OHS 57th Class Class Picnic
Day 2
Visit to Joshua Tree National Park
Held south of Twentynine Palms California
On the second day Picnic attendees were invited to tour Joshua Tree National Park. The Tour guides were Jerry and Connie (Wise OHS 1962) Seaburg from the class of 1959. They are volunteer guides providing services for the National Park System. Standing to the left of the guides are Ron R. and Leroy G.
In this photo the guides and attendees were standing next to the tallest Joshua tree in the 789,700 acres National Park
Photo shows the flowers of a Joshua Tree
One of the many interest areas of the Park is the Keys Ranch. Bill and Frances Keys were among the few successful homesteaders in this area. The tour provided by the Seaburgs focused on the Keys Ranch area.
This is a photo of the Keys home. Their refrigerator was wire covered frame covered in Burlap. The Burlap was covered with water and the evaporation process cools the contents inside.
This was one of Bill's
tractors that was also used as a table saw.
This was a school house on the property that served the Key's children and other children in the surrounding area.
This little rock and the bigger hole was used in the early days to grind grain and other food items.
The end of the tour was a Birthday Celebration for Ron who was celebrating his three quarters of a century Birthday.
This tour of the Keys Ranch was very interesting and informative about early life in the area. American Indians were the first people to live in the parks area. In the 1800s gold mining in the area followed by people homesteading living in the area in the early 1900s. The park also offers many types of vegetation and even limited overnight camping..