From old diaries and letters, we read of people coming from all over Europe to America, and some rushing on West, "There's gold in them thar hills." We read of survivors who saw men and horses plunge down from a too steep mountain pass, or frozen in blizzards, or death by Indians. And, we read of striking gold, and how the West was settled. This is the story of my mother, born in a gold rush town, destined to marry a man with a vision. A wife before Women's Liberation, a mother before hot running water and disposable diapers, a woman who lost her own dreams working shoulder-to-shoulder with her husband to help him fulfill his - to build a community from scratch. is my description.