Death Valley National Park in Inyo County, California — The American West (Pacific Coastal)
Keane Wonder Mine
King of the Desert
Photographed by Craig Baker, October 27, 2020
1. Keane Wonder Mine Marker
Good fortune inspired the name King of the Desert, coined for the Keane Wonder Mine by the Rhyolite Herald in 1911. The mine was discovered by Jack Keane and Domingo Etcharren in 1904. Producing over a million dollars in gold from 1904 to 1917, the mine shared the distinction of being profitable with the mines in Skidoo and Rhyolite. Gold from the Keane Wonder Mine returned as coins to pay its employees.
Wanting to capitalize on their good fortune, Keane and Etcharren sold their interest in the mine in 1907. Subsequent owners developed a 20-stamp processing mill, housing, an ice plant, and a spectacular mile-long aerial tramway. The advantage to moving the ore down the mountain by tram and to tunnel horizontally into the mountain rather than sinking shafts allowed the mine to operate with a good profit margin. Unlike most Death Valley mines, the Keane Wonder Mine lived up to the name King of the Desert.
Erected 2017 by National Park Service.
Topics. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Industry & Commerce • Natural Resources. A significant historical year for this entry is 1911.
Location. 36° 40.152′ N, 116° 54.557′ W.
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Regionally, this marker is in California’s Sierra Nevada. It is also in the American Mountain West. Globally, it is in North America, on the Ring of Fire, in the Pacific Rim, in the Western Hemisphere, in the Western World, and in the Anglosphere. Historically, it finds itself in what was once New Spain and also Mexicos Alta California.
Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within 14 miles of this marker, measured as the crow flies: Death Valley National Park (approx. 5.4 miles away); McLean Spring (approx. 7.6 miles away); Transportation Traces (approx. 8.8 miles away); Old Stovepipe Wells (approx. 9½ miles away); Devils Cornfield (approx. 9.7 miles away); Twenty Mule Teams (approx. 13.2 miles away); White Gold (approx. 13.2 miles away); Borax (approx. 13.2 miles away).
Photographed by Craig Baker, October 27, 2020
2. Keane Wonder Mine and Marker
Other markers no longer nearby. Keane Wonder Mine (was a few steps from this marker but has been reported to have been replaced with another marker now near it); Wagon Wheel History (was approx. 8.8 miles away).
Photographed by Alvis Hendley, February 21, 2007
3. Aerial Tramway
Photographed by Craig Baker, October 27, 2020
4. Mine Hazards and Contaminants
Limit exposure by staying on trails.
Credits. This page was last revised on September 1, 2024. It was originally submitted on November 4, 2020, by Craig Baker of Sylmar, California. This page has been viewed 546 times since then and 44 times this year. Photos: 1, 2, 3, 4. submitted on November 4, 2020, by Craig Baker of Sylmar, California. • J. Makali Bruton was the editor who published this page.
