Randsburg, continued..

The "sagebrush telegraph" enabled news to spread quickly, but most people utilized the mail for "intentional" communications.  Wanting to get to the camp as soon as possible, she mailed a letter to her husband, in which she told him to meet her in Mojave.  So that there would be no time for husband to object (essentially, she would be giving up her medical career in order to join him at the camp), she took a train out to the desert.

More to come.

Randsburg=Continued...

Mooers' and Singleton's confidence turned to disgust, though.  Upon his return to the camp on July 4, 1895, Burcham refused to sell his share in the claim- with the explanation that half of his one third belonged to his wife.  Still, Burcham thought that the deal was lucrative enough to write to his wife, in order to lay the ground work for the sale.

Upon receipt of her husband's correspondence, Dr. Rose Burcham came to the conclusion that the pressure- at least some of it, anyway- from "investors" could be mitigated by her presence in the camp.

More to follow.

More about Randsburg.....

In exchange for half-ownership of the mine, the option to buy the whole operation for $500,000 within six months, Stanton agreed to build a $10,000 mill in order to process the ore.

The reader should keep in mind that Mooers and Singleton were nearly broke- they even owed money on the food that they'd been eating!  Not surprisingly, the two men - assuring Stanton that the absent Burcham would sign his share over, as well-signed the agreement.

More to follow...

Randsburg-continued...

The SandNSky Jeep Cherokee is poised for the ascent of Rand Mountain.

Mooers and Singleton were advised to prospect at higher elevations.  The investor Stanton pointed out that it would take a lot more money to actually develop the claim into a profitable operation.  Photo by Scott Schwartz.

Randsburg, continued....

"Engineer" Brown studied some of the ore that was discovered by Mooers, Burcham, and Singleton.  He then recommended that they prospect at a higher elevation on the mountain.  With Burcham still in San Bernardino with his wife, it was left to Mooers and Singleton to take Brown's advice.  Which they did.

The two men became overjoyed when they found that the higher they went, the more gold they found.  Stanton- the investor- took this opportunity to point out that a lot of money would be needed in order to work such a large deposit.

More to follow...

Randsburg, continued...

Having learned of the discovery via the "sagebrush telegraph", two men from Bakersfield showed up at the camp, one day.  The men were O.B. Stanton, who was an "investor", and a Mr. Brown.  Brown claimed to be an engineer.

More to come.

Randsburg, continued...

In accordance with their agreement, Burcham signed half of his one-third share in the new venture over to Dr. Burcham. 

As enthusiastic as she was about The Rand, she warned her husband not to sell the claim to the first developer to come along.  She was aware of the fact that many prospectors had, in the past, sold out too quickly - winding up with next to nothing in comparison to the fortunes extracted from the claims by the developers.

Had Doctor Burcham been aware of what was happening at the site at that time, she would have been appalled.

To be continued.

Randsburg-continued...

Time was of the essence, because, despite the men's discretion, news of Burcham's, Mooers' and Singleton's discovery would be transmitted to scores of prospectors via the "sagebrush telegraph".

Money was needed, and it was needed fast.  It just so happened that Burcham's wife- Doctor Rose La Monte Burcham had already "grub-staked" (i.e. financed) Burcham for two years of prospecting, on the condition that half of his finds would be hers.  So, while Mooers and Singleton remained at the site, Burcham headed for San Bernardino in order to pick up supplies, and, presumably, to meet with his wife.

More to follow...

Desert life...beauty in its starkness..

Photo by Scott Schwartz

Life holds fast in the Chuckwalla Mountains Wilderness.

Randsburg, continued....

Because the gold found by the men was similar to the type that was found in South Africa's Rand mining district, they began to refer to "their" mountain as "The Rand". 

One would think that Burcham, Mooers, and Singleton would have had great cause to celebrate their find.  Well, finding evidence of a lode deposit was one thing.  Excavating the gold and supporting themselves while doing so, was another matter, entirely.

But, where would three broke prospectors get the money needed to develop their claim into a profitable operation?

Facing Mecca...

Mecca Canyon, that is.  This photo is from a trip that I took on December 10, 2012.

Mecca Canyon, CA.
Photo by Scott Schwartz

Don't worry, my friends..

The story of Randsburg will be continued.

Randsburg-continued...

A community dump occupies the spot today, but Mooers and Singleton set up camp on the mountain.  Both men started looking for the gold specks that Mooers had seen on his previous trip the year before.

Singleton noticed a rock that looked different than the others, and he broke a chunk off it.  He then cried out; for the quantity of gold now visible came from the same kind of rock that Mooers had found gold in, during his last trip.

What was more, was that this gold turned out to be a lode deposit-which meant that expensive machinery would be needed in order to extract the gold and turn the claim into a profitable operation.

More to come...

Randsburg-continued...

Mooers and Singleton pitched the idea of exploring the hills south of the El Paso's to the only person in the area with a team and wagon- a man by the name of C.A. Burcham.  Ironically, Burcham was planning to return home to San Bernardino, as he, like many prospectors, was discouraged and demoralized by his lack of success.  But, somehow, Mooers and Singleton sold Burcham on the idea of becoming a partner in this endeavor- on the condition that Mooers and Singleton would provide the horse feed and three barrels of water for the expedition.

In order to divert attention away from their destination, the three men made it clear to anyone who would listen, that they were fed-up, and that they were going to quit prospecting after checking their claims in Goler Canyon one more time.

More to follow...

Randsburg, Continued...

Photo by Scott Schwartz

During John Mooers' day, most peopled believed Rand Mountain (before it was called Rand Mountain) to be a barren, worthless, "demineralized" wasteland.  Randsburg can be seen in the foreground.  The other town in the distance is Johannesburg.

More to come....

I'm available....

......to speak about the El Paso Mountains in person, to interested organizations in Southern California.

I can be reached at sandnsky8@gmail.com

The Story of Randsburg....

Mooers took great pains to explain his geological theories to the newspaper.  The exact nature of his theories appear to be lost to the mists of history.

At any rate, Mooers and Singleton had found themselves unable to pursue their theories about these hills, because they had no way of hauling water and equipment up the mountain side.

To be continued...

Flying Dump Truck- The Douglas Skyraider...

By

Scott Schwartz

     A single engine airplane that could carry a higher payload than the B-17, the Douglas Skyraider was yet another 1940’s vintage airplane that found new life during the war in Viet Nam.

     Known by more nick names than a mob enforcer and produced in thirteen variants, the Douglas AD-4 Skyraider was designed by the famous Ed Heinemann in response to the Navy’s requirement for a Curtiss Helldiver replacement.  The requirements were simple:

The new airplane had to be able to carry a lot of ordinance (including torpedoes), perform well while carrying its payload, be able to fly far and fast, require a single pilot, and of course, be able to operate from aircraft carriers.

     The result was the XBT2D-1 (known initially as the Dauntless II), which made its first flight on March 18, 1945.  Powered by a Wright R-3350 eighteen cylinder radial engine, the first Skyraiders were delivered to the Navy in 1946 and were re-designated AD-1’s. 

     Although it became operational too late to see combat during World War Two, the AD-1 – ultimately renamed “Skyraider” –  was produced in an anti-submarine version equipped with a large radome under the fuselage, which working in conjunction with the basic attack versions patrolled the oceans in what were known as “hunter-killer” missions.

     But it was during the Korean War that the Skyraider proved its mettle as an attack airplane.  Carrying weapons loads weighing more than 10,000 pounds, as well as four 20 mm cannons, the Skyraider was a devastating close air support plane and even managed to shoot down at least one enemy aircraft.  Alright, it was a Soviet-built biplane, but the Skyraider wasn’t designed as a fighter anyway.  Besides, jets couldn’t fly slow enough to hit such a target. 

     The keys to the Skyraider’s success were its multiple under-wing weapons hard points, and its ability to loiter over the combat zone for long periods.  Jet aircraft just did not have range or the load carrying capability, and these were deficiencies that would plague jets through the early 1970’s. 

     Perhaps the Skyraider’s most famous role was that of escort to the HH-53 Jolly Green Giant helicopters that were sent out to rescue downed aircrew during the Viet Nam War.  Now being used by the USAF as A-1’s, Sandy’s (the Skyraider’s radio call sign during these operations) would pin down enemy troops so that the helicopters could affect their rescues.  Otherwise, Skyraiders were used as general ground attack aircraft and two North Vietnamese MiG 17’s were actually shot down by two Navy Skyraiders during two separate engagements in 1966. 

     Production of the Skyraider ended in 1957, and 3,180 of them were built.  By 1972, age and lack of spare parts started to catch up with the airplane, and the balance of the A-1’s remaining in Viet Nam were transferred to the South Vietnamese Air Force. 

     Some of the monikers attached to the Skyraider included Destroyer, Able Dog, Hobo, Flying Dump Truck and Spad – the latter being a type of World War I biplane.  Go figure. 

     The Skyraider was produced in too many versions to describe here, but variants included, in addition to those already mentioned, a stretched cockpit version which could carry eight passengers, and a turboprop aircraft known as the A2D Skyshark. The Skyshark was powered by a huge Allison T-40 turbo shaft engine, which consisted of two smaller engines geared to counter-rotating propellers through a complex gearbox assembly.  The whole arrangement was troublesome, and during the flight of one of these strange airplanes, the gearbox assembly failed.  Both propellers tore themselves off the airplane, leaving its jet engines screaming uselessly all the way to the emergency landing site.  The A2D was not one of the more successful Skyraider derivatives.

     Nearly 20 Skyraiders are still airworthy, and the roar of the R-3350’s two stage supercharger is loud enough that it sounds like an auxiliary jet engine. 

     The airplanes size, sound, and appearance make it a truly impressive sight, both on the ground and in the air.

Douglas Skyraider specifications, AD-6 version:

Power: Wright R-3350 18 cylinder engine producing 2700 horsepower.

Armament: Four 20 mm cannon mounted in the wings. 7 bomb racks mounted under each wing outer panel, 1 on each wing inner panel, and 1 rack under the fuselage center line.

Maximum Speed:  365mph. 

Cruising Speed: 190 mph.

Maximum Loaded Weight: 25,000 pounds.

Empty Weight: 10,550 pounds.

Wingspan:   50 ft. 9 inches.

A preserved Skyraider unfolds its wings at Nellis AFB, Nevada at a 2007 air show.
Photo by Scott Schwartz