Few people realize that California’s Joshua Tree National Park sits between two deserts. To the east is the Colorado Desert and to the west is the Mojave Desert. With just a few feet in elevation change, from just under 3,000 feet to just over 3,000 feet, the wildlife, foliage, cacti, and rocks, are distinct. But the main similarity is that both landscapes receive only two to six inches of rain annually.
Few settlers sought to live in the region due to its dry, dusty climate and limited water. However, some men were drawn to the Mojave for its mining opportunities. In fact, copper, silver, lead, gold, zinc, and tungsten are elements and minerals mined in the region. Evidence of closed mines and rusted equipment still litter the landscape.
Mining is what enticed William Keys (1879–1969) to the county line between San Bernardino and Riverside counties—an area that became part of Joshua Tree National Park in 1994. Despite tenuous water supplies, little sustenance for farm animals, and temperatures that fluctuate, depending on the time of year, from 30 to over 100 degrees Fahrenheit, Keys decided to establish roots in the expansive desert landscape.
The nearest town, Banning, California, was 60 miles away. He married Frances Lawton in 1918. They had seven children, four of whom survived to adulthood. The family proved resourceful in an unforgiving environment.
The remains of Keys Ranch provide a glimpse into the ingenuity and hard work the Keys family needed to survive and prosper for over three decades. The ranch is tucked in a remote, rocky part of the Mojave Desert, closer to the main Joshua Tree National Park Visitor Center than the Cottonwood Visitor Center at the Colorado Desert entrance.
For a while, Keys supported his family by processing ore at Wall Street Mill for other miners. It took 12 or more hours to process a ton of ore to learn if it contained any gold.
Additionally, Keys was a farmer, blacksmith, farrier, mason, amateur geologist, and engineer. He also successfully raised cattle.
Besides the preserved home, visitors to Keys Ranch can view sundry early-to-mid 20th-century work vehicles and equipment on the grounds’ salvage yard. Included is an old Mack truck.
The Keys’s home is a pieced-together wood siding and tin roof structure. Its chimney, capped with a bent piece of metal, is constructed of cut area stone and has stood the test of time. The Smithsonian Institute deemed Key’s chimney as a historic example of excellent amateur masonry.
Other outbuildings constructed out of wood and repurposed materials served various purposes. There was even a school building and a store for passersby.
A clever design for an outdoor cooler, made of burlap with water dripping down the sides, kept some items from spoiling during the warmer months. The ranch was replete with interesting inventions to make the family’s life easier.
Through signage and tours, the National Park Service (NPS) provides insight into the Keys’ family struggles. Two children died in infancy and their 11-year-old son died in a freak accident while gathering water at the property’s well. It was difficult to eke out a living in the unforgiving desert.
To sustain a garden, Keys had to first drastically amend the desert soil by tilling in much cow manure and other organic matter. He also used dynamite to blast deep holes in hard-packed soil. He planted fruit trees in the holes, but not before adding dirt he enriched with composted materials. The family also grew a variety of vegetables. Chickens, rabbits, sheep, and cows provided meat.
However, water was always an issue. Even though the family maintained a few wells, they often ran dry. In the 1940s, a resourceful Keys added to and greatly improved a 1902 dam that the Barker and Shay cattle company had built. The water Keys collected provided a backup source for them as well as for their gardens, animals, mining endeavors, and recreation. NPS reported that this manmade water source was even stocked with fish.
The dam still holds some water today, and visitors to the area can walk the 1.5-mile Barker Dam Loop Trail and see how vibrant and more lush the plant life is due to the decades of collected water.
Keys lived at the ranch until his death in 1969; in 1974, the ranch was designated a National Park Service Historic Site. Keys, his wife, Frances, and some of their children are buried in a small family cemetery not far from the ranch.
Visitors to Joshua Tree National Park are mostly drawn to the area because of the tall, unusual-looking yucca plants—the Joshua trees—though they’re not actually trees. They thrive in this area of the Mojave Desert. However, experiencing the historical remnants of a family who endured the weather and temperatures in this grueling region of America is a bonus.
