HistoriCorps Volunteer Project: Silver Bell Ore Bins

The uniquely beautiful Joshua Tree National Park has been inhabited for at least 5,000 years. The National Park Service recognizes the Pinto Culture as the first group to have lived in the area, but other Indigenous cultures including the Cahuilla, Chemehuevi, and Serrano peoples called this area home at different points in history. HistoriCorps is thrilled to return to this site!

Cattleman and miners arrived in the region in the 1800s, seeking to take advantage of the then-abundant natural resources: lush grass and gold were notable draws. Roughly one hundred years later, homesteaders moved in, and they further altered the landscape through building cabins, digging wells, and planting crops.

In 1936, not too long after folks started staking claims here for homesteads, Joshua Tree was established as a National Park. Park advocate and one-time southern belle Minerva Hoyt worked tirelessly to ensure the park’s protection. Though she didn’t achieve the same level of recognition for her impact on Joshua Tree that luminaries such as John Muir and Ferdinand Hadyen did for their work to preserve Yosemite and Yellowstone, respectively, without Minerva Hoyt, Joshua Tree may not have achieved National Park status. Joshua Tree is especially unique because it contains two distinct desert ecosystems, the Mojave and the Colorado, and is home to the iconic tree that give the park its name.

The Silver Bell Ore Bins site shares history with the miners and homesteaders that lived here. Our partner shares, “The Silver Bell Ore Bins (aka tipples) are adjacent to the Silver Bell Mine. The mine operated as a surface mine from ca. 1934 to 1962. Gold and silver were extracted in the early years of mine production, later shifting to lead and copper via surface mining. The ore bins were constructed sometime after 1956, representing post-WWII mining activity which was limited within the park boundaries. Other original mine features and equipment were salvaged for reuse after the mine ceased operations, however, terracing and the road access are still present. The mine site is within the Hexie Mountains Historic Mining District with a period of significance from 1934 to 1942. Many other mine sites within the district can be viewed from the Silver Bell site.” Learn more about the park’s ecology, its history, and its namesake tree from the National Park Service.