Keys Desert Queen Ranch Facts for Kids

Quick facts for kids
Keys Desert Queen Ranch
U.S. National Register of Historic Places
U.S. Historic district


Location in California Show map of California Location in the United States Show map of the United States
Location	Joshua Tree National Park, San Bernardino County, California, USA
Nearest city	Twentynine Palms, California
Built	1894
Architect	Bill McHaney, William F. Keys
NRHP reference No.	75000174
Added to NRHP	October 30, 1975

The Keys Ranch is a special place located inside Joshua Tree National Park. It shows us what life was like for the first people who settled in this desert area. Bill Keys was a very important person here, and his ranch is a great example of how clever and determined early settlers had to be.

The ranch has many small buildings that were built between 1910 and 1969. Bill Keys lived here until he passed away. He worked hard to make a living in the desert by both ranching and mining.

Who Was Bill Keys?
Family Life at the Ranch
What Can You See at the Ranch?
Visiting Keys Ranch
Gallery
See also

Who Was Bill Keys?

William Franklin Keys was born in Palisade, Nebraska, in 1879. Before coming to California, he worked on ranches and in factories. He even worked as a deputy sheriff in Mohave County, Arizona.

Later, he spent some time in Death Valley. There, he became friends with a famous person known as Death Valley Scotty. Bill Keys arrived in the Twentynine Palms, California area around 1910.

In the area that is now Joshua Tree National Park, he met a local rancher named Jim McHaney. Bill Keys helped take care of Jim McHaney when he was sick. After Jim McHaney passed away, Bill Keys took over his properties. He slowly made them bigger, creating what became the Desert Queen Ranch. The ranch got its name from the nearby Desert Queen Mine.

Family Life at the Ranch

Bill Keys married Francis M. Lawton in 1918. They had seven children together. Sadly, three of their children passed away and were buried right there at the ranch.

Bill Keys faced a difficult time in his life. After a disagreement about the Wall Street Mill, he spent some time away. During this time, he used the library to learn many new things. He was able to return home in 1950. In 1956, he received a special pardon, thanks to the efforts of Erle Stanley Gardner, who wrote the famous Perry Mason books.

What Can You See at the Ranch?

The Keys Ranch has lots of old equipment used for mining. You can see an arrastra, which is a simple machine that used animals to crush ore. There's also a stamp mill, another type of machine for processing rocks to find minerals.

Other buildings at the ranch include:

An adobe barn, made from sun-dried mud bricks.
A schoolhouse where the Keys children learned.
A tack shed for horse equipment.
A machine shed for tools and vehicles.
A small cemetery.
Different houses and cabins where people lived.

Panorama of the ranch yard

Visiting Keys Ranch

If you want to visit Keys Ranch, park rangers offer special guided walking tours. These tours usually happen from October through May. The tours have a limited number of people, so you need to book your spot in advance. It's a great way to step back in time and learn about life in the desert!