198506 Desert Magazine 1985 June

8/14/2019 198506 Desert Magazine 1985 June

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June - July 1

$2.50

MAGAZINE of the SOUTHWEST



be

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Woollya t the O r a n g e C o u n t y F a i r

"We want to make the public moreaware of this interesting hobby and,by doing so, we are also givingjewelers , gemolog is ts , and rockcollectors an opportunity to sharetheir hobby and profession withothers at the Fair this year." OrangeCounty has numerous clubs for therockhound and mineral collector.

The 1985 Orange County Fair Gem

and Minerals Show will feature 53classes for open and adult amateurexhibitors as well as competitivedivisions for juniors through the ageof 17. Mineralogical societies, rockclubs, dealers, and professionals havealso been invited to enter thenoncompetitive divisions. Competitived i v i s i o n s f o r o p e a n d a m a t e u rexhibitors will consist of mineralspecimens, faceted work, lapidarywork, jewelry, educational exhibits,and fossils.

The entries will be evaluated by aqualified panel of judges chosen byt h e C a l i f o r n i a F e d e r a t i o n o fMineralogical Societies. The judgingcriteria will consist of correctness oflabel ing, showmanship, quality ofmater ia ls , ra r i t y o f spec imens ,workmanship, orientat ion, variety ofw o rk , o r ig ina l i ty of design, andvariety of material.

IL D a n d hisp a r t n e r W O O L I Ya t t h e F a i r , J u l y 1 2 - 2 1

One of the newest attractions at the

1985 Orange County (California) Fairwill be a building devoted to thefascinating hobby of gem and mineralcollect ing along with rockhound andtreasure hunter oriented exhibits andcontests.

"W e hope to pre sen t a veryprofessional and attractive exhibit tot h e p u b l i c , " s a id D e p a r t m e n tSupervisor Kay Myers, an Anahe inresident who is an avid rockhoundand jewelry student in her own right.

In addit ion, there wil l be dailylec tures and demonst ra t ions o f

lapidary work, faceting, polishing,andgeode cutting. There will be a "Handso n " panning booth for childrenwhere they can pan for fossils andcrystals. DESERT MAGAZINE wil lstaff a booth to answer questionsregarding places to go, ghost towns,prospecting, and the desert in general.

This marks the first year that gemsand minerals has its own building atthe Orange County Fair. In the past,it was featured as a part of the craftsad hobbies show. This expansion to a

building of its own ref lects thepopularity of this interesting andeducational hobby.

The first Orange County Fair washeld a t Santa An a in 1890 and was alivestock exhibition. The fairgroundsare now located on what was oncethe Santa An a Arm y Base, wh ich wasone of the largest military trainingcenters in the nation. Today there islitt le evidence of the site's militaryhistory except for a Memorial Garden*

The Fair will be held from July 12 1 , 1985 at the Orange County and Exposition Center, 88 Fair DCosta Mesa, California. This is weasy driving distance from places in the Southern Califarea. This years theme is "Its and Wolly", referring to the vaactivities involving sheep, suchsheep shearing, Future FArmerAmerica and 4 - H Club s

sheep dog trials, and much more.

Entertainment at the 1985 Faironly be described as impressive. Sof the feature programs will be

July 12, the Mamas and the Papa

July 13, The Association

July 14, Rick Nelson

July 15, Three Dog Night

July 16 , Fabians Goo dtime RocR ol l Sh ow , starring Fabian,Shannon, The Diamonds, andMonte Carlos

July 17, The Osmond Brothers

July 18, The Marshall Tucker Ba

July 19, Jan and Dean

July 20, Elvin Bishop

July 21, Rain: A tribute toBeatles

All performances are scheduled and 9 P.M. and are included inprice of admission, $4.00 for a$2.00 for ages 6 through 12. Scitizens will be admitted for $Monday through Wednesday However, a special day, ThurJuly 18 is Denny's Senior CitDay and admission will also be $Fair hours are Noon to Midnigweekdays, 10 AM to midnigh

weekends.

All in all, the 1985 Orange CFair promises to be one of theWe at DESERT MAG AZIN E forward to meeting you at theand Minerals Building. In addita m ember o f our sta ff, we w ill small display of historical mand some desert related items. Pcome by and say Hi.



D.W. GRANTHAM, Ed i to r

M. BANDINI, Nevada Editor

P. RICHARDS, Circulation

L. GARNETT, Adver t is ing

N. LON G, Secretary

VOLUME 49, No.2

June - July 1985

ISSN 0194 - 3405

oFront Cover

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Rear Cover

N T E N T SCALICO'S BOTTLE HOUSE Desert Staff

ORANGE COUNTY FAIR 1985 Desert Staff

THRU UTAH'S DIXIE-ZION

NATIONAL PARK Paul Richards

SWANSEA, GHOST OF THEBUCKSKINS DW G r a n t h a m

A DESERT DWELLER—THE TORTOISE Desert Staff

CALICO, QUEEN OF THE

SILVER CAMPS DW Grantham

THE QUARTZSITE POW WOW1 9 8 5 Desert Staff

THE MAN BEHIND THE MYTH—

GERONIMO William E Kelly

NEVADA'S VALLEY OF FIRE Cheryl Watson

THE LOST DUTCHMAN MINE

REVISITED - PART II Dr. David Redd

THE DESERT BOOK SHOP Books for Sale

HEDGEHOG CACTUS IN BLOOM DW Grantham

DESERT MAGAZINE (USPS 535230) is published six times per year. Secondclass postage paid at Joshua Tree, California 92252. Offices are loca-ted at 6373 Elwood, Joshua Tree, California. Telephone (619) 341-7811.

Please address all mail to Post Office Box 1318, Palm Desert, California92261. Subscription rates: $15.00 USA, $18.00 foreign, per year. Pleasesee subscription order blank on page 42 of this issue. POSTMASTER:Send change of address by Form 3579 to DESERT MAGAZINE. P. 0. Box 1318,Palm Desert, California 92261. Copyright 1985 by DESERT MAGAZINE, INC.All rights reserved. No part of th is publication may be reproduced inany manner without securing written permission in advance from thepublisher. CONTRIBUTIONS: The editor welcomes unsolicited manuscriptsand photographs but they can be returned ONLY if accompanied by a fullypostage paid return envelope. While we treat submissions with lovingcare, we do not assume responsibi lity for loss or damage. Please havea nice day.



Thru Utal^s

Zion Nat ional

Park

by Pau l Richards

A Towering M onolith of Z bn

Our next trip through Utah's Dixiecountry took us east of St. George,the county seat, and into the canyon

country known as Zion NationalPark. Leaving downtown St. George,we entered the Interstate Highwayand proceeded north. In a few miles,we exited the freeway and proceededeast across the Utah Hills Country. Inthe distance, a town appeared. It wasHurricane, a neat appearing SouthernUtah community and a junctionpoint for those heading to the southto the North Rim of the GrandCanyon. In quick succession, wepassed through La Verkin (check thelocal fruit stands), and a group ofsmall communities such as Virgin andRockville.

Just before reaching the entrance toZion N ational Park, we entered th etown of Springdale. In town, wefound a place with the name BumbleBerry Inn. With a name like that, wehad to stop. The speciality of thehouse is Bumble Berry Pie with icecream. The bumble berry is a secretand we could not get the owner to

give us any factual information. Butwe were able to definitely determinethat it is absolutely delicious. Bumble

berry jelly is also available.

Zion Canyon was first explored in1858 by Nephi Johnson, a MormonPioneer. Three years later, in 1861,Joseph Black led a group of settlersinto the valley and canyon, wherethey settled. Soon the walls of Zionwitnessed the growing of crops andraising of cattle. In 1872, Major JohnW. Powell visited the canyon andapplied Indian names to some of thefeatures, such as MUKUNTUWEAP toZion Canyon and PARUNUWEAP tothe East fork canyon of the VirginRiver. The local Indians, Paiutes,refused to enter the canyon, andparticularly the Narrows, as theybelieved it was a place where evilspirits resided. This belief was mostappreciated by the Mormon settlersas it eleminated the threat of Indianattack. Strangely enough, the canyonwas inhabitated by Indians hundredsof years before this time.

A portion of the area was set aside asMukuntuweap National Monument bypresidential order in 1909. Nine years

later, the Monument was enlargedand its name changed to ZionNational Monument. In 1919, by actof Congress, its status was changed tothat of a national park. It has sincebeen enlarged in area.

Many of the features in ZionNational Park have names with areligious signifance. The tradition ofthis style of naming was started by aMethodist minister who visited thearea in 1916. He was overwhelmed

by the beauty of the canyons andimmediatley started assigning nameswith a religious tone, such as theGreat White Throne and the ThreePatriarchs. Thsi established a traditionthat continues today. It is interestingto note that at one time BrighamYoung, the great Mormon leader, toldhis settlers that this area was notZion (in the true religious meaning),so, for a while, the local residentscalled it "Not Zion".





Zbn Canyon's Sandstone Cliffs

Checkerboard MesaVirgin River near the Narrows



smm mering Cliffs behind Springdale

Majestic Navaio Sandstone Formations

Trees cling to the hillside above the Virgin Rivei

One of Zion's towering Sandstone Edifaces

Basically, Z ion Nation al Park is anarea of gorges, cliffs, and mesas. The

principal gorge, Zion Canyon, was cutby the North fork of the Virgin River

over a period of millions of years.

The rocks exposed in Zion aresedimentary in nature. Many rocks

were laid dow n by water as gravel,sand and mud, then compressed. The

park's most impressive formations areof Navajo sandstone. This sandstoneforms the sheer cliffs and great

domes of the valley. The orgiinalsand that formed these domes and

cliffs was converted into the soldrock we see today by the process ofc o n t i n u a l d e p o s i t i o n , w i th th e

addition of lime, silica, and i ron, and

the force of the weight of all theseelements pressing downward. Thoughthese deposits were formed duringthe age of Dinosaurs, no fossil

remains have been found in the park.There are some tracks of the

dinosaurs present, however. -

A good, all weather road allowsthe motorist to drive into the maincanyon and camping areas. Many of

the feature attractions can be seen bycar, but this is country that, in order

to explore it prope rly, a hike is

man datory. It is freque ntly said thatthere are some places in the park that

have ye t t o be visited by m an. Avisitors center and museum are

located at Park Headquarters nearSpringdale. During the season, parknatura l ists conduct nature study

walks and hikes. Zion National Parkis a must for the visitor to Utah's

Dixie. For more information, writethe Superintendent, Zion NationalPark, Springdale, Utah 84767.



S W A N S E A

Ghost of the Buckskins

by D. W. Grantham

Today, many of the desert areas ofthe Great American Southwest areconsidered barren, inhospitable, anduninhabitable. But not always. Fromthe 1850's through the years of theGreat Depression, many of theseareas hummed with mining activity.Fortunes were made, towns built,which became islands of settlementclustered about the mines, railroadsc o n s t r u c t e d , a n d s p e c u l a t o r sspeculated. Isolated mining districts,once advertised and promoted, burstinto the limelight, temporarily fillingthe columns of newspapers andmining journals, then fading into thesunset as the high grade ore oroutcrops proved to be shallow or lessvaluable than first imagined. Severalo f t h e s e o v e r p r o m o t e d , m u c hpubl ic ized mining developmentsoccurred in the copper industry inArizona . One was a t Ray, adevelopment that went on to attaineconomic success with different

m a n a g e m e n t . A n o t h e r w a s a tSwansea, in Western Arizona. For afew moments, let us return to thosedays of great excitement and miningactivity, with a look at Swansea, itsdevelopment and demise.

In the 1860's, there was a lot ofactivity in the area known as EmpireFlats and the Bill Williams River.Miners here had followed the path ofRichard Ryland, who discovered thevery rich Planet Mine in 1862. They

staked claims all over the area andmany prospect holes were dug. Theadvent of steamboat transportationon the Colorado River produd areduction in freight rates to theprocessing center at San Francisco,California which made the districtmore a t t r ac t i ve t o Mi ne rs a stransportation by horse drawn wagonwas very expensive and t imeconsuming. It was said that therichness of the ore from the Planetmine, some assaying as high as 60%copper, left Ryland with a profit of$100 per ton. And this was aftermining the ore, shipping it by wagonto the Colorado River, loadig it on asteamboat, freightig it around BajaCalifornia, and up to San Francisco,and then smelting it.

Inves t or s i n t he b i g c i t i e spurchased c la ims in the a rea ,including the Planet Mine, organizedstock companies, and one, the Grand

Central Mining Company, erected asmelter costing $100,000 at theColorado River landing of Aubrey.Peak activity occurred in 1867 whenthe Springfield, Grand Central, andPlanet mines produced 1,156 tons of20% to 60% copper ore. A reported500 miners of various nationalitiesworked in the mines of the district.The Bill Williams Fork area waspronounced the most profi tablecopper center in the Western UnitedStates.

The copper mining indust rysuffered from several prob lems , thatof a fluctuating market price of themetal, based on eastern markets, andhostile Indians. Late in 1867, andearly 1868, the industry was rockedby both problems at once. HostileYavapai Indians raided the areastealing mules and provisions, andkilling isolated prospectors, whilcopper prices, once high due todemands of the Civil War, fell, thresult being a near termination owork in the mines. Only the hardyand experienced stayed, and only few claims continued to produceSome 15 years later, a San FranciscCalifornia firm, the Mathilda MininCompany, erected a new water jackefurnace and tried to smelt the PlaneMine ores locally. After a year ounprofitable operations, the compancalled it quits and abandoned theiproject.

Despite the cessat ion of mosactivity, prospecting in the BilWilliams River country continuedalbeit on a lesser scale. In 1874Jackson McCrackin discovered a silveoutcrop and named it the McCrackinlode. There was a small rush to thdistrict. He named his camp Signaand it soon became a supply centefor prospectors in the area. Silvechlorides were mined there unti1879.

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; — » > ' • «

1910 Photographs courtesy of

Sharlot Hall MuseumSwansea Mining Camp in 1910

In 1886, John W. Johnson, aveteran desert prospector, left Signalfor a prospecting trip south of theBill Williams River. On March 28,

1886, he and his two partners, JohnH . W e s t a n d P a t r i c k H a l p i ndiscovered an outcrop of silver-leadore to the west of a hill they called

Black Butte. They quickly filed alocation notice on the "Ruby Silver"claim in the new Black Butte MiningDistrict, which was to later becomethe site f Swansea. The Ruby Silverclaim, like other copper mines in thearea, proved to have a rich butshallow layer of silver-lead ore over adeposit of copper. After diggingdown a few feet, Johnson and hispartners' silver mine turned into acopper mine and they abandoned itas (then) worthless.

During the 1880's and 1890's,copper mining in Arizona Territorygrew from small isolated operationsto a large scale profitable business.Undeveloped copper claims wereselling for small fortunes. Many ado l l a r changed hands i n t heC l i f t o n - M o r e n c i , M i a m i , G l o b e ,

Jerome, Ray, and Winkleman areas.After years of searching for gold andsilver, Johnson reconsidered theprospects of copper as a profitablemetal and, in 1896, returned to themineral outcrops beneath BlackButte. Along with two new partners,James Rosborough and Henry Slicter,he relocated th e S ilver Rub y claim asthe Copper Prince and filed otherclaims in the area. Since the partnerswere from the camp of Signal, theynicknamed their claims the Signal

group. Because of the isolatedlocation of the claims, Johnsoncompleted only the annual requiredassessment work on the claims forthe next 9 years.

Then, in 1904, the Arizona andCalifornia Railroad, a subsidiary of

the Santa Fe Rai lway , beganconstruction of a line to run westfrom Wickenburg to a crossing of theCo lora do River at Parker and aco nn ec t io n w i t h the Santa Fema in l in e to Los Ange les. Theprojected railroad would pass only 25miles south of the Bill Williams ForkMines and thus attracted prospectors,speculators, investors, promoters, andmany other persons to what wascalled "the new copper country."Johnson found promoters knocking



TOP: Swansea Mill under construction circa 1910

at his door. A Newton Evans, w

owned a zinc mine, bought the Signgroup from Johnson and his partnefor $25,500. Evans relocated to L

Angeles , and a long w i th o thS o u t h e r n C a l i f o r n i a p r o m o t eo r g a n i z e d t h e S i g n a l C o p p

Company, sunk a shaft 150 feet inwhat appeared to be a promis

copper sulphide ore body and lookfor some wealthy investor to b

into the company.

While the Arizona and CaliforRailroad advanced across the ArizoDesert, more and more prospectscoured the surrounding hills. TArizona Northern G old Mine wdiscovered and produced some of richest and purest gold in Arizohistor y. In July of 1905 , ThomasCarrigan, a railroad conductor turn

LOWER: Ruins of the Mill circa 1985

1 0



promoter and prospector, discovereda rich mass of gold ore in his Claraclaim, located some five miles east ofthe Signal group. Select samples fromthe Carrigan strike assayed as high as$5000 per ton, with gold then sellingf o r a b o u t $ 2 0 . 0 0 p e r o u n c e .Optimists, still reveling over ther ecen t b o n an za d i sco v e r i e s a t

Tonopah and Goldfield, Nevada,anticipated a similar boom forwestern Arizona. During 1905 and1906, promoters sold and optionedmany claims and organized sometwenty mining companies, along withp e r f o r m i n g s o m e s u p e r f i c i a ldevelopment work.

The construction of a new railroad,the gold strikes, and what appearedto be continuous new strikes, ledoutside businessmen to fight overwhich town would be the supply

center for the new mining region,Phoenix, Prescott , or even LosAngeles. Along the route of theArizona and California Railroad,town founders Dick Wick and ErnestHall of Salome and Otis E. Young ofWendendale advertised their towns asjumping-off points for the Clara.Young won out after he completed aroad from Wendendale throughCummingham Pass to the mine.

Visiting reporters considered thearea bustling with new activity andpopulation, however, by the time theArizona and California Railroadreached Parker, in the summer of1907, railroad representatives foundmost mine developments little morethan mere scratches on the surface.There was a distinct lack of capital

and development in the region. It wasfor T.J. Carrigan to make the rightacquaintances.

Th e ri gh t acquaintances were ametallurgist named George Mitchelland a former Catholic priest fromPrescott, Arizona, the ReverendAlfred Qu etu. T. J. Carrigan probablyhad met Mitchell some years before,while he was working as a conductoron t he Sa nt Fe, Prescott, andPhoenix Railroad, which Mitchell

often rode while he was engaged assuperintendent of the United VerdeC o p p e r C o m p a n y ' s s m e r t e r a tJe rom e. S ince th ose days , theSwansea, Wales born Mitchell hadgraduated from the status of anemployee to that of an owner andpromoter. He put up money andmachinery (some of his own design)and started the mines of Cananea,Sonora, Mexico along with William C.

Greene. Mitchell also poured othpeoples money into various Mexicmining ventures and schemes. Most these left the stockholders poorer aMitchell richer. In 1907, he had jufinished his latest venture, walkiaw ay from th e overpromote

g r e a t l y e x a g g e r a t e d , a nun de rde ve lop ed Mitchell MiniCompany of Mexico, with ov$200,000 of the stockholders moneNews of his unethical and unsouinvestment tactics had yet to follohim wh ile his reputation as successful sme lter man and creato r great fortunes stayed with hiCarrigan approached Mitchell aasked for help. As he had no curreproject, Mitchell was only too glad agree to help.

When George Mitchell took overproject, nothing was done in a smor obscure way. He proceeded to out a large scale operation, to rithat of his former employer, UniVerde. On May 8, 1908, the ClCo nso l ida ted Gold and CopMining Company was incorporatThe Clara Company exchanged stofor the holdings of the Clara, MoCrown Princess, and Crown Quemining companies. The Signal Growas purchased for $75,000. TC.C.G. & C.M.C. now owned 1claims with an aggregate area of o4,000 acres. The corporation wcapitalized at $3,000,000 with shahaving a par value of $1.00 each. some cases the shares were sold less than $1.00 each, but, in Franthey sold for more. Father AlfQuetu, formerly of Prescott and nretired in France sold shares in Clara for up to $3.50 each Thfore ign inve stors , led by OsFanyau of Lille, France, were tak

by the descriptions of hugh copdeposits, large holdings, and prpotential. Much money was raisedEurope.

And much money was to needed. Eventually the French wto invest $2,000,000 in the CConsolidated. Plans were drawn fo35 0 to n sm elte r, but this changed to a 700 ton facility bef



I

Residents and Employees at Swansea, 1910. Note the Electric Light on the pole.

the other could be built . A four milewater line was to be constructedfrom the Bill Williams River to thenew town of Swansea, named afterMitchell 's birthplace. More work onthe shafts had to be done. And the

company needed an inexpensivemethod of transportation to get itsore to market, thus a railroad wasrequired. Unable to interest the SantaFe in constructing one from Bouse,the company undertook to constructits own, a twenty-one mile l ine; TheArizona and Swansea Railroad.

During the year of 1909, Swanseawas a busy place. Workers were busybuilding stores, boarding houses,

warehouses, mining fac i l i t ies, an

electric plant, water works, saloons,and even a motion picture house.Mitchell built a large two story

house, hotel, and off ice on a knoll

within sight of the mine. He even had

palm trees brought in and plantedaround his home.

In December o f 19 09, a group of

the French shareowners, led by OscarFanyau arrived in Swansea. Theywere t reated to a tour of theuncompleted mining works, the town

and the incomplete railroad. Duringthe tour, Mitchell pressed for moremoney to finish what had been

started. He got it. To repay a debt,

Oscar Fanyau was elected a vicepresident of the Clara Company,replacing T.J. Carrigan, who movedto Venice, California and invested inSouthern Californian real estate.

With this newly received infusionof fu nd s, M itc he l l managed toco m pl et e th e new rai lroad. OnFebruary 23, 1910, the first trainarrived in Swansea, carrying noneother than George Mitchell and hisf a m i l y . A n a d o b e d e p o t w a sconstructed in Swansea. The railroadwas to run on an intermittent basisfor 20 or so years, according to thefortunes of the mine. An electricrailway connected the railroad withthe mines.

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On May 2, 1910, Harry Mitchell(brother of George) lit the fires andblew-in the smelter furnace. Afterpouring out the first copper, GeorgeMitchell sent a wire to Los Angelesand the investors in Europe thatread: "Started furnace this morningwithout a hitch and everything

running smoothly. Turning out matteat the rate of fifty tons pertwenty-four hours." The basis of thisclaim is unknown, but one mustwonder if this was the rated capacityof the smelter or someone's fantasy.Swansea was immediately proclaimedas the "fifth" center of copperproduction in Arizona, with onlyD o u g l a s , J e r o m e , G l o b e , a n dClifton-Morenci having a greaterproduction capacity.

However, the winds of change werein the offing. In September of 1910,Swansea was visited by a geologistfrom the United States GeologicalService. He was sent there to compilea report on this fabulous miningdistrict. He inspected the mine, mill,and did observe a large body ofcopper sulphides, assaying about 4.5%on the average. The huge smelter wasimpressive. But the mine equipment,small gasoline and steam poweredhoists, and the shallowness of theshafts left him without favorable

comment. In short, he believed thattoo much money had been spentbuilding a smelter and not enough onopening the mines. His observationsproved out when the smelter sat idleor operated at less than half of itscapacity during most of its existence.

The production costs at the Clarawere about 15 cents per pound. Theonly problem was that copper wasselling at 12 cents per pound, or aloss of 3 cents per pound. And there

was a severe lack of ore on theground to supply the smelter. TheClara C.G. & C.M.C. and GeorgeMitchell were sinking fast and heknew it. The lack of ore production,m a c h i n e r y " b r e a k d o w n s " a n dannouncements of ore discoverieswithout ore production soon wereseen as mere excuses for more seriousproblems. In one of the mininghandbooks, Swansea was described as"an example of enthusiasm run wild,

coupled with reckless stock sellingand the foolish construction ofsurface works (smelter, etc.) beforethe development of enough ore tokeep them busy."

Periodic operations continued untilthere were no funds left with which

to pay the miners. Repeated attemptsto obtain additional funds from theE u r o p e a n i n v e s t o r s w e r e n o tsuccessful. Mitchell negotiated withFanyau and his associates aboutbuy ing him o ut . During thesenegotiations, the miners at the ClaraConsolidated filed a lien for wagesdue them. The company was broughtinto bankruptcy proceedings and allactivity at the mine stopped. AtSwansea, miners were given $25 ($50to married men) and free railroadtr an sp or ta ti on to Bouse. Mining

operations ground to an immediatehalt. It appeared that mining atSwansea was history.

There was still to be life inSwansea, however. Oscar Fanyau andhis associates sent some engineersover to see what the possibilities ofreopening the mine were. Togetherw i th the S chu t te b ro the r s o fAmsterdam, they put together asy nd ic at e to reop en the ClaraConsolidated. Their new company,The Swansea Consolidated Gold andCopper Mining Company, traded itsshares for those of the bankruptClara and paid off $280,000 of thedebt of the Clara. A Paris engineer,Camille Clerc was sent over to act assuperintendent of the new operation.Swansea was again active.

R e g r e t f u l l y , t h e S w a n s e aConsolidated followed the patternestablished by Mitchell and his ClaraCo nso l ida ted in increas ing thecapacity of the smelter without a

similar increase in the ore productionfacilities and going into debt. Ageneral rise in the price of copper to16 cents per pound in 1912 enabledthe Swansea Consolidated to make aprofit for 1912 and 191 3, when theyproduced around one million poundsof copper worth approximately$160,000.

S w a n s e a ' s p o p u l a t i o n g r e w ,reaching an estimated 1,000. A new

$60,000 reverberatory furnace wasins ta l led and smelter capaci tyincreased to 1,000 tons. A new orebody was tapped and a new systemof mining was started, called slicingand caving. The ore averaged 3.5%copper sulphide. A new shaft, thenumber 7, was sunk.

During 1913, copper prices beganto drop and reached 13 cents at theend of the year. Profits soon becamelosses, bills were not paid, and then e w c o m p a n y e n d e d up inbankruptcy. Oscar M. Souden wasappointed as receiver. His task wascomplicated by the beginning of whatwould become World War I .Communications were cut off withthe European stockholders and manyof them killed during the hostilities.Oscar Fanyau was one of those

killed.

Souden granted a lease on themines to a Judge W.J. Thomas of LosAngeles, California. Unfortunately,Judge Thomas died before he couldbegin w ork on th e mine. Hissuperintendent, Ernest C. Lane,operated the mines for the Judge'sestate. There was a crew of 50 whoworked to produce about 4,000 tonsof ore per month. The richer ore wasseparated and sent to custom

smelters. By the time the leaseexpired, Lane had mined nearly amillion dollars worth of copper.

T h e r e c e i v e r , S o u d e n , w asimpressed. He kept Lane in charge atSwansea and in four months saw$215,000 worth of ore shipped tothe smelter. Lane made the mistakeof asking for funds to sink anothershaft. The receiver, even though hewas making money, denied therequest and asked for bids for a leaseof the mines. Much to his surprise, he

received several, including ones fromthe Guggenheims, Phelps-Dodge andSenator Clark of the United Verde.All had anticipated the need forcopper for the war and realized thepotential for profit.

Souden entered into a ten yearlease with Senator Clark for areported $5,000,000 (unfortunatelyto be paid only from profits), plusthe installation of a 1,000 foot deep



Looking down the No.3 shaft at Swansea

CONDITIONS

Sign posted on oneof Swansea's idle shafts

Ruins of the Company Store and HoteJ

shaft and payment of all remainingdebts of the Swansea Consolidated. Anew company, the Swansea Lease,Inc. was formed to operate the mine.Ernes t Lane was re t a i ned a ssuperintendent . During the nextseveral years, the mining companymanaged to ship from 300 to 400tons of ore daily to smelters atHumboldt, Sasco (near Tucson) andClarkdale.

The World War I years in Swanseawere very different than those duringth e M itch ell reign. The miningcompanycreated a company town.They took over most businessfunctions and supplied all that was(barely) necessary for the miners andtheir families. And there was a union,The Western Federation of Miners. InJune of 1917, the miners went onstrike for higher wages. Withoutalmost any discussions, Charles Clark,son of Senator Clark, conceded to

their request and raised wages from$3.50 to $5.40 per day. Then theIndustrial Workers of the Worldorganizers arrived in Swansea. Theya t t empt ed t o make add i t i ona ldemands, among them a request formore ice water and a new cook. This,on top of the wage increase, was toomuch for Superintendent Lane. Hisanswer was simple and easy tounderstand. All miners were fired anda special train was waiting to haulthem to Bouse. A new ork force wasthen hired and mining resumed.

After World War I, copper pricesbegan to decline. Attempts to reducecosts at Swansea and keep the minegoing included installation of a newreduction works, a 200 ton capacityconcentrator and a flotation plant.Costs were reduced to about 13 centsper pound, but the market price ofcopper soon declined below thatpoint. In 1920, Clark sold hismajority stock interest to miningengineer George M. Colvocoresses and

the Consolidated Arizona SmeltingCompany of Humboldt.

After a slight increase in the p riceof copper in 1922, Colvocoresseshired a force of nearly 300 Mexicanminers to produce and ship up to8,000 tons of ore per month to thesmelter at Humboldt. The flotationmill was re-started, with the resulthat it produced almost 98% purecopper. When Colvocoresses begannegotiations for a new lease in 1923

14





Compan y b ui lt Duplex houses for mine employees

Ruins of the Smelter

One of the Ore Dumps

Souden and the remainder of Frenchs t o c k h o l d e r s d i s c o n t i n u e dnegotiat ions, f iguring on working themine themselves. During the last 6months o f the lease, Ju ly toDecember of 1923, Colvocoressesgutted the mine, making 1923 themost productive year at Swansea andn e a r l y t h e l a s t . T h e F r e n c hstockholders and Souden were unableto reopen the mine.

-*2

Swansea has many ruins of her former buildings



SWANSEA DEVELOPMENT COMPANY

8WA.N8EA COPPER MlNK

YUMA COCOTT

BOUSE. ARIZONA.

December 1, 1943

Mr. J. 5.Coupal, DirectorDepartment cfMineral Resources413 Home Builders Bldg.Phoenix, Arizona

Dear Mr. Ccupal:

Your letter ofNovember 25received regardingthedeferment information you requested. During the pastmonth wehave been doing some underground drilling, '"eput up four drill holes totaling 240 feet. In each ofthese holes we drilled thru anore body indicating athickness offrom 15 to 20feet thick. During the pasttwo weeks wehave been working two hifts developingthis ore od y. iYe have completed a 25foot x-cutandelao a25foot raise to theore. Veare'now x-cuttingthe orebody inpreparation forstopeing. '"e are

encountering considerable ore of shipping grade, and

should be able tc ship «t least twocars of 5;s copperorH perweek =s soon as we get theore body opened upa little more. Te will stock pile anyof thelow«rgrade material which v.-e wi ll ha ve tohandle.

"7e areemplovin ^ six men •,tthepresent ti~e, and

hope to be ?ble tofind two more sea ithin the nearfuture.

During cnepaat month wehave been shipping at the

rate of one car per eek. This ore<l»3 averaged o-gicopper. ",'e have been delayed in shipping during the astfew days as we are aving trouble in retting our ore

hauled . Th ough '.ve hop e to over come this delav withinthe next fewdays.

There are two orebodies of fair grade ™hlch can be

opened up with a minimum of development work. Alsotheextension of the ore ody we nave J U S E opened up can oe

reached on t o-er level by drifting apprexiirauelv oOfeet. Vewill h»v« a better line on this ore as seen?.9a iic:j,9 r.ore tvorK .ic.on.6 or. i" JLZ »iCV4. ~'.~-:?"! '"?,"---'

sever al sma ll hi~h oracle veins wnic h I wouxd like CO co

some work on. However, wewill not "ve time to dothisT>v?rk unti l a later do1"e.

Several d°ys afro I received a deferment form fromEeadouarters Ninth Service Command, Office of CommandingGeneral, Fort Doug las, Utah. I am completing this i'orm

and will return itwithin thenext day or 50. As my 60

dpy deferment from theXrmj expires on Jan. 5,1944.

Ernest C.Lane returned toattemptto reopen theSwansea mines severaltimes between 1926 and hispassing(at Swansea) in 1943, with varyingdegrees of success. The AmericanSmeltin& Refining Company alsoreceived a lease on theproperty in

1929 andrebuilt much of thecamp,a newoffice, and the concentrator,

just in time for the depression tocause its closing and failure. Afterw a i t ing and further attempts at

reopening the mine, the companyquit in 1937 and took along withthem much of the machinery, the

railroad andequipment. The Arizonaand Swansea as the railroad was

called, applied for abandonment a

total of 5 times and applied for a

w i t h d r a w a l of its r e q u e s t for

abandonment four times, anArizonarecord.

After the death of Ernest C. Lane,Sr., in 1943, his son, Ernest Lane,Jr.attempted to keep the mine going,using the knowledge gained from his

father, but this attempt was not

successful in the long run. He did

operate themine for aperiod of timeand was very knowledgable about themine. His position at Swansea was

threatened for a time bythe draft of

World War II, but he wasgiven a

deferment. In 1940, the late JohnH i l t o n , a regular contributor to

D E S E R T M A G A Z I N E , v i s i t e dSwansea and wrote an article abouthis visit, which was published in our

January 1941 issue.

SWANSEA DEVELOP MENT CO.

P. O. Addren

SW ANSE A Vi« BOUSE

Mr. Coupal ?ag e 2

I greatly appreciate your past assistance inobtaining my 60 day eferment. I also appreciateyour interest regarding my case in the future.

V.'ith kindest -regord3 and est wishes.

Yours sincerely,

V 7

eC.C. Dr. E. Payne Palmer

Q

He described thetown as follows:"From a distance Swansea had the

appearance of being a prosperousoperating mining camp. The firstbuilding on the left was an adobestructure that hadbeen the railroadstation. Behind it was thewreckageof an old passenger coach and the

cab of a locomotive that hadapparently been robbed for scrapiron. An interesting object was a

gasoline driven car with acanopy top

that looked for all theworld like an

old surrey on railroad wheels. What apicture it must have made, chuggingalong through the cactus studdedhills, loaded down with passengersbound for the bright lights and

excitement ofBouse.

A 1943 LETTER FROM E. C. L A N E , JR.,REGARDING PROGRESS ATTHE MINE



The Smelter Building, 1985

Looking into the Smelter Building

>

1 8

View from the Side of the Smelter

Crossing the wash, we drove up astreet lined with rather well preservedcottages, and stopped in front of the

largest one. Here we met the Lanes,who are making another attempt tobring Swansea back to life. . . .

The adobe station at Swanseaslumbers in the silent Arizona sun,and the rusted tracks that oncecarried excitement and romance to itsdoors have been torn up and madeinto Japanese cannon. But theSwansea mines are not dead. Somemining men say the time is not fardistant when modern trucks will pullup the grade out of Swansea with

copper concentrates, and the mineswill again pour forth riches. Thedesert is kind to those who comewith understanding and faith andcourage in their hearts."

The reality is that Swansea did notyield up its additional riches andtoday only the ruins of the ghosttown remain. Swansea slumbers inthe A rizona sun, but who knows,maybe that sleep will again one daybe broken by the sound of mining

activity.



Ernest C. Lane Jr. at the old Swansea copper camp

The site of the Swansea mines andtown are on private property.Perm ission from the owner inScottsdale should be obtained beforevisiting the site. It is really aninteresting place to visit with thebuildings quietly resting in a beautifuldesert valley, far from the fast pacedfreeway life of toda y. From Bouse itis about 20 miles by gradd road tothe site. La Paz county has recentlygraded the road and only the last fewmiles over the hills and down intothe valley are rough. Do not attemptthis section with any low clearancevehicle, trailer, or recreational vehicle.

One word of caution. There aremany mines in the area, someabandoned, some idle. It is ourexperience that if one asks permissionto visit and take SAMPLES, we arerarely denied. But we try to leave

with what we came with, no more,no less. We will not tear apartbuildings looking for souvenirs .Digging up a cemetery is totallyunacceptable. When you visit a ghosttown or mining site, leave what isthere for future visitors to see andenjoy. Personally, I would like to seethe state of Arizona acquire andrestore Swansea; it has a very uniquehistory and location and would makea most interesting living history park.

The Arizona State Legislaturerecently passed into law House Bill2193 entitled "Trespassing on Validand Existing Mining Claims and/o rLeases". The law classifies thetre sp ass as eit he r a class onemisdemeanor or first degree criminaltrespass class six felony, with fines upto $1,000 and up to six months injail. Unlawful entry consists of aperson intentionally entering upon amineral claim or lease with intent toclaim jump, hold, work, or explorefor minerals. Therefore, one should

not a t tempt to seek economicreward, but instead enjoy the beautyof the desert and its man made ruinsthrough ones eyes or a camera.

Basement & Foundation of the Company Store,

Restaurant, and Hotel 1



A Desert Dweller

•The Tortoise

Gopherus Agassizi is his name. Eatingcactus leaves is his game. Commonly,he is known as the desert tortoise.These survivors of the reptilian agetoday inhabit areas of the highdesert, ranging through California andArizona to parts of Mexico.

When approached, the tortoise willdraw his head inside his shell, andw a i t for the t h r e a t to p a s s .Occasionally, he will peek out toc h e c k if his s e c u r i t y is s t i l lt h r e a t e n e d . If so, he will againquickly retreat to the security of hisshell. His rough skin and tough as arock shell are the only protection hehas. The tortoise does not posesspoison, venom, or claws sharp enoughto fight off an attacker.

Like most other land turtles, thetortoise spends most of his life in acomparatively small geographical area.If you happen to be fortunateenough to have a few where you live,observe their patterns. They willusually follow the same trails, andappear about the same time eachmorning to hunt for food. Theynormally burrow underground toavoid the hot noon sun and remainthere during the cool nights. Theyoung are hatched from eggs and

appear in May.

As reptiles , they are unable toregulate their body temperature,much in the same manner as a snake.Their body adopts the temperaturearound them. Thus they can die fromextreme heat in the summer in amatter of 10 or 20 minutes; or die ofcold if left unprotected during thecool nights. This handicap limits theirrange of activities.

Having a shell for a body complicatesthe normal breathing pattern. With astationary rib structure, there is now ay for the tortoise's lungs toe x p a n d and contract. Thus, thetortoise has invented a unique systemall its own. By protruding andwithdrawing its neck and legs, a

pumping action is achieved whichcreates a vacuum and draws air intothe lungs . When inhal ing andexhaling, a faint "wheeze" sound isproduced which may puzzle thecasual observer.

Social life is warlike when malesmeet. Custom demands that a leaderbe selected ffrom among the males.Following much head-waving, theysquare off and proceed to ram oneanother with their gular shields (ahorny projection on the front part ofthe lower shell) until all but one areflipped to their backs. The oneremaining upright is elected as the"King". After what is usually aprolonged period (these tortoise neverd o a n y t h i n g f a s t ) of c lums yg y r a t i o n s , the defeated tortoisesmanage to right themselves.

As to social life between the sexes,the situation is different. The battleof the sexes occurs in slow motion.After meeting his future mate, themale will ram her, smashing his shellaudibly against hers. He isn't fighting,he is making love. The young brideto be (age is inconsequental—she maybe 80 years old) will play her part ina very reserved manner. With all thegrace of a Sherman Tank, she willh o b b l e a w a y w i t h an air ofindifference, forcing the male topursue her. Not until he traps her ina corner where there is no escape willshe succumb to a honeymoon.

Fertilization of the desert tortoise isinternal. Then a large, parchmenttextured egg is buried in a sandy holewhere, in time, it is hatched by thew a r m t h of the desert sun and

surrounding earth. When born, theyoung tortoise is a minature replicaof its p a r e n t s and is able toimmediately forage for itself.

The desert tortoises of today facemore serious dangers than in theirreptilian past. Their rate of travel,slow, slower, or even slower, makest h e m l i k e l y t a r g e t s for theunobservant motor is t . The morerecent danger is that of expansion ofh a b i t a t i o n by h u m a n s in thetortoise's natural habitat. Their usual

trails are destroyed, foraging sitesfenced or r e m o v e d , and theirenviornment bulldozed. This forcesthem to either starve, cook, or freezeor migrate to another site, exposingthem to additional dangers. Dogs arealso a problem. Many a curiouscannine has unintentionally snuffedout the life of a tortoise with theirnatural curiosity about this shelledinvader.

By far one of the more seriousdangers the tortoises face is that of

the well- meaning tourist who seesone and wants to take it back home.It is unlawful in California to removea t o r t o i s e f r om its n a t u r a le n v i o r n m e n t . A d d i t i o n a l l y , thetortoise usually will not survive inany habitat other than the desert.There is also a problem with targets h o o t e r s . I have seen numeroustortoise shells, laying about thedesert, with multiple bullet holes int h e m , t e s t a m e n t to the foolishpursuit of practice on a living and

defenseless target. The animals of thedesert, who offer no threat, shouldbe left alone.

If the opportunity should presentitself, take time out to observe adesert tortoise. There is a largepreserve located near California City,California. When you look into hisface, you will look beyond time andinto the face of antiquity itself. It isa friendly face and one you willnever forget.



. '"

Mr. Tortoise himself



C A L I C O , Queen o f

the S i lver Camps

by D. W. Grantham

Next to Virginia City, Nevada anpossibly Cerro Gordo, the name oCalico rings through western annals aa silver producer of fabled riches.

Unlike many other silver campCalico never petered ou t. It w

(and is) still rich in silver when severe slump in price of the metasqueezed out its famous mines onby one.

Calico, where the miner's pickcame out of the vein literally platewith silver, has never dd completelToday, after a series of revivals anrestorations, it is a unit of the SaBernardino County Park System.

Calico was born in the Spring o1881,

a short period after discoverof the famous Pencil Lead (Leemine. R.W. Waterman (re) located thPencil Lead Lee Mine, north oGrapevine Statin, on December 1880. His pencil lead turned out tbe very rich silver ore. This discoverstarted mining exploration in thdesert area around what became thtown of Waterman, California, on thnorthside of the River from whwould later become Barstow. R.WWaterman served as governor oCalifornia at one time.

Credit for the discovery of thCalico mines goes to 2 brotherFrank and Charles Mecham. Franwas one of the original discovererwhile Charles made the big horsilver strike some weeks later. Thsecond strike caused a rush to Calicthat one person described as "thprospectors covered the hills as thicas ants on a scrap of food."

Upper: Overlooking Calico 1985Lower: Wagon on Main Street

22



Above: Main Street Looking NorthBelow: Wall Street Canyon

Above: Wall Street Canyon featuresTw isted layers of strata

Below: Calico's Cable Car Ride

Frank Mecham was grubstaked bySher i f f K ing of San Bernardino

County. He took his uncle, DocY ager and 2o f S he r i f f K ing ' sDeputies, Tom Warden and HuesThomas along as partners. Together,

they left for Grapevine Station. Theyleft there intending to explore themountains to the east. His father hadtold him of a vein of red material in

the "Calico Hil ls" north of FishPonds Station.

They found the vein described byhis father and all got busy putting uploca t i on m onum en t s . S t r ange ly ,within the hour, other parties arrived,

but were too late to stake a claim on jthe big red vein.

Tom Warden put up an irregular*

parallelogram monument that laterled to the great mining law calse of-*''

John Doe versus the Waterloo MiningCompany. They named their claim***the Silver King Mine, after Sheriff - •K in g , who had grubstaked them.

They collected three samples of ore,which assayed at $1.00, $2.00, and$8.00 per TON, based on silver at$ 1 . 2 9 p e r O U N C E , h a r d l y

encouraging results.

The low assay values discouragedthem from doing development work



The School HouseEntrance to the Maggie Mine, Calico's Gloryhole



A building on Main Street before restoration



Calico and Odessa Railroad Station

' C A L I C O S- O D E S S A O . 1

Ore car on display

on their claim. Hues Thomas agreeto return to the claim, but FranMecham was working on drilling w e ll (his regular profession) anco u ld no t return . He asked hbroth er Charles to go in his place. SThomas and Mecham rode up to thclaim, arriving at what they referreto as the low point. There therested and pondered what to do nex

Thomas, who was a very largm a n , 6 feet and 4 inches, said Char les Mecham, who was ordinary size and only a litt le mothan a boy, "you don't have so mucto carry as I do, so you go up thhill and prospect and I will wodown here on the vein."

Charles went up the hill above thvein, some 500 or 600 feet to whethere was a wide bulge and. noticinwha t he said(looke d like blisters ontamarack tree), started to dig in

one with his pick. As he pulled hpick out of the blister, he noticethat his pick point appeared to bsilver plated and shining. Breakininto the blister, he found that whethe pick had struck, it showed whisilver and that the silver on thoutside appeared to be of a brownisamber color. He knew that he ad Hknew that he had found horn silvand gave a yell to Thomas. Togeththey dug out enough blisters to fill sack and qu ickly returned to SBernardino, where the ore was place

on exhibit .

John Blackburn, an experienceminer f ro m Ivanpah was hired to dthe first real work on the Silver KinMine. Late r, Bob Greer was hired asmucker. Jeff Daley freighted out fohorse loads of supplies to start thwork wi th , the first shipment inthis new camp. Later, the Silver KinMine shipped 3 cars of ore to smelter in San Francisco. Two of thcars assayed at $250 per ton, ththird almost $500 a ton .

H.H. Markham, who was operatiin the district for investors froWisconsin, took a contract to sink shaft 150 feet deep on the vein analso an option to purchase the SilvKing fo r $150,000.00. The ore wso good that he exercised the optioand paid for it with profits from thmine. However, it was said that eaof the discoverers were wellsatisfiewi th $25,000 apiece, a small fortunin those days.

26



*,

Cemetary at Calico

Train of the Calico & Odessa Railroad

The Theater at Calico

After the discovery of the Silver

King Mine, Calico came into being ina rush. Not even the almostperpendicular rocky canyons couldprevent its becoming a city after thedisplay of Charles Mecham's "JewelryRock" samples in San Bernardino.

Despite the fact that the townburned down twice, the camp was sorich that both times it was rebuilt,almost immediately. Calico is locatedon a narrow plateau of flattenedridge top below the Silver Kingdiscovery site, actually south of it.

The plateau was so narrow that therewas only one street in the town,Main Street. To the west is a deepand steep canyon which the minersnam ed Wall S tr ee t Canyon, inreference to its shape, not the NewYork Street. Wall Street Canyon wasat one time quite populated, as manypeople lived in caves or half-cave,half-house sites along its sides. Today,it serves as a public parking lot, withonly a few of the former cavesremaining.

2



BASKET SHOP

SPICE SHOP

BOTTLE SHOP

MYSTERY SHACK

CAFE &ICE CREAM PARLOR

PRINT / STOR

, SHOP / /' LIL'S

SALOON

PHOTO SALON

{LANE'S

^GENERAL STORE

C A L I C O ^ ffODESSA R.R.

LANEf HOUSE

/ NEEDLEPSHOOTING

GALLERYiCALICOHOUSE

RESTAURANT ,. ' -V /

GRANNYS - LEATHER

CALICO

CRAFTS

^ CAMPGROUND

Train approaching the station

To the rear of the Main Streetbusinesses and early residences wereother houses, pearched at the verybrink of the canyon, so close didpeople crowd to utilize the litt le levelland available. As the town grewmore and more people located fartherout even spilling over onto the flatbetween the original townsite andCalico Dry Lake. Others built cabinsand leanto 's in o ther canyonssurrounding Cal ico. The BismarkMine was three miles away and had asmal l popu la t ion center , ca l ledBismark, but to 9 out of 10 peopleCalico was their home.

Calico was said to have between3,000 and 4,000 residents in the mid1880's. There were several big minesand many smaller ones. The big

producers were the Silver King, theOccidental, the Oriental, Bismark,Odessa, Waterloo, and Red Jacket.Over $80 million in silver bullion wasshipped from the Calico District, with

the Silver King having the lions share,estimated at $10 million.

Calico's decline, unlike that ofmany mining camps, did not comebecause the ore bod ies weredepleated. Rattier the mills closed

and the miners moved away becausethe price of silver dropped lower andlower unt i l i t was no longerprofitable to mine. Silver plunged

from $1.31 to around 60 cents perounce. Only jewelry rock could bemined at that price, and the days ofjewelry rock at Calico were longgone . Ca l i co , t oday , has t hedistinction of having sizable silver orereserves, but the cost of processingwould exceed what the metal couldbe sold for.

C al ic o in legend has becomeanother Panamint City to many, but

28



the Calico of the 1880's was a lawand order c ity. It was a comm unityof hard working miners, merchants,and families. There were plenty oflegends of shootings, but only a fewcan be verified, probably less thanoccurred in Los Angeles during thesame period. True, there were saloonsand open gambling, dance halls andgirls, but such is the case everywherein the West of the miners.

For a number of years beforeCalico, the town, was named, thedist rict was know n as the Calico H illsdue to the mottled co lor ing of thesoil and rocks. There are a number ofvariations of how the town came tobe n am ed Ca lico. It was at atraditional town meeting that i t issaid to have been chosen. The namesof Buena Vista, Calico, Silver Gulch,and Silver Canyon were suggested.

One o f th e participants, a Mr.Delameter, took it upon him self towrite out an application for a postoffice and insert the name of therequested office as Calico. His requestwas approved and Calico got a PostOffice.

A group of fun loving miners livedin a cave between Main Street andthe Silver King Mine. They dubbedtheir lodgings the Hyena Hotel and intheir more playful moments wouldmeet the stagecoach from Daggett

w i t h a wheelbarrow, ca ll ing out"Hyena Hotel, f inest lodgings inCal ico."

Across the little canyon east ofMain Street was Chinatown. It wassaid to have had as many as 40residents. The resourceful orientalssoon became tired of descending andascending the steep canyon sides toreach Main Street, so they built abridge. Yung Hen was the "Mayor ofC h i n a t o w n . " T h e C h i n e s e r a nlaundries and restaurants and did

domestic work. There is a story,undocumented, that in 1887 one ofthe Chinese was a bit too lucky in agambling parlor to suit the ownerwho started a movement to clean outChinatown. As a gang of l iquorinspired roughs advanced over thebridge, Yung Hen rallied the Chinesewho showered the advancing roughsw it h f la t i ro ns . A second chargebrought a second flatiron barrage and

the move to wreck Chinatown

literally melted under the rain of

loose i ron.

Calico was remarkable for i tsdur ability . After silver mining hadbecome unprofitable, many of itsminers kept going with borax. UpperCalico, or Borate, was the nation'sprincipal borax source in the 1890's.

The camp even boasted railroadservice.

When the borax operations weremoved to Death Valley, Calico beganto slumber in the desert sun. Severalof the smaller mines were worked ona limited basis. But Calico was neverdeserted. For a time, the Lanes livedthere. The Cokes worked on a limitedrestoration project. Then, in the early1950's, Walter Knott, of KnottsBerry Farm fame of Buena Park,purchased the townsite. He drew upplans to restore Calico to her formerglory. The town was to again live,with stores, displays, exhibits, rides,and a l l necessary min ing townactivity.

This restoration activity continuedfor some years. The partially rebuilttownsite was then donated to theCo unty of San Bernardino for use asa l iving history park. Unfortunately,the C ou nt y has not appreciablyrestored any additional buildings orsites. But the town does survive as an

operating unit of the county parks.Mo s t b u i l d i n g s a r e o p e n w i thbusinesses operating therein. Some ofthe attractions at Calico are a rocks h o p , various artisans, numerouse a t e r i e s , a s a l o o n , o l d t i m emelodrama, general store, a minetour, cable car ride, a minature trainride, some displays, and the usualsouvenir shops. Perhaps the greatestattra ction that C alico offers is thebeauty of the site itself. Even today,one can observe the multi-hued colorsof the Calico Hills. A visit to Calico

is a worthwhile experience.

To visit this mining camp ofyesteryear, drive north on Interstate15, past Barstow to the Ghost TownOfframp. Proceed north to the park.There is a $2.00 charge for parkingand ad mi ss ion to the town isincluded. Rides, shows, and tours areextra, but cost only 50 cents to adollar each. Calico is a good place totake the family for a picnic and tour.

Water Witching

No Water . . . No Charge

Also, u/e Dowse

for Minerals and Oil

CHARLES WSHAW

(619) 262-2260

1205 46th St., San Diego, CA 92102

CLASSIFIED ADS

WESTERN 8 Latin Americana

Send $1.00 for rare book

cata ogue.

Jane Zwisohn

524 Solano Drive NE

Albuquerque, New Mex.87108

MAGAZINES FOR SALE:De s e r t , T re a s u re , W e s te rnra r e back issues fo r sa le .Send want l i s t to :

Harold MoodyBox 803P r o j e c t C i t y , C a l . 9 6 0 7 °

' 8 5 O R A N G E C O U N T Y FA IROrange County Fairgrounds* Costa Mesa*July 12-

2



The

Quartzsite

Powr Wow

1985Some of the Tailgater's at Quartzsite

The nineteenth annual Quartzsite(Arizona) Pow Wow was held fromFebruary 7th through the 11th thisyear. For those who might not beacquainted with the Pow Wow, this isthe giant, grandaddy of all rockhound, mineral collectors, antiqueaccumulators , and swap meetershows. Actually, the Pow Wow hasgrown from one show into at leastthree large separate areas of sellingand swapping, with numerous small

c e n t e r s o f d e a l i n g s c a t t e r e dthroughout the town. These largershows/areas are the Pow Wow, TysonWells, and Main Event.

The first Pow Wow was held fromFebruary 9th through the 13th of1967 The idea seemed like a goodone - to hold a rock and gem show inthe heart of Arizona rock houndcoun t ry . The s how w ou ld bes p o n s o r e d by t h e Q u a r t z s i t eImprovem ent A ssociation (Q IA), a

local group fromed to work for theimprovement of Quartzsite and topromote the endless possibilities ofresidence and recreation in the area.This first show was held in the 'oldschool' building. It contained 8displays inside the building and nomore than 20 "tailgaters" swappingand selling rocks, gems, jewelry, andminerals around the school building.Attendence was estimated at 1,000and the show considered a success.

Over the next few years, the PowWow grew. A temporary set-backoccured in October 1969 when theQIA building burned. However, thisdid not stop progress. The 1970 PowWow was held in a make-shiftbuilding and attendence was good.Most visitors to the 1970 show agreethere were a lot of attendees butmost seem to remember the big Bar-B-Que of beef—some 3,000 poundswere consumed by visitors.

Growth was inevitable for the PoWow. T he 19 74 show saw attendence estimated at 200,000, nbad for a small town on the Arizodesert, several hours drive from alarge center of population. The tenshow, in 1976, saw attendence groto 700,000. By now, the Pow Wowas becoming the rock hound evein the West and maybe east. In maways, the 1984 show set the recoAccording to different sourc

attendence for the entire run of tshow was estimated at anywhefrom 1,500,000 to 2,000,000. Evetrailer park and campground Quartzsite was filled. The Bureau Land Management (BLM) offered fparking spaces for recreationvehicles and trailers.

The 1985 show saw a most uniqco m bin at i on of a t t ract ions aweather. Perhaps 1985 will live on history as the year of unusuweather-- it managed to rain, sno

30



freeze, and lastly, fog engulfed thevalley. But then again, this is not toounusual when one considers that

snow caused a cancel lat ion ofoff-road desert races in Parker,

Arizona and blocked the road for atime in Rice, California. DESERTMAGAZINE'S automotive mechanic

and his wife, Rich and MaryAnn Hil l ,of Hil l Automotive in Yucca Valley,

Californ ia, came over for a visit andreported that there was 4 inches ofsnow on the ground there. Even with

these obstacles, and a conflict withthe dealers show in Tucson, the 1985show was well attended. The usual

traffic jam was not as severe, withonly a half hour required to reach

"four corners", the junct ion of thefrontage road with the highway toParker and Yuma.

Qu art zsi te started out l i fe as aw a t e r i n g s to p a l o n g t h e o ldstagecoach route and as a supplypoint for the miners and prospectors

TOP: Slabs for clocks

MIDDLE: Jim carving a cowboy headat the MAIN EVENT

LOWER: One of the dealers at Tyson

Wells

7.

''or' ' '.'.'

1

ARIZONA

" P H O E N I X

•

•

. . - . . •

31



Collectable bottles for saleThe usual Traffic Jam at Four Corners

Sell ing area of a dealer fr om Ho lbrook , Arizona

of the area. Located in town is th

Tyson Wells Stage Station. This oadobe building has been restored bthe Quartzsite Historical Society annow houses a museum that thmembers keep open during the PoWow. To the side of the StagStation is a usually dry creek becalled Tyson Wash. About two milesouth of town, along this wash is thsite of the former community of LoPosos, Spanish for the Wells. Herwater could be found by meredigging down a few feet under thsu r f ace . Num erous we l l s we

constructed in the area. Los Posowas destroyed by a flood but the sican still be found. Look for thIndian grinding holes in the rocoutcrops in the area. On the eabank of the wash are some Indiapetroglyphs, an endangered artifacThe site of Los Posos may be reacheby driving south of town on Rou95 to the BLM operated La PoCampground. The site is a short wasouth of the campground along thTyson Wash.

3 2



Shoppers at Tyson Wells Arizona Windchimes and Souvenirs

1

OP AL fro m the Royal Peacock Mine

Perhaps Quartzsite's best knownclaim to fame is that of Hi Jolly, a

Syrian camel driver who came toA m er ic a in 1857 along with a

sh ip m en t o f dromedar ies. Theseanimals had been ordered by the War

Department for use as beasts of

bu rde n in the deser ts o f theSouthwest. This venture by the Army

proved ill-fated and eventually thecamel corps were disbanded. Some of

the animals were sold, others turned

loose in the desert, creating sometales of desert folklore that survive tothis day. After their disbandment, H

Jolly, whose real name was Hadji Ali

remained in America with some ofhis flock. He provided services for

private freighters and sold some o

the animals.

It is said that he was a kind manwho loved his animals, even if theywere not the most attractive lookingcreatures He passed away in 1902

3



and is buried in the cemetary inQuartzsite In 1935 , the state ofA r i z o n a h o n o r e d h i m w i t h am e m o r i a l , a p y r a m i d s ha pe dmo num ent topped with a camelThis, and his gravesite may be visitedtoday, just north of the frontageroad, and west of Highway 95. Thesite is well marked.

The Quartzsite area abounds inopportunit ies for the rock houndM an y o f these sites have beenpublished in previous issues of

DESERT MAGAZINE. The CrystalHill area south of town has been agood source for quartz crystals formany years. Limonite cubes may alsobe found in the area. On the road toPlomosa, jasper, agate, and hematitemay be found. And along the oldhighway to Phoenix, R oute 60, aresites for Geodes, Apache Tears,q u a r t z c r y s ta l s , p i n k m a r b l e ,chryscolla, gold bearing quartz, andazurite.

On the way to Quartzsite fromSouthern California, you will pass theWiley Well District. Even though thisarea has been worked for many years,discoveries are still possible. There areseveral areas where agate, jasper, opal,geodes, and minerals may be found.This may be a good time to revisitthe area as the State of California isseriously discussing b uild ing a statedetention facility in the area and ifthat occurs, parts of this area may befenced off.

DESERT MAGAZINE was proudto be a participant in the 1985shows. We set up a booth near thePow Wow, and spent several days,wandering from dealer to dealer,shopping for good buys and uniqueitems. Our first stop was at HowardArmstrong's Main Event. Here wefound several acres of swap meeterswith everything from antiques tobottles to gold mining equipment. Onthe west side of the Main Event, wefound a large assortment of gemandmineral dealers. It would take a

person a day or two just to visit allthe dealers at the Main Event. I amguilty of buying more than I couldcarry. The Main Event will certainlybe on our list for next year. HowardArmstrong, the owner, informed usthat a number of improvements willbe made by next year. These includea f u ll y stocked, grocery store, arestaurant, showers, with real hot andcold runn ing wa ter, and a largerswapping area.

South of Quartzsite is Tyson Wells.This selling area has around 500dea le r s , o f f e r i ng an t i ques andanything the rockhound could desire.We found large displays of collectablebot t les and some of the bestamethyst The opal from the RoyalPeacock mines was just fa ntastic . Wemust come back here, too.

The QIA building also had some ofthe more expensive displays ofcustom made jewelry. Here, it is acontest to arrive early and purchase

the best or most unique pieces first.For the serious shopper, it wouldtake 2 days just to shop this area.Surrounding the Pow Wow are severaladditional areas of tailgaters, traders,and dealers. At four corners, therewas a large Recreational VehicleShow, including several $250,000rigs.

Both of these sites were visited priorto the opening of the Pow Wow.They open at least a week before thePow Wow to enable visitors to shopall the dealers during their visit. ThePow Wow was crowded as usual.Acres and acres of dealers, tailgaters,and traders, all showing their wares.The Pow Wow is the only show inQuartzsite that has a display of rocks,gems, and minerals that are not forsale. This display is located in the

QIA building, with a number ofdealers also located therein andaround the building. They also hadsome nice displays of opal.

Al l in a ll, the show was really afantastic trip, despite the weather.Next year, we will plan to spend atleast a week in Quartzsite. The nextshow will be held from February 5ththrough the 9th of 1986 , wi th boththe Main Event and Tyson Wellsshows opening about a week before.

34



The Man Beh ind theMyth

G E R O N I M O

by William E. Kelley

A g r o u p of s m a l l b o y s ,copper - s k inned and naked, creptamong the trees and rocks. Suddenly

one threw himselfon the

ground.With loud whoops the others ran tohim and the first one to reach andtouch himyelled "coupe". Again andagain they repeated this and eachtime the same boy would reach the"victim" first.

Finally the rest of the boys gave upin disgust, saying to the victor, "Westop. You get all the scalps."

"Sure, me great warrior," the ladboasted with a grin. Great Warrior!

Did he have visions of the future?Did he know that some day hisnamewould chill theheart of many a braveman?Did he know what destiny heldfor h im?'

Geronimo-Apache warchief! Mosthistorians have drawn a word pictureof this great Indian fighter showinghim only as a ruthless and cruelsavage, waging relentless war uponany and all whites.

But delving back into his life, wef ind him fo l lowing the normalpursuits of the Apache life—until thatfateftil day in 1858.

Born in No-doyohn Canyon,Arizona, in June, 1829, he was amember of the Be-don-ko-be band,which made its home around thewaters of the Gila River. His namewas Goya-thele. The name Geronimowas given to him by the Mexicans.

As a baby he hung in hiscradle athis mother's back. As he grew older,his mother taught him the legends ofhis people. Shetaught him to pray to

the Great Spirit for wisdom ands t rength . And when he was bigenough he wassent into thefields tohe lp b reak the ground for theplanting of winter food. In the fallthe beans , co rn , me lons , andpumpkins were harvested and storedaway in caves to be used whenneeded.

But the task he really liked was tocu t and cure the wild tobacco. He

watched with envy the older boysstrutting around smoking their firstcigarette, for that meant they hadgone out alone and killed biggame.Not until he had accomplished thatfeat would he be allowed to smoke.But that day would soon come. Andwhen it did there would be no laughsand jeers at him for hisawkwardness,he thought with satisfaction. Hadn'the been secretly practicing the finear t of rolling the tobacco in oakleafwrappers for days?

The least of little Goya-thele'sandhis playmate's worries was clothing.It was something to do without

whenever possible, which usuallymeant all summer. Even in wintervery little was worn. Being moremodest, the women wore a skirt,consisting of a piece of cotton clothf a s t e n e d a b o u t the wais t andextending to the knees. The menwore breech cloth and moccasins. Inthe winter they added a shirt.

When Geronimo was small hisfather died. Hisbody wasarrayed in

3 5



I

This I s QBaONMO who was also icxevM by Ma Indian ii ne, laeaning "Yawner? Ke was•*«* - -«-*— — - - • •

This 18 GBRUKIMU wno waa also mem by ilia Indian Bane,uow-a-nr-cna,*eaning "Yawner? Ke was sot a chief as is Generally «uppesa«i, aeoor*-

ng to best iBfomatfon, 1>ut was extranely erafty an* suspicious, with i

ssusual aMllty as a warrior.

his finest clothes his richest blanket

wrapped around him and his favoritepony saddled and led behind the

procession as they carried him to the

cave inwhich hewas buried.

Although Geronimo's grandfatherhad been a great chief of the

Mimbreno tribe, his father did not

s ucceed him through heredi ty ,because he had fallen in love and

married a girl of the Be-don-ko-betribe , which ~rr+ade him a member of

her people. So it was that asub-chief,

Mangus Colorado, became chief.

When Geronimo was 17 he was

admitted to the council of warriors.Now he could go on the warpathwith theothers. Andnow he couldmarry Alope. Alope of the flashingeyes, the tempting lips, the slenderbody-a maiden to grace thewickiupof a brave warr ior . When he

approached her father, hedemandedmany ponies for her, many morethan theyoung brave possessed. Witha whispered word to Alope he left

the village andwas gone several days.When he returned he hadmore thanenough ponies topay forthe handof

the Indian girl.

It was in the summer of1858 thatChief Mangus Colorado took the

whole tribe into Mexico, travelingtoward Casas Grandes. Shortly beforereaching there, they stopped on the

outskirts of asmall town tocamp for

a fewdays. Each day the men wouldgo into town to trade, leaving the

camp under theprotection of asmallguard.

Late on the fourth day,after a

successful day in town, they werereturning to their camp in highspirits, laughing and singing. Just

before reaching camp, they saw someof their women andchildren rushingtoward them. Sens ing t rouble ,Geronimo spurred his pony to meetthem. At first hecould make nothingof their hysterical words. When he

did understand what they were tryingto tell him, their words struckbitterness tohis heart.

These women and children werethe survivors of their camp. Atroopof Mexican cavalry had attacked

suddenly and swiftly, killing all the

men and many of the women and

children, including Geronimo's agedmother, wife and three children.Then they had stolen their horses,arms and supplies.

Geronimo gazed on the carnagebefore him. Hewas asone turned to

stone, his mind numb, incapable of

thought or action. He had lost all!

For themoment hewas consciousof

nothing but overwhelming grief. Then

slowly, as he looked upon thebodiesof his loved ones, a terrible hate grewwithin him and he vowed vengeanceupon those who haddone this thingto him and tohis people.

That night acouncil was called andit was decided that asthere were but

a fewwarriors left, their arms and

supplies gone, they could not fight awinning battle against theMexicans.So thechief ordered them toprepareat once for thereturn journey home.



(1) Geronimo (2) Natchez (3) Percioand others rest beside a train

• H

When they arrived at their ownvillage, Geronimo burned the wickiupand all the possessions of his belovedAlope and the little ones. Then heburned the things belonging to hismother. Such was the custom. Neveragain was he content with the quietlife, and never did he forget his vowof vengeance.

It was almost one year later thatCh ief Mangus Colorado called acouncil of the warriors, saying:

have

"Again we have weapons. Again we

upplies. Are you ready to takethe warpath against the Mexicans?

All were ready and eager .Geronimo was elected to seek aidfrom the o ther tribes . In making hisappeal to them he said:

"I will fight in the front of battle.My loved ones were all killed there,and I too, will die if need be."

Three tribes responded, and it was

not long before they were assembleon the Mexican border. Their familiwere hidden in the nearby mountainThere they would wait for thewarriors to join them.

Traveling on foot, each tribesmacarried enough food for three dayThey marched an average of 15 houa day, s topping only to eaG ero n im o ac te d as gu ide . Hfol low ed th e river courses anmountain ranges which affordeconcealment from enemy eyes.

3 7



Arriving at their dest inat ion theymade camp-and waited. Early thenext morning scouts reported twocompanies of cavalry and two ofinfantry were approaching the camp.Watching closely as they drew near,

Geronimo recognized the cavalry asthose the women had told himat ta cke d th e i r cam p. When he

informed the chieftains of this, hewas told he could direct the battlebecause he had suffered more thanany of the others. This was a greathonor and he was determined toexact payment in fu l l .

Despatching part of the braves toattack the rear, he led the chargewith a fury tha t took him into themidst of shouting, screaming men ofslashing swords and gunfire. For twohours the battle raged, and when it

was over not a Mexican trooper wasalive. Then over the bloody field rangthe high-pitched, spine-chilling cry ofGeronimo, the Apache war-cry.

And there, still covered with theblood of his enemies, hot with thejoy of victory , Geronimo was made awar chief of the Apaches.

The others were now satisfied,

they felt they had repaid in full thekil l ing of their people. But not soGeronimo. Peaceful pursuits were notfor him. From then on he wagedconstant and relentless war upon anyand all Mexicans. Gathering a fewwarriors, sometimes only two or

t h ree , they attacked villages and

farms, raiding and kil l ing.

These raids were not alwaysconfined to Mexicans, and whenwhite sett lers in Arizona terr itorybegan to suffer, the U.S. army

appeared on the scene.

Chief Cochise was prevailed uponto hold a conference with themil itary in Apache pass. The you ngarmy officer in charge accused him ofstealing cattle and attempted to arresthim. Cochise cut his way through thetent wall and escaped, but his fellowchiefs were captured.

After that, there followed a periodof treaties made and broken by bothIndians and whites, neither trusting

the other. Troops were sent out to

capture Geronimo and his band. The

wi ly warr ior d isbanded and the

soldiers could find no hostile camp.

Once it appeared that a peaceful

sett lement with the Indians wasabout to be consummated. ThenMangus Colorado was murdered by

soldiers. He had gone voluntarily inresponse to a request from whitesoldiers to talk peace. He went aloneto their camp near Pinos Altos, NewMexico. They placed him under arrestand that night, charging that he hadattempted to escape, shot him tod e a t h . Years later General Mileswro te, "M angus Colorado was yearsago fou lly murdered after he hadsurrendered."

This trickery gave added incentive

to Geronimo and his band to resumetheir war against the whites. Therefol lowed another long per iod off ight ing, raiding, ki l l ing, with boththe American and Mexican troops.

Eventually, Geronimo realized hewas waging a losing battle. At thisopportune time, a message arrived athis Sonora camp with word thatGeneral Miles wanted to talk withhim. He was willing, but he did notknow Miles and was distrustful. Toallay his fears, Miles dispatched Lt.Charles B. Gatewood to Sonora totalk to him.

Lt. Gatewood was well-known toG ero n im o and h is band. Moreimportant, they had great respect andadmiration for him. For several yearshe had been "headman" on ther e s e r v a t i o n , a d m i n i s t e r i n g t h e i raffairs. He understood their natureand their customs, and he talkedtheir language.

Geronimo greeted the lieutenantwarmly and listened attentively whenhe delivered Miles' message, whichwas a demand for surrender. Uponbeing asked for advice, Lt. Gatewoodtold him his wisest course would beto surrender.

A council was called and theI n d i a n s d i s c u s s e d it a m o ngthe ms elv es . F ee l ing against theproposa l ran high, so Geronimo

informed the officer they felt they

could not surrender under the terms

offered-which meant giving up their

wh ole So uthw est to a race of

intruders.

But Gatewood was a diplomat. He

played his trump-card, and that wasthe news that the great bulk of theMimbreno and Chiricahua Indians,including relatives of Geronimo, whohad remained peaceful on thereservation near Fort Apache, alreadyhad been rounded up and sent toFlorida.

This was a severe blow to thewar-chief. He called his band togetherfor another discussion, finally tellingGatewood he would give him his finaldecision the next morning. Keepinghis word, he met him and announced

he would meet Miles, on conditionthat Gatewood accompany them.Also that he and his men should bea l l o w e d t o k e e p t h e i r a r m s ,Ga tew oo d agreed. The fol lowingmorning the entire band started forSkeleton canyon, reaching there in 11days.

Here Genera l M i les greetedG e r o n i m o w i t h t h e s e w o r d s ,"Geronimo, if you will agree to this

treaty all will be well. I wil l buildyou a house. I will give you cattle,horses, and farming tools. In the

winter I will give you blankets andclothing so that you will not sufferfrom the co ld . "

Geronimo nodded agreement. Alarge stone was placed on a blanketbefore them and the general said,

"U nt il this stone crumbles to dust, solong will our treaty last."

Then he swept away a spot of

ground clear with his hand saying,"Y ou r past deeds shall be wiped o utlike this and you will start a newl i fe ."

And as the old Indian fighternodded his head in silent agreement,the ghost of a little copper-skinnedlad whispered proudly:

"Sure, me great warrior."



N E V A D A • S

V A L L E Y O F

F I R E

by Cheryl Watson

Some 28,000 years ago, before thename Las Vegas became synonymouswith glamourous resorts, gaming,andlavish entertainment, prehistoric manwas chasing the now extinct greatg round s lo th ac ros s the thensomewhat tropical Vegas Valley.

These primal humans, their historyonly partially known to modernarchaeologists, reached the VegasValley after crossing over to theAmerican continent from Siberia. Buteach year many of the millions ofvisitors to Las Vegas roam over thesame ancient ground, but after amuch less arduous trip, usually intheir air conditioned automobile. Thisplace is the area now preserved as theValley of Fire State Park.

Within the park's 18,000 colorfulacres are hundreds of clearly visiblepetroglyphs- ancient Indian rockwritings and signs-and fantasticallyshaped rock form ations in a spectrumof brilliant hues that continuallychange from deep purples to brightreds as the desert sun passes over thevalley.

For many years the area wasknown simply as "Red Rock". But in

the early 1920's, an executive fromthe Automobile Club of SouthernCalifornia (AAA) got his first glimpseof the valley as the mornig sundrenched the steep pinnacles of redsandstone. The vivid sight caused himto remark that the "valley was onfire." This impromptu descriptionstruck a responsive chord with parkofficials who promptly renamed thepark "Valley of Fire".

So vivid is the coloration of themany unusual cliffs and canyons,their weird shapes sculptured bycenturies of wind erosion, that thepark has become a must for botha m a t e u r a n d p r o f e s s i o n a lphotographers, those interested inwestern archaeology, nature loverswho make short hiking trips over

numerous foot trails left by pastcivilizations, or just the casual touristwho wants to see first hand the siteof Las Vegas' prehistoric pioneers.

One of the most popular visitorat t r ac t i on , l iberal ly s teeped inwestern lore, is Mouse's Tank. Thissecluded section is neither a tank inthe usual sense nor is it inhabitatedby mice. The "tank" is actually twostone water pockets discovered by a

renegade Indian whose tiny statureand quick scurrying movementsearned him the nickname "Mouse"by his tribe.

Mouse utilized nature's hidden

water storage tanks as a hideawaya f t e r m u r d e r i n g t w o w h it eprospectors while they were campedovernight near the Colorado River.The Indian outlaw reportedly usedhis secret cove on numerousoccasions to avoid meeting up with aroving posse during the late 1800's.

Another unusual sight is "ElephantRock." This massive formation,carved by centuries of wind resemblesa behemoth elephant of the kind thatroamed the earth millions of years

ago.

Visitors to the Valley of Fire StatePark always marvel at the Indian sighwriting areas, and the most prominateof these is Atlatl Rock. The word"atl atl, " pronounced at - ul - at - ulis Aztec in origin and means "spearthrower." The petroglyphs in andaround Atlatl Rock are reported tobe the most ancient ever discoveredin the West.

39



ATLATL ROCK

4



4 1

One of the BEE HIVE ROCKS



ELEPHANT ROCK

In a nearby area are the "BeehiveRocks." These enormous bouldersweighing thousands of tons are solike authentic beehives that somevisitors have remarked that theyexpect mammoth bees to emergefrom openings at their bases.

The spectacular red coloration ofall the rock formations in the park is

made more striking by the lush greenof the Brittle bush which covers thevalley floor, and in some areasextends up the s lopes o f themountains. This desert flora, whichbursts forth each Spring with delicateyellow flowers, was called "incense"bush by the early Spaniards whoextracted gum from the plant whichthey dried and burned as incense.However, the Spaniards were notconsidered inhabitants of the valley,but d iscoverd i t on the ir t reksthrough the area.

Historians say the most recentinhabitants of the valley were thePaiute Indians whose descendents livetoday on a small reservation north ofLas Vegas. Before the Paiutes,ancestors of Arizona's Hopi Indiansoccupied the valley from 600 to 500B.C. The mostadvanced people toinhabit the valley were the Pueblos,who set up primitive housekeepingand brought new ideas and skills andeventually bu ilt Pueblo Grande de

Nevada, kno wn today as the Lost

Ci ty.

Actually, the city was never lost,or in fact, even misplaced. But it fell

into disuse and ultimate ruin whenthe Pueblos moved out centuries ago.

It even could be Nevada's first Ghost

Town. White settlers who fol loweddropped the long Spanish city title

and substituted the now famil iarname, "Lost City." But while the

city was "lost" to the advance ofprogress stimulated by the white

man, the city harbored a rich troveof archaeological treasures, most of

which are preserved and on display atthe Lost City Museum located north

of the park in the town of Overton,Nevada.

This rustic museum, built in theclassic adobe fashion houses thelargest and most complete collectionsof the early Indian tribes in Nevada.Also on display are rare examples of

the civilization of the 12,000 yearold Gypsum cave people who sharedthe valley with the great groundsloth, predecessor of the three-toed,hairy mammal about two feet inlength, found today only in SouthA m er ic a, usual ly hanging upsidedown from tree branches.

In addition, the museum featureswoven baske ts o f unbe l ievab leantiq uity, made by a tr ibe knownonly as "Basketmakers", and dated

about 3,000 B.C. Hundreds of ruinsnorth of the park are still underexcavation by archaeologists and parkp e r so n n e l wh o h o p e to g a inadditional knowledge of their ancientcivilizations.

Present day visitors may reach theValley o f Fire State Park by a 43

mile scenic route that winds through

majestic mountains and at severalpoints provides a panoramic view of

Lake Mead, one of the largest manmade lakes in the w orl d, or by a

shorter and faster route by drivingnorth on Interstate 15 to i ts junction

with Highway 91-93 and then going

south.

Ideal resort weather permits thepark to remain open all year around,and numerous camp and picnic areas,with water, have been established bypark employees for the convenience

of visitors. Numerous films have beenproduced in the area.

Vis itor s never cease to be amazedthat this enormous park of vivid,contrasting colors and weird rockformations, blanketed in completesilence such as man may find on theMoon, is just a short drive from thea r o u n d - t h e - c l o c k g l a m o u r a n dexciteme nt of Las Vegas, but a wordof difference. Why not plan to visitthe Valley of Fire State Park?

4



The Lost Dutchman Mine Revisited: Part II

by Dr. David Redd

In the last issue, we read about thelost gold mines of the Peralta Familythat many believe still remain lost tothis day. Over the years this story,and many variations thereof, havebeen told, retold, published andrepublished, fabricated, rearranged,and genera l ly s upp lem en ted ,usually with a dash of imagination or

a little "spice" added to make thestory more interesting.

It is this spicing or fabricating effectthat makes stories and research onthe Lost Dutchman Mine difficult.Very quickly one will reach the pointwhere it is almost impossible to tellwhere facts leave off and fantasybegins. As with most lost minestories, the imagination is given alicense to run absolutely wild. Afterall, a lost mine is, until found, just a

figment of ones imagination, andthere is nothing illegal, taxable, orfattening in having a very vividimagination.

After the death of Dutch Jacob, anumber of searches were made for hismine, mostly inspired or organized byJulia Thomas and her remembrancesof what the Dutchman said on hisdeathbed. Whether these stories arefact or the memory of a dying mansuffering from a loss of reason willnever be known. Thomas does admit

that the Dutchman gave her a map tohis lost mine and she believed thatthe path led into the SuperstitionMountains. But one must considerthat Thomas was not familiar withthe mountains surrounding the littletown of Phoenix and could havemistaken the Superstitions for theBradshaws, for example. And theDutchman was known to have minedand prospected in the Bradshaws inthe mid 1860's.

43

The Lost Dutchman Mine Saga waslargely forgotten until the time of theGre at D epre ss ion . But th is isapparently the time that the legendwas given a new life. However, thatnew life, for those who lookedb e y o n d t h e s e n s a t i o n a l ne w sheadlines of the day, was for the lostPeralta Mine or mines.

The gentleman for whom we owethis revival was named Adolph Ruth.Mr. Ruth came to the Superstitionsfrom the eastern part of the UnitedStates. Consider for a moment, aneasterner, but not an inexperiencedone, entering the Superstitions forthe first time. Those of us who havebeen there know what they can do toa person. The outer reaches of themountains resemble to a degree theouter walls of a mideval fortress.

Towering over the desert, as if toward off attack from any invader, thelong, slow curve of the range capturesan d ho ld s se cure within itselfhundreds of square miles of tortured,inhospitable land. The inner area,accessible from the south and east(only) and then only by the canyonswhich here and there penetrate thefor t ress ' rampar ts , cas t a mos tforbidding vista.

This is a country of soft pudding like

stone thrown up in the volcanicupheavals of prehistoric times, thengashed and carved into fantasticshapes by torrential rains, resulting ina maze of draws, passes, and canyonswhich crisscross and interlock in apattern of wild confusion. Mostlybare of vegetat ion except formes qu i te , g r eas ew ood , and thecottonwood trees that grow oncertain of the canyon floors, almostwaterless except for the rainy season,

it is a place where shadows lengthenee rily at d usk , where compassdirections are undependable, andwhere a man or group may easilybecome lost or prey to ambush orthe elements. It is both a beautifuland terrifying place.

Adolph Ruth was an employee of theFederal Government in Washington,D. C. He was a father to two sons,Earl and Erwin, again, both employedby the federal government. It wasErwin who was to get involved withthe Peralta story. Somewhere around1913, Erwin Ruth was sent to Texasto work as an inspector for cattleimported into the United States fromMexico. While stationed there, someMexican friends told him about twogold mines in the United States thatwere formerly operated by Mexican

citizens. One of these was alleged tobe in the mountains of SouthernCalifornia's desert, near the areaknown as Anza-Borrego, the other inArizona. The Arizona mine, thoughowned for at least three generationsby the Peralta family (and very richin gold) had been worked at rareintervals in the old days because ofthe threat of attack by hostileApache Indians. And since thetransfer of that area to the UnitedStates by Mexico through the GasdenPurchase, it was no longer legal for

Mexican citizens to mine there- or sothe y be liev ed . Now long sinceabandoned, the mine would belong tothe person who would find andreopen it. A Peralta relative gaveErwin Ruth a map to the mines.

On his return to Washington, D. C,Erwin Ruth turned the stories andmap of the mines over to his father.Later, they both made a search forthe California mine in the mountainsof San Diego and Imperial Counties.



While on this futile search, AdolphRuth suffered a severe leg injury. Mr.Ruth fell from a ledge and broke oneof his legs. The break was bbad andrequired the insertion of a silver plateon his leg to hold it together. Thisaccident laimed him for life and itbecame his habit to use a cane whenwalking.

For years thereafter, Adolph Ruth,who had fallen vict im to the lure oflost mines, planned and dreamed. Buthe could not be discouraged. For hisexplorat ion of the Arizona site, hewould have to cope with severalsevere ha nd ica ps , his age andlameness. And then there was thesummer heat, lack of water, and ther o u g h , b a r r e n , a n d u n c h a r t e dwilderness.

In May of 193 1, Ruth left hisWashington D.C. job and went west

by automobile. He hd planned thisadventure for a long time and wasprepared. Accompanying him was acareful ly selected assortment of

supplies, inclu ding digging tools, apair of boots, and light shoes for usein camp.

Upon arriving in the area, AdolphRuth was directed to the BarkRanch. There he attempted to hiresomeone to pack him into the searcharea. The owner, Mr. W. A. Barkleytold him that it would be severaldays before he cou ld help him , as hehad cattle to round up and deliver.Besides Mr. Barkley, there were twoprospectors and several cowhandspresent at the ranch.

A do lp h Ruth to ld them of h ismission, and in Barkley's absence,hired the prospectors to take him

into the Superstitions. That was onJune 14 , 193 1. The day afterward,

Barkley returned to his ranch andwas told of Ruth's departure. Barkley

was upset at something and rode, atonce, to the Ruth camp, taking oneof his cowhands wi th him . He had a

hunch, he was to say later.

Upon arrival, they found AdolphRuth's bed and campsite, but also,strangely, his boots were there. Therewas no sign of Ruth, however. It

took the experienced Barkley and his

cowhand only a matter of minutes

for to determine that Ruth had not

been at his camp for at least the past

24 hours. And apparently he had left,

wearing only his light shoes, in a

country that literally eats boots.

On the remote chance that Ruth wasnearby, possibly injured, in some spotthat they had overlooked or not

checked, the two searchers shoutedRuth's name repeatedly and firedtheir guns. As there was no response,the two returned to the ranch andnotified the Sheriffs of both Pinaland Maricopa counties. The nextmorning a search was begun by thedeputies and volunteers.

Many search parties coombed the

mountains that summer, and into fal l ,

all attempting to solve the mystery ofRuth's disappearance. Mrs. Ruth

offerred a reward, but no one camef o rw ar d . E rw in Ru t h cam e t oPhoenix and spent some weeksdirecting searches. However, it wassix long months before the fate of

Adolph Ruth became known.

The discovery o f Ruth's fate (and abrutal one at that) was the result of asearch condued by the Phoenixn e w s p a p e r , T h e A R I Z O N AREPUBLIC. Early in December 1931,th e paper sent a well equippedexpedition into the Superstitions toseek the missing man. In the thickbrush over looking West BoulderCanyon, about one hundred feetabove the canyon floor, one of thedogs of the search party came upon askull—to which pieces of flesh werestill attached. The skull was lateridentified as belonging to AdolphRuth. And that was not all. The skullhad two unnatural holes in it. Theskull was sent to the NationalMuseum where it was examined.These holes were bullet holes, they

replied. And from a gun fired as suchan angle that the victim could nothave possibly fired the shot himself.It was fr om a large caliber weap on, a.44 or .45.

Then in January 1932 , Barkley and aMaricopa Deputy Sheriff made yetanother discovery. At a considerabledistance (3/4 mile) from the spotwhere the skull was found, theylocated a dismembered skeleton, theid en i t y o f w h i ch was easy to

determine. Among the scat tered

bones was a silver surgical pla te. Inthe pockets of the trousers weresome t r inkets that belonged toA d o lp h Ru th, and in the coatpockets were papers in his (Ruth's)handwriting, but NO Mexican map ordocuments were found there or at hiscamp site.

There was a memo book in whichthere had been noted in ink, mostcarefully and tantalizingly, what onecan only presume to be aguide to thelocation of the lost mine. "It lies

within an imaginary circle whosediameter is not more than five milesand whose center is marked by theWeaver Needle, about 2500 feet high,

among a confusion of lesser peaksand mountainous masses of basalticrock."

"The first gorge on the south sidefrom the west end of the range-theyfound a monumented trail which ledthem northward over a lofty ridge,thence downward past Sombrerobutte, into a long canyon runningnor th, and finally to a very deeptributary canyon, very rocks, anddensely wooded with a continuousthick et of scrub oak "

The writing was broken off at thispoint, but written below were thesewords " V E N I , V1DI , VIC1," alongwith a pencil notat ion, " about 200feet across from cave." These wordsare Julius Caesars famous words Icame, I saw, I conquered. What doesit mean?Did Ruth find a lost mine?Or were these jus t words oen co ura ge m en t? These questions,along with those pertaining to themurder, wil l never, off icially beanswered. Along with this tragedycam e t he r um ors , sensa t i onaheadlines, and speculation. Wasn't ilikely that the mine Ruth sought was

in re al i ty the famous LostDutchman? It could very well be. Astory developed that the Dutchmanhad murdered his partner. Blood onthe gold?The newspapers and writershad a field day with the possiblilitesT h i s , a l o n g w i t h s u b s e q u e ndisappearances and murders, led tothe development of a gold mine olost mine and horror stories.

NEXT: The Dutchman himself



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47



198506 Desert Magazine 1985 June

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