Santa Claus Arizona

We were on our way from Kingman to the Ghost Town of Chloride, Arizona. The highway is very desolate and goes from A to B with very little in between. Well, there was this billboard by the side of the road. Santa Claus Arizona? For sale? This was most certainly worth a closer look.

I apologize in advance for the poor photo quality. Technical gremlins were at work that day.  Maybe, they were the ghosts of unemployed Christmas elves.

Apparently, the town of Santa Claus was established in the mid 1930's by a real estate developer named Nina Talbot. The idea was to draw people to her land office by disguising it as a tourist attraction. There was food, a place to spend the night and rides for the kids. Maybe oddest of all was the fact that Santa Claus was available everyday of the year. Mind you now, place is in the middle of the desert, yet the owner was sure she could sell lots and actually establish a growing town here. She was wrong...

If we would have found this place about 20 years earlier, I understand we would have still seen the little cars used in the rides and some other things. 

Apparently, Ms. Talbot's grand plan never panned out and after losing her shirt, she sold the town in 1949. The new owners kept this building open as a restaurant and it operated for several more years.

In 1950, world famous science fiction writer Robert Heinlein wrote a short story, either about this place, or this place was in the story. Either way, I'm looking for it now.

You NEVER, EVER know what you are going to find in the desert...

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Yuma - Some Thoughts...

Some of you might just want to look at the photos and ignore the rest, because I'm going to vent for a bit. If you do comment and it's just about the photos, I understand. 

The very south western portion of Arizona and the south eastern portion of California have a lot in common. The area is the largest producer of winter vegetables in the world and provides over 90% of the winter vegetables eaten in the United States.  One other thing they share is that almost all of the work is done by migrant Hispanics. I have no way of knowing who is here legally and who is not, but I do know that many of them cross the border legally everyday to come to work. 

Something else I know is that there aren't enough people to work the fields. This area (and many others) have actually had to cut back on the number of acres planted at any given time because of manpower shortages. The local folks don't want to do it, the non-Hispanics don't want to do it and there just aren't any white migrant workers any more. 

Yuma is so close to the border that it seems to have fewer manpower problems than agricultural areas in other parts of the country. Based on what I've seen, read and heard, the migrants here usually fall into one of four categories. 

1. Illegal workers who have a pass to cross the border for shopping, visiting relatives, medical care, etc. They are here legally, but they are prohibited from working here.
2. Workers who have snuck* into the country and are totally illegal and undocumented.  
3. Documented workers who are usually middle aged, legally in the U.S. and work in the fields for a living. The children of these folks, just like most other Americans, have exactly ZERO desire to work in the fields like their parents.  
4. Legal workers who have obtained a work visa to temporarily work in this country.  These workers are bound to the company who petitioned the government for temporary help.

Oh yeah, these folks don't just work, they bust their humps every day in brutal conditions. Long hours, low pay, pesticides, various other chemicals, back breaking work and the realization that they are at the absolute bottom of the economic totem pole in a multi-billion dollar industry. 

At first glance it looks like the company at least gives them some shade to work in, but It isn't exactly what it looks like. That contraption giving them some shade (if they're lucky) is MOVING and it doesn't stop.  I've worked a lot of jobs in my life. Many of them involved VERY hard work. I've spent a lot of time watching these folks and there are middle aged ladies in this group who could work me into the ground on my best day. 

The thing that struck me the most (and not in a good way) is that the unemployment percentage in the Yuma area is almost 30%! It doesn't make a lot of sense to me that they don't require some of the recipients of unemployment benefits to take those jobs. I especially don't understand it when I think about the Arizona state stance on the subject.   I've heard people say more than a few times, that "those people are taking our jobs!"  Maybe it's just me, but I've NEVER heard any parents that I know say, "I sure hope Junior grows up to be a field worker."  I'm not trying to make a political statement here, but I live in southern California and as you know I spend a lot of time traveling around the southwestern part of the country.  In most of these areas; if all the illegal/undocumented immigrants (from Mexico alone) were sent packing. Our economy would grind to an immediate halt.  The state of Arizona estimates that about 10% of their TOTAL workforce is made up of illegal aliens. Some folks there are also quick to point out that the percentage of unemployed Arizonan citizens is about 9% and simply removing the illegals would solve the unemployment problem.  Seriously? 

Just one more little issue that bugs me. At one time, this house belonged to a farm owner. This sight can be seen all over our country. Do you think the huge corporate farms that either bought, or forced out the small farmers have even the slightest problem hiring illegal immigrants who go there for work? I don't think they care in the slightest. I'm sure that some of them would probably like to import Chinese slave labor and make even larger profits.  

I'm not sure if I've ever ventured into political waters before on this blog and I don't mean to do so now. I KNOW there are huge problems with our immigration policies and enforcement, but I don't think either political party in this country really and truly even thinks it's a problem. If it was, they would have fixed it years ago.  Most of these folks come here for some of the same reasons our ancestors did. It's the land of opportunity.  Most of them are dedicated family folks, who just want their families to survive.  If you've ever been to Mexico, you know what I'm talking about. Poor, totally corrupt and full of people that are desperately poor.  

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*"Snuck."  I know this is one of those modern day words that has made it's way into our dictionaries and many folks shiver every time they see it in a sentence. It's kind of like starting a sentence with a conjunction. Things have changed...


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You Do Not Want to Serve Your Prison Sentence Here

Yuma Territorial Prison

If you were a murderer, cattle rustler, stage robber, or even your average convicted adulterer (boy have times ever changed);  this is not the prison you wanted to be sentenced to. Sorry about that, because it was the only “prison” in the southwestern part of the country.   If you've ever viewed even a few American Westerns or “cowboy” movies, you've probably heard this place being referenced.

I apologize about the glaring sky in this photo. I hope you brought sunglasses.

Now

Then

The prison was isolated in the middle of the Sonoran Desert, where blistering summertime temperatures average over 100 degrees.  Being locked in a cell with up to 5 other men, with a bucket for a toilet (changed once a day if you were lucky); is not where I would want to be when it’s blistering hot. From what we saw, the cell looked pretty good, because...

Most of them looked much more like this.

This cell was called the “snake pit” or “hell hole” and was probably the worst thing that could happen to you.  The iron grating on the floor is what is left of the ten by ten feet, iron box that was in this room. The walls and top were made of the same material.  When they really wanted to punish you, they threw you in here; unfortunately you weren't always in there alone.  Anybody else who needed “special” treatment was also in there with you and sometimes there were several men in there at once.  Stripped down to their underwear and given bread and water once a day.  The only light came from a small open vent in the ceiling. The worst thing was the fact that they didn't even have a bucket. You just did your business right there in the cage, on the floor.  Imagine the fragrance of that after a few 100 degree days!  I just triggered my own gag reflex!  Believe me, that isn't easy...

 Main guard tower

Escaping wasn't a very good option because the place was surrounded by desert. If you did happen to escape (and many tried), they were usually hunted down (for money) by the local Indian tribe.

The prison was opened in 1876 and the last prisoner was discharged in 1919. After the prison closed, the city of Yuma used it as the local High School (after their school was destroyed) for a while. That’s pretty weird, right?  Can you guess what the school’s sports teams were known as? Yep! The Yuma Criminals!  The name stuck and it is still the school mascot today!

Go Criminals!  Go Team Go!

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Although the prison was a terrible place and a lot of crazy things went on there, I think the oddest thing we found that day related to the Yuma High School mascot. Seriously, isn't that odd? When combined with other things we've learned about Arizona recently, maybe it isn't really isn't all that odd...

Don't get me wrong, being different is one of the great things about this state. You never know who you are going to run into, or what you are going to see.

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Speaking of the Arizona desert. We are back in Arizona again. Same state, different desert. This time the Mojave. We've put a lot of miles on the jeep since we got here a week ago and have seen some great and interesting things...

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The Oddest Thing We've Ever Seen in the Desert

After four years of construction just north of Yuma Arizona, the Laguna Dam became operational. It was the very first dam constructed on the Colorado River and was built to divert water for the irrigation of many thousands of acres in the desert areas of southern Arizona and California.

In 1938 the Imperial dam was built several miles upriver from the Laguna Dam. That construction made the Laguna Dam redundant and the need for it to divert Colorado River water was eliminated forever.  As with most redundant things in the desert, the Laguna Dam was not destroyed. The dam and many of the works relating to it are still there. Two of those related items are one of the main diversion gates and a bridge leading from the closest road to the top of the dam. They were saved because it was a part of Arizona history.  Many Arizonans didn't want these things saved, in fact, they were many civilian pickax attacks on the bridge and diversion gate. The authorities had to protect these things with armed guards. Now, like most things in the desert than have outlived their usefulness this place is left to erode away. Most of the locals don't even know it's there.

You might be wondering why some people wanted this bridge and gate destroyed.  Well, here are the answers to those questions. 

It doesn't look like anything special from here.

When I saw this, I didn't know what to think...

No matter how you look at it, that bridge is adorned with Swastikas.

Like most of the things we find, this one is also in the middle of nowhere. 

Here is the diverter gate. It looks innocent enough.

Obligatory black and white

 There hasn't been any water in this thing for decades.

A closer look at the gate. The construction date of 1907 is clearly visible. 

I climbed thorough a hole in the fence and climbed out onto the gate to get this photo.

Another Swastika!

 I really liked this view, barbed wire and all.

Another string of them.

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Obviously, these things were imprinted into the concrete many years before the rise of the Nazi Party in Germany, but many people around the Yuma area during the war weren't buying it. There were many rumors relating to who did this and why. The truth is that this symbol has been used in many cultures for hundreds of years and was usually thought of as a positive thing. Still, when I saw these things last month, in the year 2013, I FELT them. I can see why people tried to destroy them with picks, but I can also see why they are protected.   

I truly think that this is the oddest thing we've run across in all the time we've spent roaming the deserts of the southwest. It got a lot odder when I was doing some research on the "Swastika Bridge." Authorities in Arizona consider these things to be part of the historical record of their state.  I get that, because these things were built many years before the rise of the Nazi Party. What I don't understand though, is why did they have Swastikas on their state highway signs into the 1940's?

Fact truer than fiction...

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You Never Know Who You Might Meet in the Desert

This isn't the post that relates to the VERY strange thing we found in the desert recently. I have to do a little more research because the more I do, the weirder it gets...

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Although not as weird as the post I'm working on, this stuff was far from normal! We drove into Yuma just to check the town out. Yuma is a very old and I'm sure you've all seen at least a dozen Westerns that were made about this town, or the things that happened here. As we were driving around we met a couple of people that are the type you can ONLY meet in the desert.

 Meet Muffler Man

Back in the 50's and 60's these guys could be found all over the country. Besides being huge, they also had one thing in common. They all were holding an automobile muffler. They stopped making them in the mid-60's and they are becoming more rare everyday.

Instead of a muffler, these days you might see them holding various tools, candy canes, hot dogs, donuts, weapons, or nothing at all... Somewhere around here I have a photo of one holding a giant corn dog!  

Muffler Man is kind of like the giant donuts that used to be a fairly common sight on top of donut shops. Remember them? They are also becoming very rare. Everybody has heard of Route 66 and all the cool things that it represents, right?  Well, one of America's other great historic roads runs through Yuma. That road is U.S. Highway 80.  Okay, enough about Muffler Man and giant donuts. Ladies and germs, may I present....

Giant Sunglasses Man

We were on our way back to the highway spotted this image sitting in a strip-mall. 

 Check out the drawing of this big headed guy on the sign behind him.

I like the name of the shop as much as the giant head

Is it art? Certainly not in the classical sense, but it is an awesome piece of folk art.  It's going to be an amazing piece of folk art in five, ten or twenty years, when after the business shuts it's doors for the final time and this guy is left in some desert lot or somebody's front yard. Then people will see it and wonder about where it came from and how did it end up where it is then.  How do I know that? I know it because that is exactly what people do with old things in the desert. They either dump them, or just put them out in the yard. Lot's of room and not many neighbors to complain.  The desert doesn't care.  

Don't get me wrong, I love the pristine, beautiful and desolate desert. I also love the outskirts of desert towns like Yuma and the hundreds of small thirsty towns. Each of them has their own beauty, oddities and interesting characters.


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The Atomic Cannon - Desert Oddity

Another item that can only be found in the desert....

"Atomic Annie" (real name M65 Atomic Canon) was a piece of artillery manufactured by the U.S. in the early part of the cold war. It was able to fire a 600 pound nuclear projectile about 20 miles. There were 20 of these canons made, but none of them were ever fired in anger.  In fact, only one atomic projectile was ever fired.  That test shot was taken at the the Nevada Test Site on May 25, 1953.


Because of the rapid development and effectiveness of conventional  ground to ground and air to ground missile systems after World War II, the M65 was rendered obsolete even as it was being deployed to sites in Europe and Korea.

If this photo looks phony to you, please watch the very short video that is just below.

Here is a video of it!

The canon is currently sitting near the entry road that leads to the Yuma Proving Grounds. It's one of  largest military installations in the world and extremely isolated in one of the most desolate desert areas anywhere.  
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We found some interesting and odd things in the desert on this trip, but I'm holding back the strangest of all for a little while. Still doing some research on it! I PROMISE that you will be as amazed as we were!

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Bridge to Nowhere (seriously)

Here are the bridge towers we saw from the small chapel in my last post. Apparently, this was a trend setting Suspension bridge and was designed by the same guy who later designed the Golden Gate bridge. It was named after Henry McPhaul, who was a former Yuma Territorial Prison Guard and gold miner. The bridge replaced the local ferry that crossed the Gila River. It was open for about 40 years.

It was completed in 1929 and wide enough for two lanes of traffic. (photo from YumaSun.com)

The Gila River flowing under the 800 foot long bridge  (photo from YumaSun.com)

The bridge today. It's been sitting like this since 1968. Several signs and barricades warn and block people from venturing out on the unsafe structure.

First sign ignored.

Second sign and first barricade ignored.

The all important legal warning. What to do?

Let's see here...  A locked gate covered with barbed wire and another fence topped with barbed wire. Sounds like they really don't want people on this thing.

Only had to climb around the gate and somebody had already cut the fence. I swear it wasn't me!

Okay now! A clear path.

This thing sure has a lot of holes in it and it actually moves when I take a step. Maybe I better stop...

About half way across and there is much less water than in the "before" photo at the beginning.

That is a long way down! I hope my shadow doesn't fall through the hole.

The structure looks a bit like the Golden Gate bridge.

Made it to the other end! Hey wait, there is no road at this end either!

A better view of how messed up this thing is. You can see the ground through all of these cracks. Tricky footing. Add to that they give when you take a step.

It really doesn't seem to come from anywhere and it certainly doesn't lead to anywhere.

There must be at least one B&W.

That may have been a road at one time, but it totally ends after about a hundred yards in the parking lot of a taco stand and little market.  Great tacos by the way.

After I crossed back I wanted to get a better view and did some climbing...

Up these rocks... My wife didn't follow me all the way across the bridge and wasn't very thrilled that I climbed these rocks. She thinks I'm too old and clumsy, but I still have some mountain goat left in me.  Kids, don't try either of these stunts at home! I'm old and not of sound mind, so I have an excuse.

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