Ryan is an unincorporated community in Inyo County, California.[1] It lies at an elevation of 3045 feet (928 m) south of the Amargosa Desert

Amargosa Desert

The Amargosa Desert is located in Nye County in western Nevada, United States, along the California–Nevada border. It is largely coincident with the geographic Amargosa Valley....

 in the Mojave Desert

Mojave Desert

The Mojave Desert occupies a significant portion of southeastern California and smaller parts of central California, southern Nevada, southwestern Utah and northwestern Arizona, in the United States...

.[1]

It was the terminus for the Death Valley Railroad

Death Valley Railroad

The Death Valley Railroad was a narrow gauge railroad that operated in California's Death Valley.It was built in 1914 by the Pacific Coast Borax Company to carry borax with the route running from Ryan, California, located just east of Death Valley National Park, to Death Valley Junction, a distance...

, running from the Pacific Coast Borax Company

Pacific Coast Borax Company

The Pacific Coast Borax Company was a United States mining company founded in 1890 by the American borax magnate Francis "Borax" Smith, the "Borax King".-History:...

 borax

Borax

Borax, also known as sodium borate, sodium tetraborate, or disodium tetraborate, is an important boron compound, a mineral, and a salt of boric acid. It is usually a white powder consisting of soft colorless crystals that dissolve easily in water.Borax has a wide variety of uses...

 works near Death Valley Junction, California

Death Valley Junction, California

Death Valley Junction is a tiny Mojave Desert community in unincorporated Inyo County, California, at the intersection of SR 190 and SR 127, just east of Death Valley National Park. The zip code is 92328, the elevation is , and the population fewer than 20. The city limits sign reports a...

 in the early 20th century.

After production had stopped, in an effort to increase revenues on the Tonopah and Tidewater Railroad

Tonopah and Tidewater Railroad

The Tonopah and Tidewater Railroad, the T&T, was a class II railroad extending through remote reaches of the Mojave Desert from the Santa Fe Railway railhead at Ludlow, California, through Death Valley and Amargosa Valley, terminating at the Mining towns of Tonopah and Goldfield in the Great Basin...

 which had carried the borax ore, Pacific Coast Borax converted the miners' lodgings into tourist accommodations and gave tourists visiting Death Valley

Death Valley

Death Valley is a desert valley located in Eastern California. Situated within the Mojave Desert, it features the lowest, driest, and hottest locations in North America. Badwater, a basin located in Death Valley, is the specific location of the lowest elevation in North America at 282 feet below...

trips on the baby gauge rail line into the mine.