Columbia was a boomtown after the discovery of gold in 1850 attracted thousands of miners there. As more people arrived, demand for goods, services and entertainment soared, and stores and other businesses thrived in the gold rush. The town served people from South America, Central America, Mexico, Europe, Asia, and Australia, who brought their energies and skills as well as their cultural traditions. The north side of town became a bustling melting pot of activities that included Chinese herb shops, dry goods stores, theaters, bakeries and saloons, each adding a cosmopolitan quality of life in the “Gem of the Southern Mines.”