I finally found it! I found the information I was looking for. I was looking for the answer to my question. Why is that wall there ? Is it a stage coach horse exchange? After trying to find out who the mayor of Winterhaven California was I found out there was no mayor. So I called the Winterhaven Court and they said they had no mayor, no city council, no city administrator nothing. The Winterhaven Court referred me to Sheriffs office and I was transferred me a couple of times before I spoke to someone. They referrd me to the Quechan Indian Tribe Administration. I called them and they had no idea who to call. Then I called The Yuma Crossing Historic Park and they had no idea what I was talking about. At this point I was getting desperate. I called the BLM I was transferred a couple of times then was told they would get back to me. I didn’t get a call back so I called the Arizona Historical Society in Yuma Az. I was given a contact name of Carol Brooks. I called Carol and she was able to give me what information I was looking for. Ms. Brooks told me that adobe wall was thought to be a Stagecoach Horse Exchange. According to a letter dated 1910 the adobe wall that is still standing was a pump house for the American Gold Mine. They would have pipes from the river to the mine and pump the water to the American Gold Mine. Ms. Brooke said it could not have been a Stage Coach Horse Exchange because it was too close to the Crossing. The Stage Coach Horse Exchanges would be posted 5 miles from each other and since there was one in Yuma the next one would be close to or located by Pilot Knob. What is now an old Adobe wall also may have served as a boating dock although it is unclear whether it was or not. The adobe wall could have been constructed some time between 1850 -1880 that was the time the American Gold mine was in it’s peak operation time. So to answer my questions, was it a Stagecoach Horse Exchange? No it was not. Although it has a lot of historical value the owners of that land are the Quechan Indian Tribe. It would be up to the tribe to preserve it. That wall being historical remains of a building. I can tell you that many times I have gone through the freeway not even giving that “wall” a second thought. I would never have thought that such a wall would have so much significance. If you are wondering where the American Girl Mine is, according to http://www.gamineral.org/rr06_yuma-az_ogilby-road.html the way to get there is go down Ogilby road until you cross a rail road track. Then you turn ride on American Girl Rd, there are a lot of RVs that are dry camping there. And according to Gold Rock Ranch Rv Resort they are located 12 miles away from Yuma, and there are tons of trails to ride and you could actually access the Imperial Sand Dunes from there. This might be a point of interest for people that are out there dry camping at Imperial Sand Dunes and have nothing to do. Maybe someday soon I might blog about it. Mission accomplished mystery solved.
*Update
This information was originally posted on another site. At that time we had one person view our blog and wrote this information while submitting the photo above. Thanks Leon.
“Hey, it’s good to finally see someone write about that old adobe wall. When I was a kid we drove to Yuma once and pulled over when we saw it by the side of the road–it was a whole adobe ruin then, not just a wall. As it happens I wrote to the AZ Historical Society back in February, and what Carol Brooke told me was:
We have done quite a bit of research on that adobe building. It is either the pump plant for the American Girl Mine or the loading dock for one of the mines. It had been reported in many publications and on some maps that it was a Butterfield station. We researched that and it’s not listed in Conkling’s book and it’s too close to Yuma to be a station. I believe that it’s on the Quechan Reservation.
Anyway, I’ve uploaded a picture we took of it–so if you’d like to see what it looked like in the early-mid 1970s, you can see it at http://share.wiredtron.com/files/150/Photos/AdobeOnRoadtoYuma.jpg. I’d love to see any pics you have of it today.
Posted by Leon on 03:24 PM September 04, 2009 ”
You made my day and my week everytime I pass by that wall I think of this photo!
Jet Rent