Wagons drawn by a “20 Mule Team,” an exhibit at the Harmony Borax Works in Death Valley, California
“Though steeped in legend, the frenzied search for gold and other metals in Death Valley produced few fortunes. Borax, the ‘White Gold of the Desert,” ranks as the valley’s most profitable mineral. Harmony Borax Works was one of Death Valley’s first borax operations. It operated from 1883-1888.
“For more than a century, the 20 Mule Team has been the symbol of the borax industry – on product labels, in history books, and on television. The status is well-earned; mule teams helped solve the most difficult task that faced Death Valley borax operators – getting the product to market.
“The 20 mule teams traveled south through Death Valley, out Wingate Pass, then across the desert to Mojave, California – 165 miles of forbidding terrain. The mule teams pulled loads weighing up to 36 tons (33, 113 kg), including 1,200 gallons (4,545 l) of drinking water. The rear wagon wheels were seven feet (2.1 m) high, and the entire unit, with mules was more than 100 feet (30.5 m) long." [Text from an informational display]
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“20 Mule Team Borax” was the continuing sponsor of “Death Valley Days,” one of the longest running Western series on radio and TV. The series ran weekly for 15 years on radio beginning in the 1930s and then another 18 years and 600 episodes on television from 1952-1970. Ronald Reagan, who hosted the program from 1964 to 1965, can be seen in ads hawking Borax as a washing powder.
www.youtube.com/watch?v=oT8ZS_Ptqdg
Wagons drawn by a “20 Mule Team,” an exhibit at the Harmony Borax Works in Death Valley, California
“Though steeped in legend, the frenzied search for gold and other metals in Death Valley produced few fortunes. Borax, the ‘White Gold of the Desert,” ranks as the valley’s most profitable mineral. Harmony Borax Works was one of Death Valley’s first borax operations. It operated from 1883-1888.
“For more than a century, the 20 Mule Team has been the symbol of the borax industry – on product labels, in history books, and on television. The status is well-earned; mule teams helped solve the most difficult task that faced Death Valley borax operators – getting the product to market.
“The 20 mule teams traveled south through Death Valley, out Wingate Pass, then across the desert to Mojave, California – 165 miles of forbidding terrain. The mule teams pulled loads weighing up to 36 tons (33, 113 kg), including 1,200 gallons (4,545 l) of drinking water. The rear wagon wheels were seven feet (2.1 m) high, and the entire unit, with mules was more than 100 feet (30.5 m) long." [Text from an informational display]
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“20 Mule Team Borax” was the continuing sponsor of “Death Valley Days,” one of the longest running Western series on radio and TV. The series ran weekly for 15 years on radio beginning in the 1930s and then another 18 years and 600 episodes on television from 1952-1970. Ronald Reagan, who hosted the program from 1964 to 1965, can be seen in ads hawking Borax as a washing powder.
www.youtube.com/watch?v=oT8ZS_Ptqdg