Trona in San Bernardino County, California — The American West (Pacific Coastal)

Austin Hall

Photographed by Denise Boose, December 26, 2010

1. Austin Hall Marker

Inscription. Austin Hall, the much loved focal point of the Trona community, once stood on this site. Built in 1912 the unique structure, with its one-foot thick concrete walls, boasted 45 arches on three sides, the building provided a cooling shelter from the blazing heat with its patio center and oleander trees. Early employees were housed and fed in its spacious rooms and eventually all the town’s businesses were housed here. The patio became an open-air theatre with adjoining pool hall, a barber shop, post office, library, grocery and department store and a telegraph office with a switchboard for the single phone line into Trona.  

The building was named for Stafford W. Austin, the court appointed receiver for the troubled California Trona Company. Austin guided the company through its evolution from the John Searles owned San Bernardino Borax Mining Company to the eventually successful American Potash and Chemical Corporation. The building was removed in 1965.

Erected 2002 by Searles Valley Historical Society.

Topics. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Agriculture • Entertainment

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• Industry & Commerce • Settlements & Settlers. A significant historical year for this entry is 1912.

Location. 35° 45.601′ N, 117° 22.564′ W. Marker is in Trona, California, in San Bernardino County. It is at the intersection of Main Street and Trona Road on Main Street. The Austin Hall plaque is across the street and north of the Guest House Museum. Touch for map. Marker is in this post office area: Trona CA 93562, United States of America. Touch for directions.

Regionally, this marker is in Greater Los Angeles,

in the Mojave Desert,

in the Peninsular Ranges,

and specifically in the Transverse Ranges.

It is also in the American Southwest.

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 Mexico’s Alta California.

Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within 10 miles of this marker, measured as the crow flies: Old Guest House Museum (within shouting distance of this marker); Searles Lake Borax Discovery (approx. 0.2 miles away); Trona Unified School

Photographed by Denise Boose, December 26, 2010

2. Austin Hall Marker

(approx. 0.8 miles away); Valley Wells (approx. 5.2 miles away); Epsom Salts Monorail (approx. 5½ miles away); John & Dennis Searles Wagon Routes (approx. 5½ miles away); Famous Trona Pinnacles (approx. 5½ miles away); Welcome to the Trona Pinnacles (approx. 9.9 miles away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Trona.

Also see . . . Trona on the Web. (Submitted on October 13, 2020, by Larry Gertner of New York, New York.)

Photographed by Craig Baker, October 26, 2020

3. Austin Hall Marker

Original Location of Austin Hall image. Click for full size.

Photographed by Denise Boose, December 26, 2010

4. Original Location of Austin Hall

courtesy Trona-ca.com

5. Austin Hall

Old Fox Theater image. Click for full size.

Photographed by Craig Baker, April 4, 2022

6. Old Fox Theater

Located across the street. Abandoned.

Old Recreation Center image. Click for full size.

Photographed by Craig Baker, April 4, 2022

7. Old Recreation Center

On Argus Ave at California Street.

Credits. This page was last revised on March 30, 2026. It was originally submitted on January 22, 2012, by Denise Boose of Tehachapi, California. This page has been viewed 1,598 times since then and 53 times this year. Photos: 1, 2. submitted on January 22, 2012, by Denise Boose of Tehachapi, California. 3. submitted on October 29, 2020, by Craig Baker of Sylmar, California. 4. submitted on January 22, 2012, by Denise Boose of Tehachapi, California. 5. submitted on March 19, 2026, by Craig Baker of Sylmar, California. 6, 7. submitted on April 14, 2022, by Craig Baker of Sylmar, California. • Syd Whittle was the editor who published this page.