Forty-Niners Folk Song #99Word Stories

Chel Owens

I’ll tell ya ’bout the year we seen
A thousand-thousand chasing dreams
They sought for El Dorado’s prize
‘Neath California’s azure skies
Mining-mining
All day long
Forty-niners
Sing this song
Ned left his wife and their love-nest
Left their new babe to go out West
He ain’t found gold, but don’t you fret
He’s learned to dig and drink and bet
Digging-digging
All day long
Forty-niners
Sing this song
Jim found some dust away down there
He spent it all on golden hair
Next day, Jim panned and found some more
He went right back to that ol’ h-ore…
(Final chorus, past the word count)
Panning-panning
All day long
Forty-niners
Sing this song

©2022 Chel Owens

Sung ’round mining towns for Carrot Ranch’s prompt this week: January 31, 2022, prompt: In 99 words (no more, no less), write a story about “the ’49ers.” Who or what are they? What is the significance of the number? Do you follow the Gold Rush history or venture into new territory? Go where the prompt leads!

50 thoughts on “Forty-Niners Folk Song #99Word Stories”

          1. he may be pushing the back end of his sixties, he may be bald and he may have the musical appreciation of a wet Thursday but no one can say he’s not a cool frood who knows where his towel is…

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                2. Our universes hadn’t overlapped then, had they? I suppose one might question, how in such a literary wilderness you found the HHGTTG? My excuse was my brother who told me to listen to the original radio show on pain of ostracised back in 1979. I think this was the rerun not the original broadcast. I lay on the floor of my flat in – wait for it – Chelsea- doing sit ups and listening to each half hour episode. Coincidence?

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  8. Pingback: The ’49ers Collection « Carrot Ranch Literary Community

      1. Talk about a golden opportunity – inspiration. 🙂
        I’d love you take a look at one of my rhyming ‘stories’. How much do you charge and how do I contact you? I couldn’t see a contact form on your site.

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                4. That’s a wee wait, isn’t it, Chelsea? Though I have to say, time moves so fast and the children grow up so quickly, it will just seem like you told me this yesterday once they’re all at school.
                  How’s that for sentence?!

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