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abandoned house Article and pictures by Natasha Petrosova  The History of Newberry Springs can be dated back to 20, 000yerars.  Digs at the Early Man site found tools here dating prior to 20, 000 BC.  Back in a day  , most of this land was covered by the prehistoric  Lake Manix.  then, around 18, 000 BC , a massive earthquake caused the lake to be drained through what is now known as Afton Canyon  , also known as a Grand Canyon of the Mojave.  Early humans are thought to lived and hunted here where the swamps and marshes remained.  Because of a lot of water and food the region was inhabited throughout the centuries by various indigenous peoples  .  Modern man now enjoys the underground water source for both agriculture and recreation .   First settlers discovered the oasis following old Indian trails.  It was in 1885, shortly after Santa Fe railroad laid tracks here, that the site began to sup...

Off the Map : Bagdad Ghost Town Story Article and Photography by Natasha Petrosova  Bagdad is a ghost town along the Historic Route 66.  The town got its name in 1883 when the Southern Pacific Railroad named the station after Baghdad, Iraq (sans the "h") because of its similar inhospitable climate.  The post office in this town was opened in 1889 and during those times the town was bustled with activity.  It had a telegraph office, hotels, school , library and a Harvey House restaurant.    Bagdad became an important stop along the train route .  Water was brought from near by Newberry Springs daily in 20-car trains.  The Bagdad stop also provided coal and fuel oil .  During mining boom 1900-1910 Bagdad was a station used to ship out product from the Orange Blossom and War Eagle mines.  At the time of its boom, Bagdad had about 600 residents .   When the mining in the area played out, Bagdad started to decline.  A fire...

The town of Garlock had several names throughout its history.  It had been named El Paso and Cow Wells back in 1889s.  The Californian  began calling the town Eugeneville in 1896 , and Los Angeles Daily Times article call the town Garlock in 1898. Both Eugeneville and Garlock are named after the Tehachapi businessman Eugene Garlock who put an eight-stamp mill at the location in 1895.    The first mill in Garlock opened in 1896 and with enough demand ,  there were 5 additional mills that were built.  During this time Randsburg was growing strong but there wasn't a mill in Randsburg, so the ore from Randsburg was shipped to Garlock for processing.   Garlock experienced its hey-days in 1899 and Garlock's population grew up to several hundred residents.  There were never many buildings in Garlock but they had a school-house also serving as a church, and meeting place for social groups.  The post office oper...

Article and Photography by Natasha Petrosova Today , Randsburg is a living Ghost Town where people are nice and antiques are cheap.  It accounts for about 200 Residents.  Near by towns Johannesburg and Red Mountain also have full-time residents, 50 and 100 respectively.  The whole area really comes to live once a year on the  third Saturday of September when Ransburg holds its annual "Old West Days" event. Hundreds of people attend the event each year and this sleepy town in Mojave desert comes to live  full of fun and enjoyment .   It was our second time visiting Randsburg.  The first time we came here about a week prior to the event.  We walked empty  streets , took pictures and did not meet any residents.  Businesses were close and it seemed that the town was deserted.  This time , we came back for an event.  The town was full of people and businesses were open.    We enjoyed live music , c...