In April of 1850, both branches of the California State Legislature passed the Foreign Miners’ Tax which stated that “foreign” born miners would have to pay $20 per month for the privilege of mining. Because many foreigners had come to Sonora, especially the French, Germans, Mexicans and Chileans, this new law created a great deal of animosity among the various nationalities. Most of the foreign miners simply left California entirely or moved to more remote areas to mine.

Realizing they had made a grave error in the passage of the Foreign Miners’ Tax, the State Legislature repealed the tax on March 14, 1851, less than a year after its origin.