"...how about the rams?

Oswegan said...

Happy belated birthday.

Yeah, the 49ers used to be good, for sure. I still like them. Mostly.

Vinny "Bond" Marini said...

gee you might need to keep writing on the chalk board of life...


ummmm did I offend in some way? have seen you around but not on The Couch...

just wondering

Mimi Lenox said...

I'm behind as well, Katherine. My reader has over 600 unread posts in it. Maybe we should just start from zero again and call it a day.

Great post! As always.

Beth said...

Happy belated birthday! 49?? You don't look a day over 30. Did I win the suck up???

Anonymous said...

We were beginning to wonder just how much fun you'd really had in Vegas! *wink*

Barb said...

Welcome back!