Shingle Springs Tutors

About Shingle Springs

Shingle Springs, nestled in the hills of Gold Country outside of Sacramento, California, is a town that grew out of settler camps on their way to prosper in the gold mines of the west. Shingle Springs is small, but is a community that is responsible for what most people know and understand about the Gold Rush, thanks to the Boston-Newton Joint Stock Association.

The Boston-Newton Joint Stock Association was a wagon train that traveled west from Boston in 1849. The Boston-Newton group, unlike other wagon trains of settlers, dedicated a conscious effort to documenting their journeys in detail in personal journals, personal correspondence, and other party papers. Aware of their historical importance—and of the sheer remarkable feat to cross the continental United States—the pioneers wrote of their lives and responses to the events they encountered on their way to California. The Boston-Newton party also was made up of close friends and family, with shared values and goals, only dissolving their group upon their arrival to California so that each could seek their individual fortunes. Only one person died on the trail, which is another unusual detail of the Boston-Newton group. Casualties were, unfortunately, quite common on the way west for other parties—just a few years later, the ill-fated Donner Party lost half their members on the same journey to the same destination: California.

In Shingle Springs, an official California Historical Landmark plaque hangs, which reads, “On this site the Boston-Newton Joint Stock Association encamped on September 26, 1849. The company left Boston April 16 and arrived at Sutter's Fort September 27, after a remarkable journey across the continent. A rich store of written records preserved by these pioneers has left for posterity a fascinating picture of the gold rush.” The encampment at Shingle Springs was one of the last stopping points for this wagon train, and by all accounts, was unremarkable. After months of trekking across the country, one camp at Shingle Springs in gold country must have felt like a relief—a short rest just before the finish line. But in hindsight, Shingle Springs’ recognition of the settler’s contributions to the historical record is instructive for students and local tutors alike.

Attention to detail is a crucial skill to develop for academic success. Students in Shingle Springs who work with Grade Potential tutors should consider this with notes and attention they pay in their individual classes, as well as the assignments they are given by instructors. Without the willingness to document the details of their lives, the historical record of the Gold Rush would be lacking compared to what it is today. Tutors in Shingle Springs, like the Boston-Newton Party, should encourage their clients and work harmoniously together with common goals to bring out the best in everyone—dedication, attention, and deliberate awareness as steps to success.