BlockBefore
Photograph of Barker Dam
Photograph by Robb Hannawacker, while working for Joshua Tree National Park, Public domain. Via Wikimedia Commons.

Barker Dam

Built in 1900. Listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1975. 10 historic topographic surveys show this location, the earliest from 1953.

From the record

“Barker Dam, also known as Big Horn Dam, is a dam with water-storage reservoir located in Joshua Tree National Park in California. The dam was constructed by early cattlemen, including C.”

Wikipedia article Barker Dam (California), CC BY-SA 4.0.

One of 90 National Register listings published here for Riverside County · listed in 1975 · category: Structure · built in 1900, by William F. Keys.

Sources: the Wikipedia article · the case file at the National Archives · the National Register database, National Park Service

The listing

  • Address. SE of Twentynine Palms in Joshua Tree National Monument, Twentynine Palms
  • When was it listed? October 1975
  • Category. structure
  • Census division. Chuckwalla Valley
  • When was it built? 1900
  • Architect. William F. Keys
  • National Register reference number. 75000173 - the number the National Park Service assigned this property when it was listed, and the key its nomination file is catalogued under at the National Archives.

Fires near this property

71 since 1992

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal wildfire occurrence database lists 71 fires within 5 miles of Barker Dam between 1992 and 2020, burning about 262 acres in total. 21 started naturally. 2 were recorded as arson. Distance is straight-line from the map coordinates, so a fire counted here may appear on a neighbouring settlement's page as well.

Reported cause Fires
Natural21
Missing data/not specified/undetermined19
Recreation and ceremony17
Smoking3
Fireworks3
Debris and open burning3
Equipment and vehicle use2
Arson/incendiarism2
Other causes1

The most recent of them, most recent first, with the day each was reported and the service that recorded it.

DateCause SizeReported by Name on the report
3 September 1992Missing data/not specified/undeterminedunder an acreJoshua Tree National MonumentPARSONS
23 September 2014Fireworksunder an acreJoshua Tree National MonumentHARVEST
2 September 2013Recreation and ceremonyunder an acreJoshua Tree National MonumentLOST HORSE
2 September 2001Naturalunder an acreJoshua Tree National MonumentINDIAN
18 September 2013Missing data/not specified/undeterminedunder an acreJoshua Tree National MonumentBOY SCOUT 2
31 August 2019Recreation and ceremonyunder an acreJoshua Tree National MonumentRYAN MTN
3 August 2005Naturalunder an acreJoshua Tree National MonumentSPARKEY
3 August 1997Natural1.0 acresJoshua Tree National MonumentWEED

Every fire recorded in Riverside County

Mines and quarries near this property

6 within 5 miles

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal mineral resources record lists 6 workings within 5 miles of Barker Dam: 2 occurrences, 2 past producers, 2 prospects. None of them still produces. What was taken out: Gold, Iron, Bismuth, Silver. Distance is straight-line from the map coordinates, so a quarry counted here may appear on a neighbouring settlement's page as well.

Where SiteCommodity StatusRecorded
Desert Queen MineGold, SilverPast Producer
Sulphide Bismuth MineIron, BismuthPast Producer
Sulphide BismuthIronOccurrence
Black Butte MineGoldProspect
Elton MineGoldProspect
Sunny Boy ClaimGoldOccurrence

Every working recorded in Riverside County

Maps showing this location

10 surveys

United States Geological Survey topographic sheets whose coverage includes this point. Matched by taking the middle of the area the National Park Service maps for this listing, then testing that coordinate against the published boundary of every sheet.

Listed places nearby

2 within 8 miles

Other National Register properties close enough to walk or drive between, ordered by distance from this one. Both positions come from the same geocoding pass that matched these properties to their map sheets.

Photograph PropertyDistance Listed
Ryan House and Lost Horse Well3.2 miles1975
Desert Queen Mine4.3 miles1976

Sources for this property

National Archives recordThe nomination case file for reference 75000173 in Record Group 79.
Wikipedia articleCommunity-written account of this property, licensed CC BY-SA.
Riverside CountyAll 90 listed properties in this county.

Provenance

  • Listing record. National Park Service National Register of Historic Places, listed-properties dataset, current to 2026-05-22.
  • Map join. Address geocoded through the United States Census geocoder, then tested against the published boundary of every sheet in the USGS Historical Topographic Map Collection.
  • How this page is made. Listing fields come from federal records; map-sheet coverage is a labelled coordinate-to-boundary calculation, not a source-field claim.
  • Wildfire. Short, Karen C. 2022. Spatial wildfire occurrence data for the United States, 1992-2020 [FPA_FOD_20221014]. 6th Edition. Fort Collins, CO: Forest Service Research Data Archive. https://doi.org/10.2737/RDS-2013-0009.6 Collected with United States Government funding and usable without additional permissions or fees.
  • Mines and quarries. USGS Mineral Resources Data System (MRDS) https://mrdata.usgs.gov/mrds/ A work of the United States government, no copyright under 17 U.S.C. 105.