Power House preparation

From the Mojave Road Report

A detachment consisting of Bob Beal, John Harrington, and Dennis Casebier, pulled the Big Tex trailer down to Home Depot in Bullhead City. They loaded it with almost all of the materials that will be needed for construction of what we've been calling the "Power House" that will serve the new Library/Depot building.

It measures 10' X 12' and will feature an old-time hip roof. That same day, Dorothy Beal, Bob Beal, and John Harrington commenced putting an undercoat of paint of the newly purchased boards to keep them from warping.

Well is completed

Report by Dennis Casebier

The new well is completed. The concrete collar around the well head has been poured. The pump is installed and the pressure tank is in place.

Water stands in the new well at 580 feet with the pump set at 800 feet. Testing of the well will have to wait for the new electrical service.

Leftover concrete from the pouring of the well collar was donated by Eagle Drilling and used to fill in a 10’ X 12’ form for the new Power House slab. This small building will house the new electrical service for the Library.

Deep well pump installed

From the Mojave Road Report

The pump crew from Eagle Well Drilling was here. They installed the deep well pump, riser, electrical connections, and pressure tank. With those additions the well is completed. The well is 830 feet deep with the pump set at 800 feet. It appears to be a good well but we won't know for sure until we get the proper electrical line out there to test it.

Well concrete collar poured

From the Mojave Road Report

Eagle Well Drilling was here with a concrete truck Barstow. The concrete sleeve that must be poured alongside the casing down fifty feet was poured. They also poured the concrete collar and pad at the new well site.

They brought a full load of concrete when only half was needed. The rest was used by John Reiff, Ron Shepard, and Carl Weikel who were busy pouring cement for the new Power House slab and other projects around the property.

Power House forms

From the Mojave Road Report

Final forms, in anticipation of concrete, are set for the new Power House which will serve the new Library and the north end of the Goffs Cultural Center

Desert tortoise exclusion enclosure survey

Report and photo by Chris Ervin

Wildlife biologist Larry Sip checks GPS coordinates while performing the survey of the desert tortoise exclusion fence surrounding the Library/Depot building site. The fence is designed to ensure no tortoises wander into the construction zone and therefore keeps them out of harm's way. This survey by a qualified biologist fulfills a County requirement for compliance with our conditional use permit and the state environmental quality act.

Well casing cleaned out

From the Mojave Road Report

The well drillers came back today for just a day. It was cold and windy and we didn't know it then but the great cold snap of 2007 was on its way. They got the casing blown out and declared we have good water well. Then they cleaned up and took some of their equipment back to Newberry Springs.

Well bottom reached

From the Mojave Road Report

After a long break, Eagle Well Drilling was back on the job starting today through January 8. There was a lot of wind and cold weather while they were here, but they managed to get to the bottom and have the casing installed.

We had planned to go down to 850 feet, but at 835 feet or so we were at solid rock. It wasn't likely the quality of the well could beimporved by going deeper, so we called a halt.

The casing is set at 830 feet. Water typically stands at 560 feet in Goffs, so we are into plenty of water.

Desert tortoise fence erected

From the Mojave Road Report

The following volunteers worked on erecting desert tortoise exclusion fence around building sites at the Goffs Cultural Center; Chris Ervin, Leslie Ervin, Don Johnson, Tom Smith, Harry Ridge, John Harrington, and Phil Motz,

Cultural resources survey conducted

Report by Chris Ervin
Photo by Dennis Casebier

Archaeologists Russell L. Kaldenberg, MA and Judyth E. Reed, MA, walked the entire site to identify cultural resources which might occur on the footprint of the new library.

The site was intensively walked, zigzagging back and forth, looking for anything that might be over 50 years of age. The grounds were found to be neat and tidy and no scrap of any trash, debris, or negligent waste was expected.

The survey produced predictable results. No archaeological or historical materials were found within the footprint of the building site. No materials were found in any of the construction zones or laydown areas, which are adjacent to the footprint of the building, but adjoin the area to be disturbed.

No mitigation measures were recommended as there were no cultural resources, either prehistoric or historic, in or near the footprint of the building site.

This survey fulfills a County requirement for compliance with our conditional use permit and the state environmental quality act.

We hit the hard stuff

Report by Dennis Casebier
Tuesday

I talked with Raymond Ward this morning. It was the first chance I've had to hear what actually happened when the rig broke down last week. They hit some really hard stuff and had gotten down to about 420 feet when they broke through into clay. So
he turned the speed up.

After about ten feet the Rotary Table broke. This is the topside mechanism that runs everything - transfers power to everything. He is having trouble getting parts. At this point it is open-ended - he don't know when he'll have the parts.

Turns out that unless he gets the parts before the 11th of November, it isn't likely he'll be back out here until after Thanksgiving ... that because he'll be gone from the area for a few weeks.

We have water!

Report by Dennis Casebier
Saturday

We have water! The well drillers had plans to stay into the weekend. But they left early. They got down to 400 feet and something broke in the rig (topside). So they pulled all the pipe out and took the broken parts with them for repair. Supposed to be back Monday.

Drillers Return!

Report by Dennis Casebier
Tuesday

The drillers (Raymond Ward and one other) came back at about 3:00 p.m. this afternoon. They are hopeful of drilling through the week. I won't be here so I have introduced the driller to Carl Weikel.

Raymond brought us a huge antique pump with engine for our garden display. Something he and his father before him used in the business for many years. It matches our decorations. Dennis

Update on storms and well

Report by Dennis Casebier
Saturday morning

Turns out the drillers were down 315 feet when they had to quit because of approaching storm yesterday evening. That was the first storm. During the night we were hit by three other storm cells. Lots of lightning and thunder AND the total for these storms is about one inch.

Lots of water in a short time. And some hail. Water running everywhere. I've been out this morning repairing waterways with a shovel while it is still wet. The drillers were up and had the rig going by about 8:00 a.m. They got down about 100 feet yesterday and hope for at least that much today. I expect they'll go home this afternoon.

And there is the continuing concern of more storms, although it looks clear to the west. Anyway, we definitely got a rain storm ... not just a duster. We really needed it. When we went into this storm we had just a little over an inch for the entire year ... now we are over two inches. Goffs Road is washed and flooded in both directions.

Drillers down to 300 foot level

Report by Dennis Casebier
Friday

Drilling was slow today. When the drillers were forced to shut down at about 7:00 p.m. by an approaching storm, they were down about 300 feet.

There were storms all about during the day today but all we received was sprinkles. Then a real storm approached after dark from the south at about 7:00 p.m. Had major lightning overhead by about 7:30 p.m. We received 16/100ths of an inch in a short time. Could have been as much as 10/100ths since the rain gauge clocks 4/100ths at a time. Anyway, it was enough to make rivers and streams around the premises. It was more than a dust settler!

Well drilling begins

Report by Dennis Casebier
Thursday

The drillers (three men) arrived late yesterday evening and got started early this morning. Since they feel confident they know what is down there, they are drilling with mud from the beginning. That requires lots of water. They have a truck with a
big 1,500 gallon tank.

They have brought a travel trailer for sleeping. We've got it hooked up to electricity and water. It is parked next to the double toilets on the Boulevard of Dreams. Phil Motz is on top of all that.

A huge pile of gravel was delivered yesterday so it is at the ready.

They were able to start drilling mid-morning. They went down 60 feet and stopped. This is standard practice. This first 60 feet is then lined with a large steel casing. Once that's installed things will go faster. The whole thing won't take long UNLESS something goes wrong - and something usually does go wrong. Progress will depend upon how bad any mishap will be.

Well drillers arrive

Report by Dennis Casebier
Wednesday evening

For the past several days - beginning last Saturday the 7th of October - Eagle Well Drilling and Pump Service of Newberry Springs has been moving equipment out here in preparation for drilling the new well. This evening after dark they arrived pulling a travel trailer that they use for living quarters on the job. They intend to begin drilling tomorrow morning.

New building designer plan review

Report by Dennis Casebier
Wednesday

Building Designer Paul Geissinger and wife Shari were here for three hours. After lunch John Harrington and I met in the Schoolhouse with Paul and went thoroughly through the draft of Library/Depot plans that Leggetts prepared and which Chris forwarded to us a few days ago.

Without going into specifications, the bottom line is that this isn't going to be difficult. Mr. Geissinger plans to have a revised form of the plans ready to discuss by Friday 13 October 2006. They will be reviewed by John Harrington and any Board members that want to join in.

There'll be a fee for certification by an engineer he works with. Also there'll be a fee for someone to do the heating and energy calculations.

Once the plans are completed, we'll have to take them to a truss manufacturer (one of the few things they have in Needles - I've done this before) and get truss calculations.

Then the plans go to the building inspector and he reviews and approves them and issues a permit.

John Harrington has decided to delay his trip to Michigan so he can participate in the plan review that will result in completion of the next draft by Friday 13 October 2006.

Well drilling contract signed

Report by Dennis Casebier
Tuesday

Chris Ervin gained CCHE approval to award the well drilling contract to Eagle Well Drilling and Pump Service of Newberry Springs. Into today's mail, along with a down payment and the contract signed by Dennis Casebier, went a map showing where the well is to be located.

Ray Ward of Eagle Drilling said he plans to get on our project about the middle of September. To meet a County Fire requirement, we're going to need water tanks for storing 10,000 gallons of water.

Thanks to John Harrington, Phil Motz, and Carl Weikel for the field work necessary to lay out where the well is to be located.

Mojave Desert Archives Groundbreaking

GOFFS, CA – July 15, 2006 – At long last we broke ground for the new library archives building at the Goffs Cultural Center. The structure, funded in large part by the California Cultural and Historical Endowment, is to be built in the image of the old Goffs Railroad Depot.

A nice group of long-time supporters gathered in 110+ degree heat to witness the ceremony. A brief opening statement was made by Dennis G. Casebier, Executive Director MDHCA, who introduced Chris Ervin, president of the MDHCA. President Ervin stepped to the front, made carefully selected and poignant remarks, referred to our long-standing mission, what the new building will mean to humanity, and then proceeded to remove the first shovel of dirt.

For the ceremony, Mr. Ervin made use of a specially inscribed gold-plated ceremonial shovel provided by Director John Fickewirth. The shovel will be mounted on a wall in the Schoolhouse until the library is completed and then it will adorn a wall in the reading room of the new structure.

Following Chris Ervin’s lead, each director came forward and removed a shovel of dirt, accompanied by general approval of the assembled crowd. Following that, each other person present had an opportunity to participate in the ceremony.

By then everyone was getting warm… say, HOT. So we adjourned to the air-conditioned comfort of the Schoolhouse for follow-on speeches and to await the dinner hour. In the Schoolhouse Dennis Casebier passed out mementos in the form of miniature inscribed shovels, also provided by Mr. Fickewirth for the occasion.

Once everyone was there, President Ervin proposed a toast, followed by a couple more toasts from others. The champagne and champagne flutes were provided by Chris and Leslie Ervin. Then dinner was ready. Roast beef and special beans were prepared by Master Chef Dale McBride, potato salad and cole slaw were procured from a Bullhead City caterer, and other dishes were contributed by Betty Burton and Shirley Roby.

Once everyone had enjoyed the superb dinner we all indulged in dessert, a sheet cake appropriately decorated for the occasion and provided by Gail and Donna Andress. On the way over to Goffs from Nelson, Nevada, Gail had attempted to destroy the cake when it tried to slide off the seat and he grabbed for it, but Donna rose to the occasion and protected the cake. Meanwhile, Gail had gotten a handful of icing, which, at the urging of his bride of 62 summers, he proceeded to lick off his hand, turning his tongue and inside of his mouth (so far as could be seen) bright blue.

It was a smallish but very special group that gathered to take note of this important moment. I will confess, though, that I favor the celebrations that occur when something is finished more than marking the beginning. I am very much looking forward to that day a couple of years from now when the library building stands in all its splendor with the Board of Directors and our supporters gathered to honor that achievement.

Along those thought lines, my mind went back to that day in November of 1983 when a large group of the Friends of the Mojave Road gathered on the banks of the Rio Colorado of the West, just opposite Fort Mojave. There was an oversized yellow ribbon stretched across the road. A pair of ceremonial scissors (probably a full 30” long) had been provided, and Dennis Casebier stepped up and cut the ribbon, thereby signaling publication of the first Mojave Road Guide and the opening of the old wagon road as an interpreted four-wheel drive backcountry recreation trail. Twenty-three years have passed and the Mojave Road continues to serve and inspire the public. It was a day full of pride.

And so, within two years from now, we look forward to experiencing another of those milestone moments, of which it has been our honor to have had many, when Chris Ervin steps up to the door of the new library with an oversized pair of scissors and thereby dedicates and initiates operation of the Mojave Desert Archives to the interests of mankind. I predict many of you will be there and you will share the pride in having been part of this.

Those who participated in the groundbreaking ceremony included: Gail and Donna Andress, Jere Baker, Betty Burton, Chris and Leslie Ervin, Dave Given, John Harrington, Don Johnson, Randy Kimball, Roger and Virginia Leggett, Dick and Kathy MacPherson, John and Barbara Marnell, Dale McBride, Steve and Mary Mongrain, Phil Motz, Kib and Shirley Roby, and Carl Weikel.

Goffs Depot model completed

Report by Chris Ervin

John Harrington has completed a beautiful model of the Goffs Depot. This talented man put in nearly 400 hours constructing this large miniature over the past five months.

The model was built using historic documents and photos. It is so detailed that the roof can be lifted from the second story to reveal rooms inside.

The long, one-story freight building attached to the two-story depot had varying lengths over the years. For reasons of practicality, a shortened manifestation of the freight building was chosen for the model.

It is truly a wonderful contribution for visualizing how the finished Library will look. The model is currently on display in the Goffs Schoolhouse Museum.

Good news for desert history buffs

Mark Muckenfuss
Press-Enterprise

GOFFS, CA -- Historian Dennis Casebier has received a nearly $500,000 grant from the California Cultural and Historic Endowment to construct a Mojave Desert Archives Research Library on the grounds of the 75-acre Goffs Cultural Center.

The library will be built in the image of the Goffs Railway Depot, which stood near the site from 1902 to 1956. It will house more than 6,000 volumes of published works, 700 oral histories and other material pertaining to the eastern Mojave Desert.

Library to house desert history

Mojave group gets grant for building

By Chuck Mueller, Staff Writer
San Bernardino Sun

GOFFS - A former railroad depot that six decades ago hosted thousands of troops training in the Mojave Desert is to be reborn as a library to house a rich collection of desert history.

Directors of the California Cultural and Historical Endowment have awarded a grant of $499,500 to build a library to hold the Mojave Desert Archives, gathered by Western historian Dennis G. Casebier during the past 50 years.

The archives, the single largest collection of historical material dealing with the Western migration and pioneering ventures in the Mojave, includes more than 6,000 volumes of published works, 50,000 photographs and 4,500 maps of the region dating to the pioneering quest for the West.

The collection is housed in various buildings at the 20-structure Goffs Cultural Center. The center includes the original Goffs School, which was built in 1914 and is now a museum, and a twice-moved dwelling constructed in 1927 that serves as a library.

It will take about two years to construct the library, which will be designed in the image of the historical Goffs railroad depot, which operated from 1902 to 1956. In the early 1940s, thousands of soldiers training in desert warfare arrived and departed from the depot, which was demolished in 1956, Casebier said.

The grant to the Mojave Desert Heritage Cultural Association, founded by Casebier and his wife, Jo Ann, in 1993, is one of 13 awarded out of 276 applications for funds through the endowment, supported by Proposition 40.

In 2002, California voters approved the Clean Water, Clean Air, Safe Neighborhood Parks and Coastal Protection Act, known as Proposition 40, to set aside $267 million for historical and cultural resource preservation.

Kevin Starr, California historian emeritus, said the endowment's mission is to document the contributions of the many groups of people who make up California. It also helps Californians to deepen their understanding of the state's history, its present society, and themselves.

"The receipt of this generous grant marks the first time we've gotten support from outside our own membership of about 800 people," Casebier said. "The bulk of the work at the Goffs Cultural Center ... has been done by volunteers from California, Arizona and Nevada."

Viewing the upcoming construction project, volunteer Chris Ervin said, "Now the work really begins."

Among the volumes in the collection at Goffs are originals of official reports of the 1853-54 Whipple expedition, which surveyed a route for a Pacific railroad across the Mojave.

"We also have the official reports and map of Edward Fitzgerald Beale, who brought camels to California from Texas in 1850," Casebier said.

"The collection includes everything related to the East Mojave, dating to 1850. There was nothing before that."

Casebier said the center acquired the volumes "one at a time and there is a story behind each one."

The volumes also include 2,000 loose subject files pertaining to individuals of interest and specific cultural sites. It also contains an extensive collection of old area newspapers, periodicals and pamphlets, and material culled from federal records in the National Archives.

"We also have compiled 700 oral histories," Casebier said. "We're constantly looking for volunteers to help us continue this important work, and are searching for desert old-timers to participate in our extensive oral history program."

Casebier, 72, a Kansan who served in the Marine Corps at Twentynine Palms for 22 years, later was employed as a Navy physicist working with guided missile systems in Corona. During visits to Washington, D.C., he frequented the Library of Congress and the National Archives, conducting research on the East Mojave.

After writing a book in 1970 about the Arizona territory, Casebier started Tales of the Mojave Road Publishing Co., which has produced 24 titles. Sixteen were authored by Casebier.

"In 1980, I started in earnest with the library collection," he said.

A year later, Casebier formed a volunteer group that continues today, called the Friends of the Mojave Road.

"We worked with the U.S. Bureau of Land Management to develop the Mojave Road and other historic trails into the back country," he said.

For this work, Casebier and the group received the bureau's highest national award for volunteer service.

Upon retiring in 1990, the Casebiers bought the old Goffs school and 113 acres around it, intent on opening a desert cultural center. Three years later, they helped found the nonprofit, tax-exempt Mojave Desert Heritage Cultural Association to take over the property.

"In 1998, Jo Ann and I deeded the school and the 1-acre school yard to the association, restoring the school to its 1914 condition," Casebier said. "In 2001, the school was listed on the National Register of Historic Places."

The Casebiers donated 70 acres of their property to the cultural association in late 2002.

State Approves $500 Thousand For Mojave Desert Archives Construction

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

GOFFS, CA – May 23, 2005 –The Mojave Desert Heritage and Cultural Association (MDHCA) has received final funding approval for construction of the Mojave Desert Archives research library. The California Cultural and Historical Endowment (CCHE) Board of Directors met on May 18, 2005 in downtown Los Angeles to review the status of 33 grant finalists selected last December. The Board's resolution to grant $499,500 to the MDHCA is the only CCHE grant awarded within the County of San Bernardino and one of thirteen to be approved out of the original 276 applications.

Funds from (CCHE) will support the construction of the Mojave Desert Archives, a research library that will preserve and present the collections of the MDHCA. The library will be built on the grounds of the 75 acre Goffs Cultural Center and in the image of the historic Goffs Railway Depot (1902-1956). The objective of the Mojave Desert Archives project is to build a repository to process, protect, and make available to our community a unique, extensive and ever-increasing volume of gathered materials pertaining to Mojave Desert history.

The Mojave Desert Archives is the largest single collection of historical materials covering the American history of the Mojave Desert—a history rich in the stories of western migration and pioneering spirit. This unique collection of archival materials, formed by renowned desert historian Dennis Casebier over the last fifty years, consists of more than 6,000 volumes of published works, tens of thousands of pages of news clip files, 50,000 historical photographs, 4,500 maps of the region dating from earliest times, 2,000 loose subject files pertaining to individuals of interest and specific cultural sites, 700 oral histories, an extensive collection of old area newspapers, periodicals and pamphlets, and materials culled from federal records in the National Archives.

Proposition 40 called for the creation of the California Cultural and Historical Endowment to support the “acquisition, development, preservation, and interpretation of buildings, structures, sites, places, and artifacts that preserve and demonstrate culturally significant aspects of California's history and for grants for these purposes.” To carry out Proposition 40's mandate, the Endowment will eventually distribute $122 million of $276 million in Proposition 40 funds.

ABOUT THE MDHCA — www.mdhca.org
The mission of the Mojave Desert Heritage & Cultural Association is to research and conserve the natural and cultural history of the Mojave Desert region for the purpose of preserving and sharing these resources in perpetuity. We accomplish this through operation of a research center, library, and archives, restoration of significant structures, conservation of historic open space, interpretation of backcountry trails, and production of educational guidebooks and historical publications in concert with government agencies and people of good faith everywhere.

CONTACT INFORMATION: Chris Ervin
Mojave Desert Heritage and Cultural Association
info@mdhca.org

Mojave Desert Archives Site Selected