What is California in the American Civil War?
{{Union states in the American Civil War}} '''California in the American Civil War''' was involved in sending [[gold]] [[east]], [[Recruitment|recruiting]] [[wikt:volunteer|volunteer]] [[soldier]]s to replace [[regular army (United States)|regular army]] forces in the [[Western United States]] and in maintaining and building numerous [[Military camp|camps]] and [[fortification]]s. The [[California|State of California]] did not send its units east, but many [[citizen]]s traveled east and joined the [[Union Army]]. California's Volunteers also conducted many operations against the [[Native American]] peoples within the state and in the other Western territories of the [[Department of the Pacific#Reborn in the Civil War|Departments of the Pacific]] and [[Department of New Mexico|New Mexico]]. Following the [[California Gold Rush|Gold Rush]], California was settled primarily by [[Midwestern United States|Midwestern]] and [[Southern United States|Southern]] [[farmer]]s, [[miner]]s and [[businessmen]]. [[Democratic Party (United States)|Democrats]] dominated the state from its foundation. [[Southern Democrats]] were [[wikt:sympathetic|sympathetic]] to the [[Confederate States of America]] who seceded, but they were a [[minority group]] in the state. California businessmen played a significant role in Californian politics through their control of mines, shipping, finance, and the [[Republican Party (United States)|Republican Party]]. But they were a minority party until the [[Secession in the United States|secession crisis]]. ==From statehood to the Civil War== When California was admitted as a state under the [[Compromise of 1850]], Californians had already decided it was to be a [[Slave states and free states|free state]]. The [[constitutional convention]] of 1849 [[wikt:unanimous|unanimous]]ly abolished [[slavery]]. As a result, [[Southern United States|Southerners]] in [[United States Congress|Congress]] voted against admission in 1850 while Northerners pushed it through, pointing to its population of 93,000 and i