What I really want is to strike out on my own, and maybe discover a new vein of ore that has gone unnoticed by the larger mining operations. These bosses own so much of the land around Georgetown that it's almost impossible to get by without working for them in one way or another. But after I figure out how best to do get by in this new place and this new way of living, I think I'll strike out farther West and see what fortune I can make for myself. If I can make a few friends, and a few dollars to get us set up when we find our claim, maybe we could become big mine owners ourselves, someday. I can't imagine anything nicer than pulling into my home town on the fanciest coach ever pulled by an engine, waving at the crowd in a new suit and shiny shoes, a watch-chain made of the silver I mined with my own hands drooping down almost to my toes before it comes back up to disappear inside my vest, attached to the finest silver time-piece anyone ever saw.

For now, though, I'll get by on my daydreams and what entertainment I can find in Georgetown. Like I said, I still have some money, and there's a lot of shopping that can get done in this town, as well as dances and other get-togethers. Perhaps I'll join up at the Odd Fellows hall, and make some business and political connections there. This type of social club made it out here early, and its older members are known for giving a helping hand to the new folks that join them. With those connections and a steady job, it won't be long before I'm on my way to making my own Fortune, instead of slaving away for somebody else like my father does back East.

The sources for this journal entry were primarily the Georgetown, Colorado website, which has made a description of the town published in 1885 in Crofutt's "Grip-Sack Guide of Colorado" available online at http://www.georgetowncolorado.com/history.htm. This primary source would have been the type of information available to prospective pioneers in the East. Information from this site was augmented by broader historical overviews of this time period in Colorado, including the Colorado Historical Society's site (http://www.coloradohistory.org/)and photographs found at http://hewit.unco.edu/dohist/.