National Register of Historic Places

Cow Camp

Twentynine Palms, San Bernardino County, California
Listed
October 29, 1975
Type
District
Period
Listed
Ref No.
75000228

About this property

Cow Camp, located in Joshua Tree National Park, was associated with cattle rustling in the 1880s and 1890s. It was then later used as a line camp for cattle ranching. A stone chimney, two small dams, watering troughs and a well remain. One dam was built by local rancher and character William F. Keys. The camp was first established by the "McHaney Gang" in the late 1880s. Cattle rustlers used the camp into the 1890s. Jim McHaney reputedly murdered the discoverer of the Desert Queen Mine before losing it to a bank, then sold Cow Camp in 1894 to George Myers. McHaney eventually was convicted of counterfeiting $20 gold pieces in gold-plated lead and was sentenced to seventeen years in jail. In the 1920s Bill Keys, who had inherited McHaney's holdings, took over Cow Camp as part of his ranching operation.

Location

Twentynine Palms, San Bernardino County, California
34.03793, -116.16726

Categories

AGRICULTURE
National Register nomination ›
Sources

Property data from the National Register of Historic Places, National Park Service (public domain).

Description adapted from Wikipedia under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.

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The Land
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Native Heritage
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Nearby Historic Sites

Keys Desert Queen Ranch
Listed
0.4 mi
Barker Dam
Industrial
1.3 mi
Wall Street Mill
Industrial
1.9 mi
Ryan House and Lost Horse Well
Listed
3.8 mi
Desert Queen Mine
Industrial
5.6 mi

Questions about this property

When was Cow Camp listed on the National Register?

Cow Camp was listed on the National Register of Historic Places on October 29, 1975.

What type of historic resource is Cow Camp?

Cow Camp is classified as a district in the National Register of Historic Places.

What is the period of significance for Cow Camp?

The period of significance for Cow Camp is recorded as the listed era.

Can I research the history near Cow Camp?

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