The Rise and Fall Of Desert Center | “Desert Steve” Ragsdale | California Ghost Town
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- Опубліковано 9 лип 2023
- "Desert Steve” Ragsdale was one of the many colorful people who have called Riverside County their home over the past 100 years. Desert Steve is known for founding and operating the small town of Desert Center, that is located between Indio and Blythe in the state of California. But his reputation far exceeded that.
Ragsdale was an wandering preacher and cotton farmer, born and raised in Arkansas. In 1907, he and his wife Lydia came to the Palo Verde Valley on the Colorado River to raise cotton. But after World War I the price of cotton plummeted and he was forced to quit.
At that point, in 1921, he decided to move west into the Chuckawalla Valley and start a way station for travelers on the rough and sandy road from Indio to Blythe. He called his place Desert Center, since it was about halfway between the two locations at the junction of today's Interstate 10 and State Route 177.
Here, Desert Steve began a garage and service station, car towing business, and café, that was operated by his wife Lydia.
#desertcenter #ghosttown #haunted #abandoned #urbex #urbexusa #desertsteve #california - Розваги
I grew up in Desert Center. My first job was at the grocery store working for Stanley Ragsdale. He was pretty eccentric. There was an episode of “”Air Wolf” filmed at DC while I worked there. Pretty exciting for a young kid. Sad to see how the town has deteriorated. Thanks for the memories.
Glad you liked it 👍
Why does California maps and Google maps not show a Santa Rosa peak
I was on the shuttle for Swift Transportation. Stopped there at the cafe every day. We had a lot of good times hanging out and talking with the locals of Desert Center.
Must have been fantastic watching Airwolf being filmed there. That episode had one of the best flying scenes of the series.
That is so cool it is so sad to see how destroyed it is now I just did a video here and explored every part of it.
So I lived in Eagle Mountain from 1970 to 1976. I worked at the Texaco gas station for Stanley Ragsdale and went to school with his grandson. For a teenager it was a strange experience. I also visited the cabin on Santa Rosa mtn that the talk about back in 1978.
Our class consists of 33 students and even though this was so many years gone by, I still have fond memories of events in this very close nit society but truth be known I never looked back and really didn’t keep up with the crowds. It was a moment in time and a memory that I share for life.
Great memories 👍
Close knit. Not close nit.
@@derekholdt9707Cell phones tend to do the spelling
@@derekholdt9707
Your correct, but you are nit picking. Just a l'il bit!
@@derekholdt9707you knew what he meant 👍🏻
I enjoyed your video and look forward to more. I am an elderly arm chair traveler with a restless desire to hop in the car and head out on a whim. Since this is no longer possible, I rely on video travls. . Your videos take me to interesting places and give the background of locations. Good job. Thank you.
Glad you liked it 👍. In case if you have any specific interesting place in mind you can let me know and I can film it.
Well written. Smart woman.
@@rafaeltorre1643 👍
Lifelong Californian here. 55 years old. I've explored every inch of desert in the amazing southwest.
It will never cease to amaze me the amount natural beauty the desert produces.
It will never cease to amaze me the amount of trash strewn across the desert, under every bush or tree, the trash-covered on and off ramps of any freeway. And along each side (both sides) of all roads and freeways. I mean it literally is non-stop.
No two, so different, contrast exist in nature, in a place so desolate, side by side....just blowing in the wind.
To exist inter-twined forever.
👍
I loved this beautiful response, a nested poetry within. Living in the desert I hope to contribute during late retirement by pulling an open trailer and removing trash. Thanks for how you wrote this.
@@kenmunozatmmrrailroad6853 Ken, when you're ready, I got a feeling alot of volunteers are going to show up along side you. Alot.
I had the pleasure of knowing Stanley. My family and friends friends have fond memories of the restaurant and collection of desert memorabilia. Stanley and his desert center will be missed
Totally agree. Also, someone can build a modern rest area there.
Great video, thank you. It reminds of my earlier years when I used pass through Desert Center on my way to Parker, Arizona . My family and I made this trek almost weekly, going to the "river" to escape the "rat race" in Los Angeles. We used to stop at Desert Center to rest, and purchase drinks for my family. I remember the palms trees when they were delivered. I never knew the story about Mr. Ragsdale, thank you for letting us know that behind the small town there was a courageous, hardy and adventurous man! It saddens me to hear the place is gone.
Glad you liked it! 👍
I lived there for many years. My mom worked at the cafe for around 10 years. Keith Matthews
Great memories 👍
I may have very well photographed your mother.
Driving back and forth between Phoenix and OC for decades I stopped there many times to buy gas and wondered why anybody wanted to live there. Then when the gas station went away I started calling it 'Deserted Center'. Thanks for the history lesson.
Glad you liked it! 👍
Awesome video. As a California Native, I am sad to say until now, I have never heard of this old town. Love the Cafe tagline... "We lost our keys, we can't close!" That's just brilliant. Thanks again, love your videos. 💫💫
Glad you enjoyed it! 👍
I grew up in south phoenix and was part raised by a man I admired as a real pioneer his name was d c claxton from desert center california
Lucky you! 👍
In 1980 returning home in az my water pump blew directly at offramp. I drove over medium and made it to gas station where I slept till morning. Got a ride to Blith for a new water pump and a ride back where the attendant helped with tools and installing new water pump. So I guess you could say Desert Center was an oasis for me.
Glad it worked out well for you! 👍
I used to live in Cali and was an avid desert explorer. Desert Center was one of my faves. And I loved driving out to Eagle Mountain. Thank you for keeping it all alive for me.
Very cool! 👍
Your video brings back childhood memories. I grew up in Blythe. My dad was a trucker and when I got to ride with him we always stoped for coffee and pie in Desert Center. That was long before I-10 came along
Good memories, glad you liked the video 👍
I so wish we could restore every ghost town. Keepem alive
Great idea 👍
Seventy years ago, my parents lived there in a trailer. I have a photo of me at two years of age on a tricycle in front of it.
Great memories 👍
In my younger days I used to do a lot of running in that part of Desert California. I absolutely fell in love with that area, so I always have a special place in my heart even though I am no longer run in there. Thank you so much for this video.
Glad you liked it 👍
Sorry the Restaurant closed down as it was a quaint place and open 24 hours a day, and the loss of the circular row of Palm Trees that he planted.
He (the son Stanley Ragsdale) spent a great deal of money on the Palm Trees, but they failed to thrive in the desert heat.
He suffered from severe skin cancers in his later years which he refused any treatment for in dealing with the disease.
Ragsdale oftentimes walked around the Cafe talking to customers. It was sad in looking at him as the skin cancers were most severe around his eyes.
Seems the family was originally from Alabama, not Arkansas.
That’s great info 👍
@@OddlyExplorer I ate at the Restaurant monthly for at least 20 years on my visits to Blythe, California from Riverside. It was a perfect place to have an old fashioned breakfast. I remember an old Victrola on legs that sat in the Restaurant, expertly covered on the exterior from the remnants of an old cactus. After Stanley's death the Victrola remained near the front window for a short period of time, however I was later informed that an old friend of Stanley's from the East Coast came to recover the Victrola for himself. That along with the large airplanes which hung from the ceiling of the Restaurant were slowly disappearing from the interior of the Restaurant, sadly items that added to the unique appearance of the old Restaurant which was attached to what I assume was originally a Standard Oil gas station.
Stanley was quite a character right up until the end. Even with the severe skin cancer sores on his face and eyelids. customers always enjoyed his visits to their tables while eating at the Restaurant.
I’ve lived in SoCal my entire life, and my last name is also Ragsdale. (Not related to “Desert Steve” as far as I know).
I’ve been through Desert Center more times than I could count, usually on the way to the river, or to go hunt dove or whatever, and I’d always notice “Ragsdale Road” is the frontage road that runs parallel to the Interstate. Occasionally people would mention that there were a “bunch of Ragsdales” living there, and ask if I was related.
Now, thanks to your excellent video, I know the whole story of the place.
Great job, thanks for making it!
Glad you liked it! 👍
This sure brings back memories. Desert Center is where I stoped to view Haleys Comet the last time it went by. Stopped there many many times working for Roadway Express, back and forth from Phoenix to LA...
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This area is also used by the military for aerial drops. Several miles off the main road to the east. Always enjoyed those night drops, pulling in the chutes and indigenous wildlife that manage to 😂crawl into the chutes after landing..
Awesome 👍
Sad story. As a truck driver I used to stop here regularly. I would eat in the cafe and park for the night. It was always a fairly busy place at night with trucks coming and going. Quite a few freight companies would swap trailers here for dedicated routes and drivers would
"coffee up" for their trip home. 12:47
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I drove a truck in the 80s and regularly ran from Mississippi to Los Angeles. I stopped many times at Desert Center for coffee. I always liked that place.
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I clicked on this video, because of the XPO truck on the thumbnail. I drove truck for them and retired after 32 years with the company. The information on the video was cool also. I subscribed.😎🍻
Very cool! Glad you liked it my friend 👍
Our store gets freight delivered by XPO. They call Desert Center an "interim service facility". Drivers trade trailers and return to their depot.
I love this place. So rich in local recent history. This man had a vision. It's up to us to see it through. God bless this little community that it may one day thrive.
Well said 👍
I'm a wanna be desert rat. I'm a Brit who became American 3 years ago, lived here almost 40 years. I love the desert oddities, the mines, the hot springs, and the desert people. I'm fascinated by the project that Brent Underwood is taking on in rebuilding Cerro Gordo.
I had never heard of Desert Centre until today. I looked it up on the map and boy oh boy is it remote!
Thanks for the great video and history lesson. I look forward to your next post.
😊
Excellent photography,excellent composition! My father oiled a rock crusher, building the Metropolitan Aqueduct during the Great Depression. Told me it was outside of Desert Center.
Glad you liked it, thanks 👍
In 1972, my friend Billy Beardsley bought a half section of land from a guy named Stowells and his wife a few miles north of Desert Center, on Rice Road. Stowells was a Coachella Valley grape grower. He moved out there to produce 'Perlette' table grapes in the hope of getting the higher price for the early market in mid to late may. The vinyard was laid out with the rows of vines at an angle to the southwest, with high borders thrown up with a disk between rows to reflect the afternoon light and heat on the back of the vines. The water came out of the 970 ft deep well at 92.5°F, so stragecially-timed irrigations could also help the crop mature and ripen early. But Billy bought the property to build housing for the Kaiser Eagle Mountain Mine workers who were living in 1940s era housing at the mine. He had seen a ski-lodge in New Hampshire made of spray urethane foam, and he thought that he could develop the property with energy-efficient housing using the spray-foam technology. A golf course was also in the plans. Meanwhile, he had an upcoming grape vinyard to care for. So I helped with some of the preliminary staking and pruning of the vines, and then in 1972 I agreed to help bring in the first commercial crop. That involved pruning 10,500 vines, mostly by myself. I came and went to Desert Center every week, spending Friday-Monday there, weeding, irrigating, and tying the vines. The crop wasn't ready until early June. It went to the LA produce market and sold as 'Organic,' even though we did use gibberillic acid hormone to boost the size of the berries. During my 7 months living there, I did business at the gas station and store, and also with the little market on Rice Road, a few miles north. One of the neighbors to the north of me on Rice Rd. I knew as Farmer Brown, also had a market of sorts where he sold his grapefruit and grapes. I also met another farmer who was planting squash on a large irrigated tract west of Rice Rd. All I remember is that his name was Lepe. He loaned me one of his workers, named Silbiano, who helped me prune for a couple of days. The labor contractor who did the bunch thinning a couple of weeks after berry set brought me a 14 year old kid who got left on his own when the Migra picked up both of his parents as they came out of a grocery store in Coachella. He needed a place to hang out for a while where he would be safe from deportation. That was in the days when the Border Patrol actually deported people who sneaked in. They were referred to as 'wets,' short for 'wetbacks.' So the kid's name was Davíd Iñiguez, from Tepatitlán, near Jalisco. He taught me how to make flour tortillas. So during my stay in Desert Center, I experienced starry nights where you could see deep into the universe. I learned all of the major winter constellations. When the weather was cool, I put my cot outside the house in the driveway and ran an extension cord for my electric blanket. In the morning, I would see coyote tracks all around my bed where they had come to check me out. I saw a violent thunderstorm where dry washes became instant rivers, and microbursts hit the ground, producing wind that took out the largest power poles along Rice Road. During some of my down time, I took the Honda trail 90 out into the desert and found the track marks of General Patton's tanks, still relatively fresh, even 30 years after they drove them there. When the Fontana steel mill shut down in 1983, the need for the iron ore at the Eagle Mountain mine vanished along with the workers. The grapes are now gone. No foam, dome homes were ever built.
Great memories 👍
Are used to work for blythe ambulance we always stopped at Desert Center some years later I work for a tow truck company out of Blythe We would always stop at the gas station to see if anybody was broke down and needed help such a shame to see it in the condition it is now had a lot of memories going through that area
Someone could open a rest area there because it’s still a popular spot for truck drivers to take a nap
I visited Ragsdale HUGE Santa Rosa treehouse which was built right next to his one room cabin. Treehouse was big built on top of a couple of tall pine trees. Man, the view was incredible and that’s the view Steve Ragsdale was talking about
That's so awesome 👍
My memory of Desert Center is from an epic cross country trip I took in the July of 1980. I used the payphone there and it required cranking the phone to get the operator. This was my only contact with this old technology.
Awesome memories 👍
I HAVE Been here and pass through many, many times since I am a truck driver & always wonder who built this little town or how long ago it was built, now I have an idea of it. Thanks for the video hope you upload many like this.
Glad you liked it! More videos like this one are coming up! 👍
I wonder if we're finding our way to more people getting off the interstates and appreciating the old road.
I see so many once vibrant small towns and businesses gone when bypassed by the interstates.
Are we all in too much of a hurry to enjoy the trip?
Someone can build a great rest area there, it’s still a popular rest stop for trucks
I'm in a Route 66 facebook group and the number of people in the group has increased dramatically in the last few years...I think this is a sign that more and more people are becoming interested in getting off the interstate and really discovering this country and its history.
Our nation no longer has people that are as tough, resilient, self reliant or tenacious as Mr. Ragsdale and his family.
Very well said. We need more strong people like him! 👍
Have been to Desert Steve Ragsdale's cabin the hard way--- climbing up from the Cactus Springs trailhead. Truly is a great view and great to see and hear the backstory. Great video, thanks!
Glad you liked it 👍
Passed through there a number of times on our way to the river for boating. Probably even ate in the café too. This was in the early '60's. Great memories!
Very cool! 👍
Very interesting documentary about Desert Center & tribute to a fine man, "Desert Steve" Ragsdale.
Glad you liked it 👍
I've driven past Desert Center many times since 1970. It's great to see the history of it. Thank you and Subscribed.
Awesome, thank you! 👍
Graduated from Indio High School; my dad worked at Kaiser Steel in Eagle Mountain...what a daily drive he had. [The company provided a shuttle, thank God.] I still love the desert. Joshua Tree stretches almost to Eagle Mountain in the south, from North of Palm Springs, {Yucca Valley} where it begins. All kinds of interesting things to see in the desert.
Have you seen an UFO 🛸 near Desert Center?
First memory of stopping there was as a service brat in 1963. We would eat drink and hit the road again. From 1966 we traveled from Orange county to Sam's family spa once a month.
Then later when I was stationed in the Marine corps at 29 palms. Was very sad to see it wither away. Living out in Arizona past 30 years going back to visit family and family few times a year. I always stop at Desert center just to look around.
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I have such fun memories the Southern California regions. Just warms my soul. Thanks for sharing this.
Glad you enjoyed it
I have a few notable memories on rice road. Back in the early 90's we were rolling down that road in our Dodge Caravan, with an old camping trailer (gear hauler, not a sleeper) converted to hold a jet ski. That jet ski we were fortunate to inherit from a family friend who won it on Wheel of Fortune. Pop as our tire popped just short of the town of rice. We had a spare but something was wrong with it and we needed help. I remember we drove so slow, there was no shoulder as we trecked back across the desert to desert center in 105 degrees.... We eventually made it but another family friend was not so lucky driving down that road when their jeep drifted into the soft shoulder and promptly flipped, killing both occupants.... Then there's the memories of literally stopping there to use the bathroom and boy it was one of those bathrooms you only see in the movies, so dirty but I remember learning as I read the air blower, that paper towels can carry germs but air blowers offer a clean way to dry your hands.... That was notable because I remember thinking of that ad years later as I watched the mythbusters debunk it. Then my favorite show as a kid, Airwolf filmed an episode there and the place has just always been this unique 2 lane highway on the final stretch of our summer trips to Lake Havasu.
Awesome memories 👍💪
i knew Stanly Ragsdale I use to deliver Ice to his station and store.I worked for Coachella Valley Ice Co. I also delivered to Kaiser mine and their store.I delivered there from 1971 until they closed down the mine and thats when Desert Center began to die. Sad but true. The Ragsdales are good people.
Good memories 👍
I spent a week there in 1956 or 57 and stayed in the little cabins which only had swamp coolers. We were surveying for a power line to bring power to Desert Center. The power for the town at the time was provided by a Caterpillar Diesel engine and generator. It was so hot that we only worked from sunrise to about 10 am and then from about 4 pm to 7 pm. It was a very long week. About 5 miles away was a town (just a cafe that sold beer) called Hell. We would call into our office in Riverside from Hell which would get a great reaction from the office receiving a collect call from Hell.
That's so funny 👍. But indeed it feels like Hell there during summer months with temperatures up to 115F.
Feel like going to California just to visit this place
You should! 👍
Beautifully narrated TY!
Thank you too!
I remember driving by there in the 80s. There was a small brick school and Texaco gas station….. and a cafe.
Good memories...
Yeah I went to that school
Glad to find your videos. I was just out at Desert Center rock collecting. There is something serene about a uninhabited landscape and why I enjoy your vids so much. Thanks for answering many of the questions any interested person might want to know.
Glad you liked it! 👍
Great documentary.The challenges of living so far out into the desert is beyond my imagination.💛
It really is!
Great video. Thanks for sharing.
Glad you liked it 👍👋
I worked as a paleontologist for a few months at the solar farm they're building there. The hours were so long I only ever bothered to look around the area on my last day there. I really wish I could have explored more there though what there is besides the ruins, Lake Tamarisk and Kaiser Steel Mill (which is closed to the public), I don't know.
That's awesome 👍
I’ve driven past Desert Center dozens of time traveling from N CA to AZ and have always been curious about it. I’m glad I happened upon your video. Thanks for the info.
Glad you liked it 👍
Love the high desert..stayed in Banning for a spell, lovely slow paced living😊
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I just gave ya #1000 my friend.
I just saw that, thank you my friend, very much appreciated 👍💪🎉
WELL researched & informative !
Glad you liked it 👍
I've heard of and passed the town many times but never visited. Thank you for the history.
Glad you enjoyed it! 👍
Been there many times over the years going between SoCal and Parker Az. I remember when that gas station was still open in the 90’s. Last time I drove rice road I noticed a lot of solar farms. This video is the best one I’ve seen done on Desert Center yet. Good job 👍🏻
Thanks for posting this I'm a trucker that has parked there overnight and have wondered about this places history
Glad you enjoyed it! 👍 It is still a popular truck stop in the desert.
Very nice . I enjoyed the storied history and your choice of the music.... thanks
Glad you enjoyed it!
I just drove by there yesterday and now know what was there. Thanks good video
So glad you liked it 👍
Thank you for the video and narration
Glad you enjoyed it!
Its bin a while that I run 10 to Cali but I remember pulling off there for a break more then ones. Great to know the history of this litlle deserted desert town. Enjoyed ur video 🇨🇱👍
Very cool! Glad you liked it!
Fascinating content is why I subscribed .
Glad you liked it 👍
Good work!
Glad you liked it 👍
Outstanding video.👍🏻
So glad you liked it 👍
Very interesting place. Admire people who settle insuch places and make something neat. Thankyou for the story and pics!
Glad you liked it 👍
Awesome impressive history of Desert Center. Great research in this video.
Thank you, glad you liked it 👍
Fantastic Story !! Enjoyed listening to this tale of an extremely intelligent, persevering man who also had an uncanny wit🤙
Glad you liked it 👍
That was a great place to stop back in the 1981
I totally agree 👍
Strangely, this video completely misses the town's one remaining attraction; the full size steam locomotive prop from the movie Tough Guys, setting inside the garage area of the long "Cafe" building. It was used for the final train crash scene which was filmed on the closed Iron Mountain mine spur line near Desert Center.
Earlier this year I stopped by Desert Center just to find and see this full-size movie prop, which is is over 100-feet long including the tender and a baggage car. Accessible and also viewable through the broken windows, it is still in amazingly good condition.,
This movie prop is still in the garage next to the cafe. 👍
These old towns remind us that time marches on. Make the most of it while you can.
Absolutely agree with you! 👍
I spend the night there all the time. I always thought it would be a great place for a large truck stop, and repair spot
You are right, great location for a modern rest area 👍
Great doc. another Cali pioneer with a vision.
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The Alterbillys shot a great video there some years ago.
Great views you got with the drone.
US 60 made Desert Center prosper.
I-10 is killing it.
Glad you liked it! I think you are right about I-10.
wow! awesome!
Thank you! Cheers!
We used to stop there in the 80's on our way to Colorado River to go boating. Ate at the restaurant twice the bacon and eggs were swimming in grease. Next to the restaurant Stanley? had a storeroom mostly filled with junk but he took us on a tour there and his prized possession was an Indian Chief motorcycle. He said to me do you know what this is? He expected me to say Harley Davidson and was shocked when I said Indian Chief. The Indian has rear shocks and the Harley of the same time frame was a hard tail. The Indian was complete and unrestored.
Wow that’s very interesting 👍🤜
So interesting. Thank you. I've driving by many times not knowing the history. Wow!
Glad you enjoyed it! 👍
I really enjoyed this video. I found the town to be of some interest to me.
Glad to hear it!
Lovely story. The town should be revived as a center for artists and people seeking solitude ! Tranquility is essential for mind !
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It will likely come back into its own one day.
Pass through there all the time! Thanks for the history! Wish it was still operating! Blythe and Chiriaco Summit are a HOT mess! Always wondered about those rings of palm trees!
Someone can invest some money and build a great rest area for truck drivers. It’s still a popular rest stop.
As a child i went trough Desert Center several times when it was still alive from the 60s on when the family was traveling
My rig broke down right at the exit of desert center. I drove it next to the little restaurant that was there and I spent about 8 hrs there. The lady working there was a Filipino lady. This was around 2010. This place saved me because it was around July and it was blazing hot but I spent the day inside the restaurant.
So glad they helped you 👍
I used to go there daily as a truck Driver. We had a Relay where we would swap trailer's between Phoenix and LA drivers. There would be 10 to 15 of us there all gathered around the hamburger stand waiting for our swap to show up. Late 90's early 2000's. Lots of bikinis headin' to Lake Havasu. Good times! Relays still go on today out there.
They can build a good rest area there, it's still a popular place for truck drivers.
General George Patton made Chiraco Summit his hang out while he was training his soldiers for North Africa in this foreboding, hot desert during the early years of WWII.
That's true, great knowledge of the history 👍
Cool, been there many times. Trucker over 20 yrs. Was a hamburger stand there when I was going through. Great burgers.
Very cool! 👍
I observed the area for many decades....thank you, now I know what I've wondered about
Glad it was interesting for you 👍
Very cool! ✊
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I’m really enjoying the drone footage ❤
I'm so glad! 👍
Growing up in Blythe, CA about 50 miles East of Desert Center, we often stopped there on our trips to and from Palm Springs. Lucky enough to have been able to eat at the dinner a few times. Sad to see what it has become.
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My parents actually have history with desert center, their was an abandoned cafe i got to see once, my grandma used to work their, its so surreal to see desert center from another pov
Great video
Glad you enjoyed it 👍
I’ve flown into both Desert Center and Chiraco Summit, and over Tamarisk Lake and golf course many times. Desert Rat territory for sure, but there’s worse out there. Try Iron Mountain some day as an example.
Great idea, thanks 👍
@@OddlyExplorer uhh i think you mean "eagle mountain" and its up the road from desert center in the same general area. it is closed but oddlyexplorer did do another video on it here on youtube.
No, Iron Mtn is def more remote than Eagle. Huge difference.
I lived in Blythe for about a year. Next to this lil store called sundown. Run down apartment complex. Every other one was broke down. We cleaned one up and moved in. Found a dead crow in the sink 🤣😂
I often lurk the isolated roads at night in and around Desert Center. I like it how it is, yet I know the place will come back into its own. It's just too nice up there in the winter to go unnoticed for long. I heard the Eagle Mountain GT recently sold. Will be interesting to see what comes of that.
Yeah, very interesting what they will do to Eagle Mountain
We always stop in Desert Center. Just to hang out and look around a bit.
It’s a good rest area location 👍
great content
Glad you liked it 👍
I lived there and played with one of the ragsdale family grand kids my dad worked at Texaco station there for awhile lol
Great memories 👍
The cafe had one of the last phones that you had to crank. Chirago Summit was on a party line with Desert Center. You had to crank their phone also. That was in the late 70's. I was told all along that Desert Steve shot his brother when he was drunk, and never let alcohol be sold in Desert Center city limits. So they built a bar down the street.
Wow, that's very interesting fact 👍
I've been to Desert Center several times and photographed it. Stanley was a character and once took us inside his "treasure" room and there was an old Indian "Four" motorcycle in there. My friend asked him how much would he take for it. He said one million dollars.
Hello, awesome video i actually live here (in lake tamarisk) and its not a bad place to live other than no stores 47 minutes out, but very nice and QUIET community which is great and you can come to lake tamarisk for vacation with trailars and more the lake is awesome in the summer it just gets really hot over here. BUT this vid was really cool i actually didn't know that much about here so it was nice to learn it.
Glad you liked it 👍 I agree, Lake Tamarisk is a nice place to live! Desert Center can be rebuilt with a modern rest area I think.
I grew up in the area great stuff
Been there, I wish something would open again, the coffee shop looked fun.
It’s still a great location to open a car & truck rest area.