Tecopa Charcoal Ovens
The three charcoal ovens in Wheeler Wash were built in 1875 by Nehemiah 'Red' Clark for Jonas B. Osborne, a developer of the Resting Springs mining district (Tecopa) fifty miles away in California. The location was selected as the nearest source of timber to the desolate desert town. A lime kiln was added in 1877. In January 1878, Osborne built a smelter at Tecopa, but it failed before the end of the year. Nevertheless, the Tecopa Ovens were used until about 1910 with wood provided from Clark's Sawmill. One oven remained standing until the mid-2000s, when restoration work accidentally led to its collapse.
