SITE OF MISSION SAN PEDRO Y SAN PABLO DE BICUNER

To protect the Anza Trail where it forded the Colorado River, the Spanish founded a pueblo and mission nearby on January 7, 1781. Threatened with the loss of their land, the Quechans (Yumas) attacked this strategic settlement on July 17, 1781. The Quechan victory closed this crossing and seriously crippled future communications between upper California and Mexico. Location: On County Rd 524, 0.2 mi W of intersection of Levee and Mehring Rds, 4.4 mi NE of Bard S24, near Coles Corner, about a mile west of the Colorado River, and a few miles south of Laguna Dam.Thanks to Mission Trails Today

Potholes Cemetery

, The cemetery is located about 1 mile north of the town of Bard near the Laguna Dam right on the All American Canal. To get there take Interstate 8 to the town of Winterhaven on the Arizona border. Take the Winterhaven exit and get on County Highway S24. Stay on S24 for several miles through the town of Bard. The highway changes names several times. Just outside of Bard, you will pass by a store called, "Cole's Corner". About a mile beyond this you will come to a bridge crossing a canal.

At this point, you should see a State Historic Marker describing the location of the Mission San Pedro y San Pablo de Bicu�er. There are a couple of dirt roads here that lead past the Marker. Take either one of these roads, which should take you up to the All American Canal. You will see signs posted warning people not to trespass. If you choose to continue, turn right when you get up on to the canal. The cemetery lies just a few hundred feet away, almost directly under the power lines.

The Mining Journal of 1902 stated that people had been digging for gold in this area since 1720, calling Potholes the oldest placer camp in the continental United States. To this day, people can still be seen here panning for gold.

Potholes had at one time a population of 4 to 5 hundred miners, most of them Mexican. The placer deposits were worked into the 1930s.

It is not uncommon to see people using metal detectors and finding "pickers" up to small gold nuggets. Lots of folks use drywashers to separate the fine gold from the overburden. Make sure you ask permission as most of the land in the valley is under claim.

Castle Dome City, Ghost Town and Museum

For the history buff this is a must see, must do adventure. Castle Dome City is located in the historical castle dome mining district. The recreated town consists of many original buildings saved from destruction by the Armstrong family. Allen Armstrong approached the Fish and Wildlife Service ,before they could burn down all of the old buildings located in the district. In a labor of love, he and his wife moved and rebuild many original buildings as well as using materials to recreate others.

It is well worth your time to spend a few hours to see the historical artifacts, including an original pair of Levi's, purple bottles, old tools, and an even the nineteen fifties gas station.

The Ghost Town is located off U.S. 95 mile marker 55, and is a few miles off the main road. The museum and town are open Tuesday through Sunday 10:00 AM to 5:00 PM, guided tours Wednesday 10:00 AM or if you have a group of eight or more call area code (928) 920-3062 for special treatment.

Cloud Automotive Museum on the way to Coles Corner

Taking a walk through the three acres of the Cloud Museum is literally a stroll down memory lane. Among the 115 vintage vehicles gathered under numerous roofs - or open to the deep blue skies of Bard, Calif., - are more than 75 Model T Fords. But that's only the beginning, because all around in every direction is "stuff" of all descriptions, much of it mechanical, some simply interesting to the eye of the collector.

It's that collector - retired farmer Johnny Cloud - that the various assortments, from farm equipment to antique washing machines to crank telephones to gadgets that cut saltwater taffy and others that form paper. into egg cartons, have in common. Or more accurately, in uncommon. "If it's old and rusty and useless, I've got it," Cloud laughs. Still, the pride he takes in his collection shines through, along with the true value of things like a 1922 Chevrolet Model T truck that he says "is only one of five in existence that the Chevy club knows about," or the truck his dad drove into Yuma without headlights on a moonlit night 73 years ago to fetch the doctor to deliver his sister.

Amazingly, all the vehicles are in running order, thanks to Cloud, who does all the work himself and built some of them from unrelated but authentic parts. Clearly, this museum is a labor of love - and the outgrowth of what started as a hobby about 19 years ago, when Cloud leased out his farmland and "just about went crazy out of boredom with nothing to do." "1 just started collecting stuff and then people started stopping to look, so I put up a donation box," Cloud explains. And it's still about that simple - park, walk in, look around. And if Cloud is on the premises (he lives next door), expect to hear a story or two. Both the collection and the collector are well worth the stop.

1398 York Rd.
Bard, California
(760) 572-0188

Home - Entertainment - History - Map - Wildlife - Pictures - E-Mail

904 Mehring Road   Bard, California      S 24 turnoff from Winterhaven
(760) 572-0198