They had opened up the West
Left that stone in the river bed
He'd not one penny to his name
Every woman, child and man
Found a piece of shinin' gold
Well, some pushed on to California
Some would die and some would kill
They left their tracks upon the land
Well, he took it to the city
And then the railroad came behind them
And they came from Alabama
Well, some fell prey to hostile arrows
And by the Spring of 1860
Some would thank the Lord for their deliverance
And some would curse John Sutter's Mill
Some would thank the Lord for their deliverance
And others stopped to take their rest
And some were lost in the Rocky Mountains
For they came like herds of locusts
Some would fail and some would prosper
Well, they came from New York City
With their hands froze to the reins
And some would curse John Sutter's Mill
Oh, some would fail and some would prosper
Old John Sutter went to the mill site
In their lumberin' Conestogas
Where the word like wildfire spread
In this wild unsettled land
And some would curse John Sutter's Mill
With their dreams of findin' fortunes
And old John Sutter soon came to wish he'd
When old John Sutter went to meet his maker
And some would curse John Sutter's Mill
Some would thank the Lord for their deliverance
And the land was plowed and tamed
Oh, some would fail and some would prosper
Some would die and some would kill
As they tried to cross the plains
Some would die and some would kill
