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Barnwell and Searchlight Railroad
The Barnwell and Searchlight Railroad was a twenty three miles long railroad which connected Searchlight, Nevada to Barnwell California and the larger rail network of the Mojave Desert. Between 1907 and 1910, the gold mines of Searchlight produced $7 million dollars in gold and boasted a population of 1,500. Ore is shipped to Barnwell via the Barnwell and Searchlight rail service. In order to reduce costs, the Quartette company constructed a twenty-stamp mill on the Colorado River. The new mill utilized a 15 mile narrow gauge rail is constructed down to the mill in an attempt to further reduce costs.
Following the discovery of gold in Searchlight in 1897 a gold rush brought industry into the high desert of the Mojave. In 1900, the Quartette Mining Company formed and within a short years a population of 5000 people works the area.
The Barnwell and Searchlight Railroad is formed in April 1906 at the height of the gold rush in Searchlight, Nevada. The twenty three miles of track are laid down between May 1st, 1906 and March 31st, 1907. On April 7, 1907, just seven days after construction is completed the railway was leased by the California, Arizona and Santa Fe Railway
By 1919 trains travelled over the B. and S. Railroad only twice a week. A severe washout on September 23, 1923, halted traffic completely. Train service was never restored when the track is abandoned February 18, 1924. By this point, the population of Searchlight plummeted to just fifty people. Like many railroads, the valuable track was removed and recycled in other lines across the county.
Today, the rail route is a popular route for Mojave explorers and mountain bikers. The townsite is Juan is located along the route at the base of the Castle Mountains.
Barnwell and Searchlight Railroad
Railroad Summary
| Name | Barnwell and Searchlight Railroad |
| Location | San Bernardino, California Clark County, Nevada |
| Length | 23 miles |
| Gauge | Standard Gauge – 4 feet 8.5 inches (1,435 mm) |
| Date of Operation | April 16, 1906–December 28, 1911 |
References
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John Henry Holliday
John Henry “Doc” Holliday (1851–1887)
John Henry Holliday, commonly known as Doc Holliday, was an American gambler, gunfighter, and dentist who became a legendary figure of the Old West. Born on August 14, 1851, in Griffin, Georgia, Holliday graduated from the Pennsylvania College of Dental Surgery in 1872. However, his career as a dentist was short-lived due to his struggle with tuberculosis, which drove him west in search of a drier climate.
Holliday’s path soon diverged from dentistry to gambling. He became known for his involvement in various gambling establishments across the American South and West, where his sharp wit and proficiency in card games earned him a reputation as a formidable player. Despite his medical condition, which caused him frequent bouts of illness, Holliday’s gambling skills and fiery temperament made him a notable figure in the frontier towns he frequented.
His notoriety grew further due to his association with famous figures of the Old West, including the Earp brothers—Wyatt, Virgil, and Morgan Earp. Holliday’s most famous involvement came during the infamous Gunfight at the O.K. Corral in Tombstone, Arizona, on October 26, 1881.
Tensions had been escalating between the Earps and the Clanton-McLaury gang for several months. The conflict stemmed from various disputes, including accusations of cattle theft and the gang’s attempts to undermine the authority of the Earps, who were lawmen in Tombstone. The situation reached a boiling point when a confrontation seemed inevitable.
On the day of the gunfight, the Earps, including Wyatt, Virgil, and Morgan, along with their ally Doc Holliday, confronted the Clanton-McLaury gang. The dispute was partly provoked by the gang’s refusal to disarm in accordance with the town’s regulations and their ongoing threats against the Earps.
Standing by the Earps’ side, Holliday’s courage and marksmanship were instrumental in the confrontation with the Clanton-McLaury gang, a pivotal event that solidified his place in Western folklore.
Holliday’s life was marked by violence, legal entanglements, and his relentless struggle with tuberculosis. Despite his reputation as a gunfighter, many of his confrontations were linked to his defense of his friends and his own self-preservation. He was also known for his sharp wit and his ability to engage in both verbal and physical duels.
Doc Holliday died on November 8, 1887, in Glenwood Springs, Colorado, at the age of 36. His health had deteriorated significantly in the years leading up to his death, and he spent his final days in the area seeking relief for his illness. Despite his relatively short life, Holliday left an indelible mark on American history and folklore, remembered as one of the most iconic and enigmatic figures of the Old West.
Bodie: 1859-1962 (Images of America)
Nestled amongst the sage-covered, windswept hills of California’s Eastern Sierra is the site of one of the most notorious mining towns of the Old West. In 1859, gold was discovered in the treeless hills northeast of Mono Lake. By 1879, Bodie was a metropolis of nearly 10,000 souls and was briefly the third-largest city in California. Excitement was short-lived, however, and word soon spread that the mines had reached peak production. An exodus began, but contrary to popular belief, Bodie was never totally abandoned. People continued living in this curious and beautiful place throughout the 1950s, and in 1962, the California State Parks system purchased the town site. Now stabilized against the elements, Bodie is today known as the largest unrestored ghost town in the West.
Author Terri Lynn Geissinger, a local historian, tour guide, and interpreter at Bodie State Historic Park, collects the oral histories of Bodie’s denizens. With extensive experience in educational lectures, she is dedicated to preserving this town’s past for future generations. Geissinger collected the stirring images in this volume from the Bodie State Historic Park Archive, the Mono County Museum, and various families with roots in this remarkable place.
Book Summary
| Title | Bodie: 1859-1962 (Images of America) |
| Author | Terri Lynn Geissinger |
| Publisher | Arcadia Publishing |
| Pages | 128 Pages |
Farewell to Manzanar
In Farewell to Manzanar, Jeanne Wakatsuki Houston recalls her childhood at a Japanese incarceration camp in this engrossing memoir that has become a staple of curriculum in schools and on campuses across the country. This special 50th-anniversary edition features a new cover, a foreword by New York Times bestselling and acclaimed author Traci Chee, and photographs of life at the camp by Toyo Miyatake.
During World War II the incarceration camp called Manzanar was hastily created in the high mountain desert country of California, east of the Sierras. Its purpose? To house thousands of Japanese Americans.
In Farewell to Manzanar, Jeanne Wakatsuki Houston recalls life at Manzanar through the eyes of the child she was and the experiences of her family. She relays the mundane and remarkable details of daily life during an extraordinary period of American history: The wartime imprisonment of civilians, most native-born Americans, in their own country, without trial, and by their fellow Americans.
She tells of her fear, confusion, and bewilderment as well as the dignity and resourcefulness of people in oppressive and demeaning circumstances. Jeanne delivers a powerful first-person account that reveals her search for the meaning of Manzanar.
Book Summary
| Title | Farewell to Manzana |
| Author | Jeanne Wakatsuki Houston, James D. Houston |
| Publisher | Clarion Books; Reprint edition (December 12, 2023) |
| Pages | 224 Pages |
Tonopah and Tidewater Railroad
Explorers of the Mojave Desert in southern California are bound to have heard the stories of the Tonopah and Tidewater Railroad. The Tonopah and Tidewater flanks the western edge of the Mohave National Preserve as travels south to north from Ludlow, California to Beatty, Nevada and up to Tonopah, Nevada utilizing the Bullfrog Goldfield Railroad. Many of the off ramps, sites and historic monuments along Interstate 15 are associated with the standard gauge railroad.
History
In the early 1900’s, owner of the Pacific Coast Borax Works, Francis Marion Smith owned the largest Borax mine in the world, which is located in Borate, CA. Corporate expansion found him looking into old Borax claims located in the Black Mountains, east of Death Valley. Originally, “Borax” smith used a steam tractor to haul the ore one hundred and thirty seven miles into Ivanpah, CA. The harsh desert proved too much and the plan is soon abandoned.
In 1904, Smith conceived a plan to connect a railroad from his mines to the nearest points of the Santa Fe. He hoped to connect up north to Tonopah to exploit a mining boom in the region, which include Rhyolite, Goldfield and Beatty Nevada. On July 19, 1904, Francis Marion Smith had incorporated the Tonopah & Tidewater Railroad Company in New Jersey. Smith served as president, and associates DeWitt Van Buskirk as vice-president with C.B. Zabriskie as secretary-treasurer, and John Ryan as superintendent and general manager.
Originally, Smith worked with William A. Clark who was a Senator from Montana. Clark headed the Los Angeles and Salt Lake Railroad and proposed that Smith build the Tonopah and Tidewater out of Las Vegas as a cost effective solution to haul his Borax. In 1905, Smith sent personnel and soon discovered that he would not be allow to connect to the Los Angles and Salt Lake Railroad. This right of way is probably due to the fact that Clark is planning his own rail to Beatty, which would become the Las Vegas & Tonopah Railroad.
Following this disappoint, Borax Smith sold his assets and holdings after negotiating with Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railroad and settings up a terminus is Ludlow, CA.
Tonopah and Tidewater Route
The Tonopah and Tidewater Railroad covered a distance of approximately 230 miles, traversing the challenging terrain of the Mojave Desert.. Many stops along the railroad were named for associates of Borax Businessman Francis Marion Smith. Sections of the route runs through the Death Valley National Park, and certain sections of it have been made into hiking trails for tourists. Other parts of the route are easily accessible to back road explorers, and much of the former railroad bed parallels California State Route 127 between Baker and Death Valley Junction, California.
Tonopah and Tidewater Routes and Stops
- Ludlow
- Broadwell – ( 12.68 Miles )
- Mesquite – ( 21.49 Miles )
- Crucero – ( 25.68 Miles )
- Rasor – ( 29.38 Miles )
- Soda Lake ( ZZYZX ) – ( 33.34 Miles )
- Baker – ( 41.82 Miles )
- Silver Lake – ( 49.50 Miles )
- Talc – ( 56.0 Miles )
- Riggs – ( 59.47 Miles )
- Lore – ( 60.0 Miles )
- Valjean – ( 65.11 Miles )
- Dumont – ( 74.40 Miles )
- Sperry – ( 78.84 Miles )
- Acme – ( 82.97 Miles )
- Tecopa – ( 87.67 Miles )
- Zabriskie – ( 91.74 Miles )
- Shoshone – ( 96.95 Miles )
- Fitrol Spur – ( 97.5 Miles )
- Gerstley – ( 101.26 Miles )
- Jay – ( 106.00 Miles )
- Death Valley Junction – ( 122.01 Miles )
- Bradford Siding – ( 128.01 Miles )
- Muck – ( 131.0 Miles )
- Jenifer – ( 139.44 Miles )
- Leeland – ( 144.51 Miles )
- Ashton – ( 154.98 Miles )
- Carrara – ( 160.55 Miles )
- Post – ( 166.0 Miles )
- Gold Center – ( 166.0 Miles )
- Beatty Junction – ( 169.07 Miles )
- Beatty – ( 169.07 Miles )
Railroad Summary
| Name | Tonopah and Tidewater Railroad |
| Location | San Bernardino, California Nye County, Nevada |
| Gauge | Standard Gauge – 4 feet 8.5 inches (1,435 mm) |
| Operational | 1904 – 1940 |
References
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