Originally Posted by TGT1

1. Gram Parsons, Rockabilly musician, died of a drug overdose in the Joshua Tree Motel (You can rent the presumably haunted room for an extra fee)

His bandmates made an unsuccessful attempt to cremate him at the base of what is now known as the Gram Parsons memorial bolder.

2.
The last shootout of the old west happened at the Wall Street Mill in 1943 when Bill Keys, who owned the mill heard shots fired near his cattle and went to investigate. Worth Bagley, an ex SB County deputy sheriff and well known local thug fired at Keys. Keys returned fire killing him, but was still convicted and served five years until lawyer Earl Stanley Gardner took up his case and got him exonerated. Gardner is better known as author of the Perry Mason series of novels that became the basis for a long running TV series. Keys ranch house is still maintained by the park service and tours are available with prior reservation. The Wall Street mill also still exists in a remarkable state of preservation and there's a marker where Bagley expired.

3.

There are several in-holdings of privately owned land in the park. One ranch is where Timothy Leary got married and The Stones used to party. Observe the no trespassing signs if you run across them. Trespassers will be violated!


5.

John Samuelson was an arguably insane Swede that some say became a hermit after killing a man in a San
Francisco bar fight. He inscribed various anarchist rants in the black patina on a series of boulders next to his cabin in the 1930's

6.

There are remnants of numerous cattle tanks scattered all over the monument. Almost all are completely filled in with sand now and are indistinguishable to the untrained eye. Cattle ranching and rustling were once common activities. Real Hidden Valley was where the McHaney gang used to hide purloined beef. There were two rather large ponds though only one is still active. Barker Dam was started by Wally Barker and raised by Bill keys and the dam is about 30' high. A couple of years ago it developed a leak and there's nothing left of the pond. Too bad as it was a year long water source for Big Horn Sheep and all of the other local wildlife.

There's another lesser known, but almost as large reservoir behind the Keys ranch house up one of the canyons.