Re "Hell on the Wabash":

David Rohrer Leeper, "The Argonauts of ’Forty-Nine" (1894):

"As a straw indicative of the prevailing flush times it may be mentioned that Seth Kinman, the noted hunter and antler chair-maker, and myself were tendered fifty dollars each to preside as the orchestra for a Christmas ball at Uniontown [Calif., now Arcata], in 1852. Kinman's repertoire consisted mainly of an alternation of ‘The Arkansaw Traveler’ and ‘Hell on the Wabash,’ and mine was little more varied or pretentious.”

Fifty bucks in 1852 is said to equal about $2,100 today, so yes, times were flush indeed.