Frontiers and explorers wanted to find a way to make a new home for themselves – and rake in the pennies. It wasn’t long before prospector Aaron Winters found what he’d been looking for all those years: borax. The white crystals were embedded into a dried-up lake, and Winters instantly knew it was his ticket the big time.
There was just one problem: they were in the middle of Death Valley. The area has earned its name for very good reasons, but Winters was determined to ship the borax across the nation. It wasn’t long before 20 mules were tasked with dragging the stuff to the nearest railway station. The image of the animals trekking across the arid land has gone down in Californian history.
