On January 24, 1848, James Wilson Marshall, a carpenter originally from New Jersey, found flakes of gold in the American River at the base of the Sierra Nevada Mountains near Coloma, California. ... Miners extracted more than 750,000 pounds of gold during the California Gold Rush.
I believe it is a autobiography because it is told by the person because they know all of the details and events that happened...? I am not 100% sure I am just trying to help.