Homesteading is often thought of as a phenomenon of the nineteenth century, but in the desert - one of America's last frontiers - homesteading continued well into the twentieth century. The prospective homesteader could gain title to government land for a fee, provided they made certain "improvements" to the land. Various homesteading laws required different improvements, but usually included building a dwelling and often provided for clearing land and/or planting crops. Around 29 Palms, California small shacks still dot the landscape, built in the years after World War II to satisfy claims for a homestead.

Within Mojave National Preserve homesteading began in 1910 in the Lanfair Valley, and continued to the middle of this century. Here land originally went in 160 acre parcels, although later laws allowed this to expand to 320 acres and then 640 acres. In addition to building a house, the homesteader had to clear a certain amount of land and plant crops. Once they had satisfied these legal requirements, the land was theirs.

Driving through the desert today, the thought of farmers tilling the soil may seem far fetched. Several factors made it more plausible then. First, the 1910s appear to have been an era of relatively plentiful rainfall. There was also a railroad, the Nevada Southern Railway, that branched off the Atchison, Topeka and the Santa Fe Railway at Goffs. It crossed Lanfair Valley and eventually connected with the Barnwell and Searchlight Railway on its way to Searchlight, Nevada. This gave homesteaders ready access to the best transportation of the day. Many knew they would not get rich from farming, but they saw this as a way to gain their piece of the rapidly developing West.

Typical is the case of Maud Sharp. Maud and her husband Bert were a young couple when they left Los Angeles in 1914, heading for their new home of Ledge in the Lanfair Valley. They were an adventuresome couple, and relished the thought of pioneer life in the desert. This seems to have been the common thread between those who choose this life - it took someone with different priorities to move into the desert frontier.

The Sharp's did clear their land and raise crops, but more to satisfy government requirements than because it made them money. In fact, to make a living in this desert country Bert had to work for a local mining company, the Rock Springs Land and Cattle Company and the Santa Fe Railway. They raised a family and gained title to their land, but the poor economic situation in the desert eventually caused them to returned to Los Angeles and civilization.

Most were like the Sharp's, leaving their homesteads. In fact, the 1920s saw the beginnings of an exodus from Lanfair Valley and much of the high country in what is today Mojave National Preserve. Traffic declined on the railroad through the valley, and it was finally closed in 1923. The wet era of the teens was replaced by a new drier time. Most saw opportunity declining on their homestead, while the booming economy of Los Angeles (at least until the Crash of 1929) attracted many back to the city. A few years after the Sharp's left their homestead they returned to see how things had changed. What they found were mostly deserted homesteads. The homestead era was over.

Photos Courtesy of Mojave Desert Archives