Dead Indian Soda Springs
Encyclopedia
Mineral Springs
Mineral Springs is the name of several locations in the United States:* Mineral Springs, Arkansas* Mineral Springs, North Carolina* Mineral Springs Township, North Dakota* Mineral Springs at Green Springs, Ohio...
that feed into Dead Indian Creek near Eagle Point, Oregon
Eagle Point, Oregon
Eagle Point is a city in Jackson County, Oregon, United States. The population was 8,469 at the 2010 census.-Geography:According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of , all of it land.-2000 Census data:...
, United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. The springs are rich in sodium carbonate
Sodium carbonate
Sodium carbonate , Na2CO3 is a sodium salt of carbonic acid. It most commonly occurs as a crystalline heptahydrate, which readily effloresces to form a white powder, the monohydrate. Sodium carbonate is domestically well-known for its everyday use as a water softener. It can be extracted from the...
, iron
Iron
Iron is a chemical element with the symbol Fe and atomic number 26. It is a metal in the first transition series. It is the most common element forming the planet Earth as a whole, forming much of Earth's outer and inner core. It is the fourth most common element in the Earth's crust...
, magnesium
Magnesium
Magnesium is a chemical element with the symbol Mg, atomic number 12, and common oxidation number +2. It is an alkaline earth metal and the eighth most abundant element in the Earth's crust and ninth in the known universe as a whole...
, and sodium hydroxide.
The springs are located approximately 35 miles (56 kilometers) east of Medford
Medford, Oregon
Medford is a city in Jackson County, Oregon, United States. As of the 2010 US Census, the city had a total population of 74,907 and a metropolitan area population of 207,010, making the Medford MSA the 4th largest metro area in Oregon...
.
History
European American
A European American is a citizen or resident of the United States who has origins in any of the original peoples of Europe...
settlers
American pioneer
American pioneers are any of the people in American history who migrated west to join in settling and developing new areas. The term especially refers to those who were going to settle any territory which had previously not been settled or developed by European or American society, although the...
around 1871, when a man named John Tyrell stopped for a drink while chasing an elk. Within 20 years, the site became a popular camping site for Rogue Valley
Rogue Valley
The Rogue Valley is a farming and timber-producing region in southwestern Oregon in the United States. Located along the middle Rogue River and its tributaries in Josephine and Jackson counties, the valley forms the cultural and economic heart of Southern Oregon near the California border. The...
residents. Shortly after 1900, Charles Wiltkinson built a home and several rental cabins near the mouth of the creek, which are now part of Camp Latgawa.
Men hired during the Great Depression
Great Depression
The Great Depression was a severe worldwide economic depression in the decade preceding World War II. The timing of the Great Depression varied across nations, but in most countries it started in about 1929 and lasted until the late 1930s or early 1940s...
to work in the woods for the Civilian Conservation Corps
Civilian Conservation Corps
The Civilian Conservation Corps was a public work relief program that operated from 1933 to 1942 in the United States for unemployed, unmarried men from relief families, ages 18–25. A part of the New Deal of President Franklin D...
built a fountain and rockwork path around one of the springs in 1935–1936, but they were gradually washed away during floods in 1955, 1964, and 1997. All that remains today are the trace ruins scattered about the site and a few stone steps that lead from the trail down into the creek.
It is not known whether the springs were used by the Takelma
Takelma
The Takelma were a Native American people that lived in the Rogue Valley of interior southwest Oregon, with most of their villages sited along the Rogue River. The name Takelma means Along the River.-History:...
Indians for medicinal purposes, but in the 1920s, Lou Bean bottled some of the springs and sold the water to Brown's Tavern, in Medford.
Dead Indian Soda Springs Shelter
On December 29, 2000, the Dead Indian Soda Springs Shelter was added to the National Register of Historic PlacesNational Register of Historic Places
The National Register of Historic Places is the United States government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures, and objects deemed worthy of preservation...
. The small shelter, located next to Little Butte Creek
Little Butte Creek (Rogue River)
Little Butte Creek is a long tributary of the Rogue River located in the U.S. state of Oregon. Its drainage basin consists of approximately of Jackson County, and another in Klamath County. The north fork of the creek begins at Fish Lake, while the south fork begins near Brown Mountain. The two...
, contains four oven
Oven
An oven is a thermally insulated chamber used for the heating, baking or drying of a substance. It is most commonly used for cooking. Kilns, and furnaces are special-purpose ovens...
s, four picnic table
Picnic table
A picnic table is a modified table with attached benches, designed for eating a meal outdoors .-Uses:...
s, and an old wash basin
Sink
A sink is a bowl-shaped plumbing fixture used for washing hands, for dishwashing or other purposes. Sinks generally have taps that supply hot and cold water and may include a spray feature to be used for faster rinsing...
.