Vol. XVII, No. 9 



WASHINGTON 



September, 1906 



Jfnt 



Or 



T 



ATffiOMAIL 



OGIMJPffllffiD 



'MoAM 



O 



THE DESERTS OF NEVADA AND THE 

 DEATH VALLEY* 



"AND STILL THE DESERT WAITS" 



By Robert H. Chapman 



U. S. Geological Survey 



THE area lying to the west and 

 southwest of Salt Lake City and 

 extending to the Sierra Nevada 

 and the ranges east of Los Angeles was 

 for a long time included under the cap- 

 tion "The Great American Desert." 



The discovery of gold in California in 

 1849 was the beginning of the conquest 

 of this thirsty region, the direction of 

 greatest travel being but little south of 

 west from Great Salt Lake to the vicinity 

 of the Donner Pass in the Sierra Nevada, 

 since used by the Central Pacific Railroad 

 in crossing this range. In seeking for 

 better routes to the new El Dorado, par- 

 ties journeyed southward across the 

 wastes of sand and rock searching for 

 the lower passes which would be perenni- 

 ally available. In this direction the num- 

 ber of mountain ranges to be crossed is 

 largely increased, but by going well 

 southward the great wall of the Sierra 

 Nevada is escaped, though the desert 

 journey is very much lengthened and 

 the hardships encountered by many par- 

 ties were most appalling. 



The desert took frequent toll in the 

 lives of man and beast, and indeed does 

 sometimes today, though the dangers are 

 now comparatively insignificant. 



With the discovery of the Comstock 

 mines there came a period of tremendous 

 activity in the search for the precious 

 metals, more particularly for silver, and 

 much of the desert region was traversed 

 by the hardy prospector and his burro. 

 In this way the long distances between 

 watering places were divided by the dis- 

 covery of springs and "tanks" (natural 

 reservoirs), and gradually this part of 

 the "American Desert" diminished in area 

 and lost some of its fearfulness. 



In the 6o's and 1 871 -'72 government 

 expeditions under Lieut. George M. 

 Wheeler traversed several routes across 

 the desert, making topographic sketches 

 and notes of interest and value, but few 

 complete maps were printed. In 1865, 

 and several times since then, the bound- 

 ary line between Nevada and California 

 was run, which cut through much of the 

 most difficult country. The reports of 



*An address to the National Geographic Society, March 24, 1906. Published by permission 

 of the Director of the U. S. Geological Survey. 



