BGuthrie Photos: NV -- Blue Diamond -- Spring Mountain Ranch State Park

NV -- Blue Diamond -- Spring Mountain Ranch State Park:

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Copyrights: All pictures were taken by amateur photographer Bruce Guthrie (me!) who retains copyright on them. Free for non-commercial use with attribution. See the [Creative Commons] definition of what this means. "Photos (c) Bruce Guthrie" is fine for attribution. (Commercial use folks including AI scrapers can of course contact me.) Feel free to use in publications and pages with attribution but you don't have permission to sell the photos themselves. A free copy of any printed publication using any photographs is requested. Descriptive text, if any, is from a mixture of sources, quite frequently from signs at the location or from official web sites; copyrights, if any, are retained by their original owners.

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Specific picture descriptions: Photos above with "i" icons next to the bracketed sequence numbers (e.g. "[1] ") are described as follows:
1. SPRMTN_110716_012.JPG: Chet Lauck & Norris Goff, ca 1944 Owner Chet Lauck played "Lum" in the popular comedy "Lum 'n' Abner" from 1936-1954. The team aired on coast-to-coast radio and starred in several movies.
2. SPRMTN_110716_014.JPG: Jean Peters: Jean Peters' film credits include Elia Kazan's "Viva Zapata!" (1952) with Marlon Brando, "Pickup on South Street" (1955) with Richard Widmark, and "Apache" (1954) with Burt Lancaster> She and Howard Hughes were married in Tanopah, Nevada in 1957.
3. SPRMTN_110716_017.JPG: Vera Krupp, ca 1945 A German movie actress, Vera emigrated to the US in 1938 and was the owner of the famous 33.6 carat Krupp diamond. Krupp Diamond From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia The Krupp Diamond is a 33.19-carat (6.638 g) stone, last sold at Sotheby's on May 16, 1968, for $305,000, to Welsh actor Richard Burton. Burton gave the stone to English-American actress Dame Elizabeth Taylor, his wife at that time. Description: The Krupp is an emerald cut, with length and width proportions which are closer to that of an Asscher cut. It also has a fairly large culet facet, indicating it was likely cut before the 1920s, when culet facets were being phased out. History: The diamond is named for the Krupp family of German industrialists, and it was sold as part of the estate of Vera Krupp (1909-1967), second wife of Alfried Krupp. Elizabeth Taylor wore the Krupp Diamond as a ring, and called it her favorite piece. The Krupp Diamond and other famous pieces of jewelry in Taylor's collection became part of Taylor's image. The actual diamond appeared on the Here's Lucy episode "Lucy Meets the Burtons" in 1970. Lucy Carter (played by Lucille Ball) found the ring and got it stuck on her finger. Lucy ends up having to substitute her own hand for Miss Taylor's at a press party held to show off the ring. This was the highest rated episode of the very popular series and earned an Emmy nomination for comedy writing. Lucy, the Burtons, and the ring appeared on the cover of the September 5, 1970 issue of TV Guide.
4. SPRMTN_110716_038.JPG: On March 23, 1972, Fletcher Jones and William Murphy, Southern California businessmen, purchased the ranch from Howard Hughes for approximately $1.1 million. On March 25, 1973, a re-zoning request for a large equestrian and residential development was made. The Nevada Open Space Council and the Red Rock Advisory Committee opposed the request. On January 23, 1974, the Nevada Division of State Parks purchased the property for $3.3 million. Funds were obtained from state bond sales and federal lands and water conservation funds.
5. SPRMTN_110716_055.JPG: Howard Hughes: Howard Hughes refined his image as one of the nation's largest defense contractors, a playboy filmmaker and daredevil aviator who broke speed records in airplanes his designed. After his round-the-world flight in 1938, he became a national hero. In November 1966, Mr. Hughes took up residence at the Desert Inn in Las Vegas and began acquiring several casinos in an effort to make the city safe for legitimate business. He actively opposed the open-air nuclear weapons testing program in Nevada. He also purchased television stations, airfields, mines, and other property in Nevada including Spring Mountain Ranch. "I like to think of Las Vegas in terms of a well-dressed man in a dinner jacket, and a furred female getting out of an expensive car. I think that is what the people expect here -- to rub shoulders with VIPs and stars, possibly dressed in sports clothes, but if so, at least in good sports clothes. I don't think we should permit this place to degrade into a freak or amusement park category, like Coney Island." -- In a memo from Howard Hughes.
6. SPRMTN_110716_104.JPG: Vera Krupp's Original Vanity
7. SPRMTN_110716_117.JPG: During her ownership of the ranch, Vera Krupp hiked around Sandstone Canyon and collected stones and rocks. She learned the art of lapidary, which is the craft of working, forming, finishing of stone, mineral and gemstones into functional or decorative items. She became quite skilled at polishing the rocks she found around the ranch and used this room to make earrings, necklaces and art pieces. Children of guests at the ranch recall playing with Mrs. Krupp's "pricey stones." One of Mrs. Krupp's purses embellished with her lapidary work is on display in the wardrobe room.
8. SPRMTN_110716_136.JPG: Hidden entrance to Vera's private bedroom
9. SPRMTN_110716_148.JPG: $500 Reward! For information leading to the arrest and conviction of anyone stealing any of my cattle. Bar Nothing Ranch C.H. Lauck, Owner
10. SPRMTN_110716_151.JPG: Chester Lauck's Bar Nothing Ranch formerly Wilson Ranch since 1874
11. SPRMTN_110716_257.JPG: The Wilson Family
12. SPRMTN_110716_366.JPG: The Old Spanish Trail 1829-1848: Outlaws on the Trail: Look at the valley in front of you and imagine it full of hundreds of horses. This was the scene in May 1840, after a particularly infamous raid occurred in California. Ute Chief Walkara and several American mountain men raided ranches simultaneously from San Jose to San Diego. They used different routes to escape the authorities. Famous frontiersman William S. "Old Bill" Williams took part in this caper. He drove his share of the horses back to Utah along the Old Spanish Trail. He hid out here while the animals recovered from their fast pace through the desert. Mormon freighters of the 1850s passed frequently through southern Nevada. They learned of Old Bill's exploits and named the site of his hideaway camp the "Bill Williams Ranch." Today the ranch is a Nevada State Park known as the Spring Mountain Ranch. Once trade began along the Old Spanish Trail, the unguarded ranches of California tempted raiders. The free-roaming horse herds of the ranches proved easy pickings for thieves. American mountain men viewed the ranches as fair targets because California was still a part of Mexico. Caravan muleteers, trappers, and traders also stole animals. Ute warriors often led the raids. Within ten years of the opening of the "back door to California," thieves had made off with thousands of animals. Hundreds of horses died along the desert trail. Enough survived, however, to reach New Mexico and to make raiding profitable. Other thieves took horses to northern Utah for sale to pioneers headed for California. Origins of the Trail: Spain began searching for a direct land route to link its New Mexico and California colonies in the 1700s. Native Americans in the region traded over great distances long before Europeans arrived and short routes were developed by Mexican traders and American trappers. The trail we know today as the Old Spanish Trail combines Spain's early routes with ancient Native American foot paths and sections of trails used by traders and fur trappers. The 1,200 mile trail began in Santa Fe, New Mexico, and crossed portions of the Sonoran and Mojave deserts to reach settlements near El Pueblo de Nuestra Senora la Reina de Los Angeles, the capital of the Mexican province, Alta California. It crossed portions of what would become six states. The first person to lead a group along the entire Old Spanish Trail was Santa Fe trader Antonio Armijo. He led a caravan of sixty men from Abiquiu, New Mexico to Los Angeles in 1829. Mules carried their trade goods across the desert. The trail became one of the earliest recognized routes between the expanding United States and the California coast. After explorer John C Fremont traveled through the region in 1844, a map of his route was printed and distributed widely. Wagon trains from Salt Lake City began to use the trail and people called it the "Salt Lake City Road" or the "Mormon Road." In Nevada, the Old Spanish Trail stretched for more than 150 miles as it ran from one water source to the next. The artesian springs at Las Vegas made it one of the most dependable stops on the journey through the desert. In 1855, Mormon settlers established a fort at the springs and abandoned it in 1858. The railroad town of Las Vegas was founded at the springs in 1905. Congress designated the Old Spanish Trail as a National Historic Trail in 2002 and several segments of the trail through southern Nevada are listed in the National Register of Historic Places. Today, modern roads follow the general route of the trail. Interstate 15 parallels the route from southern Utah into Las Vegas. Nevada State Routes 159 and 160 actually cover the trail in many places. Some stretches of the highway west of Las Vegas are known as the "Old Spanish Trail Highway."
13. SPRMTN_110716_432.JPG: Main House: The main ranch house was constructed in 1948 by Chet Lauck. This New England style farmhouse of cut sandstone and redwood board and batten siding has a cedar shake roof. Sandstone is a good desert-proof building material, it is self-insulating and keeps its original size. The roof dovecote and belfry are decorative. Trees in front yard include Poplar, Russian Olive, Sycamore, and Cottonwood.
14. SPRMTN_110716_457.JPG: Blacksmith Shop and Tack Shed: The Blacksmith shop was originally a retaining wall with an open-shed roof. The large bellows were added during the Wilson tenure and their size, nearly six feet long, required breaking through the stone curtains resulting in the small jog in the building. In 1986, both the cabin and the blacksmith shop started to collapse. Each building was taken down and numbered stone by stone, then reconstructed with mortar colored to match the original. In 2006, the horse trough to the right was renovated to divert ground water away from the blacksmith shop.
AAA "Gem": AAA considers this location to be a "must see" point of interest. To see pictures of other areas that AAA considers to be Gems, click here.
Wikipedia Description: Spring Mountain Ranch State Park
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Spring Mountain Ranch State Park is a state park of Nevada, USA, preserving the historic Sandstone Ranch established in 1876. It is located within the Red Rock Canyon National Conservation Area in the Cottonwood Valley, 15.2 miles (24.5 km) west of Las Vegas. It has a picnic area and a summer theater program through Super Summer Theatre, a local non-profit theater program. It is in the Southern Region of Nevada State Parks.

Early ranch history:

In the mid-1830s, a campsite was established along the wash that runs through the ranch. The spring-fed creek and grassy meadows formed an oasis for travelers using the alternate route of the Spanish Trail through Cottonwood Valley. The use of the site by pack and wagon trains continued until their replacement by the railroad in 1905. This remote trail was also used extensively by outlaws involved in Indian slave trading, horse stealing and raids upon passing caravans. In 1840, a group of American mountain men and Ute Indians conducted a famous raid on the Mexican Ranchos in California. Mountain Man Bill Williams, a member of the raiding party, brought his band of horses through Red Rock Canyon where he rested the horses from the hard trip across the desert. Apparently he revisited the area several times and for many years afterwards the site of Spring Mountain Ranch was known as the "Old Bill Williams Ranch". Historical Sites at the park include the Main Ranch House; Wilson Cemetery, Sandstone Cabin; Board and Batten bunkhouse; Blacksmith's Shop, Hay and Horse Barn/Corral, Two-Hole Outhouse, Chinchilla Shed and many more.

Sandstone Ranch:

Sand Stone Ranch, as it was first known, was formed in 1876 by Sergeant James B. Wilson and George Anderson. The ranch under this name was listed on the United States National Register of Historic Places on April 3, 1976.

Natural resources:

Because of the higher elevation, the ranch offers a diverse opportunity for plant study. Four plant communities are represented: Desert Scrub, Black brush, Pinon-Juniper, and Riparian. Plants typical of the desert as well as woodland can be seen, and with adequate rainfall the spring brings a burst of wildflowers. Common species sighted are desert marigold, globe mallow, brittlebush, Joshua Tree, Mohave Yucca, and indigo bush.

Animal life is diverse but nocturnal, so many species go unseen. Typical desert animals include a variety of lizards and snakes, antelope, ground squirrels, jackrabbits, cottontail rabbits, kit foxes, and coyotes. Higher elevation species include rock squirrel, badger, mule deer, and bighorn sheep.
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