Searles Lake Borax Discovery

Searles Lake Borax Discovery is a California Historical Landmark in Death Valley, San Bernardino County.

San Bernardino County · Trona, Death Valley · location approximate

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Borax was discovered on the nearby surface of Searles Lake by John Searles in 1862. With his brother, Dennis, he formed the San Bernardino Borax Mining Company in 1873 and operated it until 1897. The chemicals in Searles Lake, which include borax, potash, soda ash, salt cake, and lithium, were deposited here by the runoff waters from melting ice age glaciers. John Searles' discovery has proved to be the world's richest chemical storehouse, containing half the natural elements known to man.

1971 register text, presented as a historical document. It uses the period's terms for Native people; the state's landmark listings still carry most of this wording, and the California Office of Historic Preservation maintains the program's current texts.

Many of these plaques have since been recast or their texts revised. The California Historical Landmarks program and its current texts are maintained by the California Office of Historic Preservation. California Office of Historic Preservation ↗

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under a mile from where William Gabby lived in the 1760s

what this marker records spans 1777 to 1789, overlapping William Gabby's years here

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Marker data: State of California, Department of Parks and Recreation, California Historical Landmarks (1971)

Searles Lake Borax Discovery

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