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| John Samuelson, a Swedish citizen, said his early life had been spent
at sea. He appeared at area pioneer Bill Keys’ ranch in 1926 looking
for work. Keys hired him to help with his Hidden Gold Mine, which was
located below the overlook at Keys’ View. |
| By 1927 Samuelson had decided to homestead and located a piece of
property in the middle of the Lost Horse Valley to the south of Quail
Springs. On the top of a small hill, he built a wood and canvas shack
where he lived with his wife Margaret. When not working his gold claim,
he carved political sayings on the rocks near his house. |
| When Samuelson attempted to file on his homestead in 1928, the land
office discovered that he was not a U.S. citizen and ruled that he could
not legally hold title to the land. He sold his claim to the Headington
family and moved to the Los Angeles area. The following year, while
at a dance in Compton, he got into an argument with two men and killed
them. |
| Erle Stanley Gardner, who first met Samuelson at Quail Springs on
February 9, 1928, discovered that, although arrested for the murders,
Samuelson was never tried. Instead he was adjudged insane and sent to
California’s State Hospital at Mendocino. When surveillance over
him was relaxed, he made his escape in 1930. |
| Samuelson evaded the authorities and made his way northward to Washington
state. In 1954 Samuelson wrote to Bill Keys that he would like to return
to the desert but was afraid he would be caught by the authorities.
Keys later received a letter from officials at a logging camp where
Samuelson was working reporting that he was in serious condition, the
result of a logging accident. Soon after, another letter came informing
Keys of his old friend’s death from those injuries. |
| Samuelson’s house burned down in the 1930s but the eight, flat-faced
rocks with his carvings can still be seen today about a mile and a half
from the turnout that is west of Quail Springs picnic area. While some
of the words are misspelled due to his poor command of the English language,
his political views are as clear today as they were when he carved them
over sixty-five years ago. |
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http://www.nps.gov/jotr/places/sam/samrocks.html
last modified: 04/08/03
web editor: Sandra kaye |
