Randsburg, CA

[Subdeacon Joe]

Another FACEBOOK find.  You really miss a lot if you just dismiss it out of hand.
 

Bart Parker

Admin · June 29, 2016

RANDSBURG FIRST FOURTH OF JULY CELEBRATION

July 11, 1897: “A town’s first Fourth of July! An event almost as important as the town’s first awakening into existence.
Randsburg sprang up like a mushroom in the night. It was a case of “now you don’t see it and now you do, and in a twinkling stood an American town. And because it happened to be an American town instead of a town in France, or England of in South Africa, it had to have a Fourth of July in capital letters and celebrate the same as though it were a town dating from the American Revolution.
These annual holidays of ours are like huge, resistless waves, which sweep every new=born person of town into their current and set them to celebrating vociferously along with the several preceding generations, even the oldest member of which is celebrating only what his father did before him knoweth why only from what is writ in the annals of his great-great-grandfathers.
The American eagle, that proud old bird of freedom, screamed in Randsburg on the occasion of the one-hundred and twenty-first anniversary of the independence of the United States so lustily that the roars of the British lion were completely drowned and the inhabitants of the camp were determined that the said eagle should have no tail feathers left when the day was over.
Lately a sort of government has been organized here, with the power of the people delegated to a committee of twelve residents of the camp, elected every six months. The committee makes regulations to law and order, sanitation, fire streets, highways, and otherwise provides for and looks after the good of the camp. The men comprising the committee now are certainly the right men in the right place. They are energetic, up-to-date, wide-awake to the trust reposed in them.
Some days before the Fourth of July they decided that it would be proper for Randsburg to show its patriotism, and accordingly they decided to celebrate the time fittingly, and on Saturday, as the Fourth came on Sunday.
The people caught this idea, and for days before the 3rd business men were industriously decorating their houses and when the morning of the events came the town had assumed a gala and patriotic attire—indeed flags and bunting floated everywhere.
At 5 o’clock in the morning the firing of dynamite guns, awoke the sleeping population and soon all was a-bustle and astir. Promptly at 12:30 p. m. a fine profession, a combination of the beautiful and grotesque moved up Butte avenue from near Montgomery’s store, at the foot of Montgomery avenue. On Butte avenue it was countermarched and came down Broadway and turned the Rand where it disbanded.
The afternoon was spent in playing a game of baseball by the home nine vs. the Garlock nine. It resulted in a victory for the visitors. Then followed a program of games and races, both comical and otherwise.
At 8:30 p. m. the crowd assembled at the Orpheus Theater, where a literary program was rendered. Dr. E. A. Ormsby, the president of the committee and orator of the day, delivered a patriotic and stirring oration.
The day’s festivities closed with a grand ball, and through the building was filled to the doors with a merry throng and there was really too large a crowd present, yet they good-naturedly jostled each other about and enjoyed themselves immensely.” –San Francisco Call

 

 

 

 

[Sedalia Dave]

Haven't been there in about 12 years but it was a very interesting place to visit.

 

Had a couple of really nice bed and breakfast there. However if you are connected with hollywood don't bother as they would not accept film crews.

[Bad Bascomb, SASS # 47,494]

  I live 24 miles from Randsburg.  Many of the buildings in the illustrations are still standing, and several are in daily use.  The soda fountain in the general store features the original phosphate soda fountain drinks of the period.

A really interesting museum is there also.

[Cat Brules]

Long one here....you may or not, find this interesting:

 

I spent many many hours in libraries researching the Mojave Desert.  I roamed all through the old Mojave Desert region, including Randsburg and old ghost town sites many, many times.  The Mojave Desert is beautiful, teeming with life, all the time.
 

I lived in a sleeping bag a lot in the Mojave, searching around, digging, photographing, scooping up very nice finds.  Those finds all came from spots where there is no....none....surface indication that anything was ever there, before I got  (there, and after I left.  I transferred my research to USGS maps, Jeeped (3 spare tires/wheels) in if I could, but mostly parked as close as I could, then camouflaged the jeep and myself and hiked (usually) a long way in to my sites.  When I left, I packed out everything I carried in, leaving no trace of anyone ever having been there.  
 

Real “artifacts” I did not want, I would rebury or leave as-found.  Going back out was usually easier, (unless I found heavy stuff that I was looking for) because of the 5 to 7 gallons of water (I packed in) being mostly used. If I knew I was going back there, I’d over-drink, then stash any extra water and make a note of how much water and where I put it.  Often, depending on when I went out there, temps could be in the high 90’s to 110, sometimes higher.  Night temps would be much lower, maybe anywhere from the 50’s to 90’s.  But I grew up in the West Texas desert anyway.
 

The Mojave is different now, because now, there’s a lot of farming going on in the desert.  And, everything IS far, far, far more closed off now.  But, I sometimes still go out there, and do the same (camo the Jeep and myself, hike in), and continue to search for what I know is there.  I carry a .357mag sidearm, not a .22LR (with good reason).  I also carry a very stout-but-light “stick,” with a special steel end-piece, purpose-made by a weldor.

       I’ve never written about this before.  I do love the Mojave Desert; I’ve been good to it and it’s been good to me.  I’ve brushed out footprints, evidence of digging, refrained from unnecessary shooting (very rare), scarring rock faces, destroying or cutting desert flora and keeping way out of the way of birds and animals (especially desert tortoises), rattlesnakes, tarantulas, (yes!) beehives, etc.  I defy anyone to ever find any trace or evidence that I was ever there.

 

Cat Brules

[Subdeacon Joe]

Independence Day  1900

[Sedalia Dave]

26 minutes ago, Subdeacon Joe said:

Independence Day  1900

 

120 years later it looks just about the same. 

[Nasty Newt # 7365]

Bart Parker does a great job keeping the museum going and the history alive.

[The Original Lumpy Gritz]

There's a lot of good jeep'n out there. 

OLG 

[Cat Brules]

I feel at home out there in the Mojave, and despite having been badly bogged down (stuck in 100 degree plus temps) out there, middle of nowhere, a few times,  I have never felt frightened, or wondering if I would die.  I was out there an extra two days once because of that, and proper advance planning (including 30 gallons of water. extra food, etc,) made that less of a problem.  Fixing the landscape returning the desert to natural, did take some time.

Cat Brules

[SELDOM SEEN SLIM, SASS #682]

Howdie all,   it's been a while but,  I have sampled the "Rattlesnake Red" at the White House Saloon and some beverages across the street at "The Joint"

Sure was fun to talk with Olga's family there !     Thinkin' the White House might be closed now ,  damn shame.