Reefer City was an unusual Depression-era mining settlement founded in 1936 near Mojave, California, where fifty refrigerator railcars were converted into homes for miners. You’d find workers extracting gold worth millions from the Golden Queen Mine until Executive Order L-208 shut operations in 1942. The community then housed Marines until 1960 before being dismantled in 1971. This ghost town‘s innovative repurposing of industrial relics tells a compelling story of American resourcefulness during hard times.
Key Takeaways
- Reefer City was a unique California ghost town near Soledad Mountain where miners lived in converted refrigerator train cars during the 1930s-40s.
- Founded in 1936 by Consolidated Gold Fields during the Depression, it housed workers for the Golden Queen and Silver Queen mines.
- The community grew from 300 to 600 residents before gold mining operations ceased in 1942 due to WWII restrictions.
- After mining ended, Dr. Leroy Schultz repurposed the railroad cars to house Marine Corps personnel until 1960.
- Reefer City was completely dismantled by 1971, leaving almost no physical traces of this innovative Depression-era mining settlement.
The Birth of a Railroad Car Town (1936)
In June 1936, amidst the lingering effects of the Great Depression, Reefer City emerged as a distinctive mining settlement in Kern County, California. Established by Consolidated Gold Fields of South Africa, this company town represented one of California’s last mining-related settlements of the era.
The town’s unique name likely originated from its distinctive housing—repurposed refrigerated railway cars. This practical solution addressed immediate worker accommodation needs while optimizing railroad logistics for ore transportation. The dripping scuppers from these converted reefer cars created visible water trails across the settlement’s dirt roads during warmer months.
You’d find the town’s layout focused entirely on functionality, with converted reefer cars clustered around mining facilities. Daily life revolved around mining cycles and rail schedules, with minimal social amenities.
The mainly transient population consisted of miners and their families, whose livelihoods depended on gold extraction from the recently discovered gold lode on Soledad Mountain near Mojave. Reefer City exemplified depression-era resourcefulness, turning obsolete transportation equipment into a practical mining community.
From Railway Reefers to Mining Homes
During the Depression era, you’d find miners repurposing discarded refrigerator railcars as innovative housing solutions around Reefer City.
These “reefers,” originally designed to transport perishable goods, were transformed into practical desert dwellings that could withstand the harsh Mojave climate while providing affordable shelter for workers at the Golden Queen and nearby mines. The community thrived near Soledad Mountain, where significant gold discoveries amounting to approximately $23 million occurred before World War II.
The boxcar homes represented ingenious adaptability during economically challenging times, with residents modifying the steel structures by adding windows, doors, and often connecting multiple cars to create larger living spaces. By 1939, this unique community had grown to house approximately 300 residents who depended on the mining operations for their livelihood.
Boxcars Become Desert Homes
When the Silver Queen mine discovery triggered a rapid influx of miners to the Mojave Desert in the late 1930s, Southern Pacific Railroad provided an ingenious housing solution. Fifty retired refrigerator cars were purchased, transported to the mine site, and transformed into dwellings.
These reefer modifications included adding doors, windows, and basic amenities to accommodate mining families in the harsh desert environment. Similar to the miner’s cabin built between giant granite boulders, these structures represented resourceful adaptation to challenging terrain. This approach to housing resembles the diverse workforce accommodations seen in Eagle Mountain, where boarding houses and dormitories supported mining operations.
- You could have owned a piece of railway history while pursuing silver riches
- Your family might’ve shared walls with neighbors that once carried perishable freight across America
- You’d have witnessed a community grow from 300 to 600 residents in just three years
The resourceful repurposing of these industrial relics created Reefer City, a unique community that would later house Marines until 1960 before being dismantled in 1971.
Ingenious Depression-Era Housing
The Great Depression’s economic devastation sparked remarkable ingenuity at Reefer City, where fifty retired refrigerator cars from Southern Pacific Railroad were transformed into mining community homes. In 1936, rather than constructing expensive new buildings, these “reefers” were repurposed to house workers near the thriving Golden Queen Mining operations.
This resourceful solution addressed economic challenges while supporting the mining boom that began after the 1933 Silver Queen discovery. Within three years, the community grew to 300 residents, doubling to 600 by 1942. This growth pattern mirrored many other gold rush towns that experienced rapid population increases in California’s mining history.
After mining operations halted due to Executive Order L-208, Dr. Leroy Schultz and his wife Freda purchased the property in 1943, renting the boxcar homes to Marines stationed at nearby Mojave Air Station until 1960. Today, only one stick-built house remains as a silent testament to this innovative community.
Though dismantled in 1971, Reefer City remains a monument to Depression-era adaptability.
Railroad Repurposing Solution
Why would anyone repurpose refrigerated railroad cars as homes? During the Depression-era gold rush of 1936, Southern Pacific reefers offered an innovative housing solution near the Golden Queen mine. This historic adaptability transformed fifty insulated freight cars into living quarters for over 300 miners by 1939, showcasing railroad sustainability decades before the modern concept existed.
The economic advantages were compelling:
- Cost efficiency – purchasing used reefers proved remarkably cheaper than constructing permanent buildings in remote desert terrain
- Mobility – the cars could be transported directly to the site via existing rail lines
- Immediacy – miners gained shelter without construction delays, maintaining operational continuity
These repurposed railcars featured minimal but functional interiors, sometimes connected or modified with doors, windows, and exterior porches to combat harsh desert conditions. Located on Soledad Mountain’s outskirts, the settlement provided accessible housing for the mining workforce. The concept shares similarities with the vintage wooden coaches that were converted for passenger service at Knott’s Berry Farm’s Calico Railroad in the 1950s.
Golden Queen Mining: Powering Reefer City’s Economy
Mining giant Golden Queen has served as the economic backbone of Reefer City since its founding in 1935, when the company consolidated several historic mines including Queen Esther, Silver Queen, Echo, and Golden Queen.
The mine’s history stretches back to 1894 when George Bowers discovered gold, leading to a significant strike in the 1930s that yielded over $6 million in precious metals.
Gold’s first glimmer at Golden Queen emerged in 1894, sparking a 1930s bonanza worth millions.
After ceasing operations in 1942, mining remained dormant for over four decades before modern mining technology revitalized the site.
Today, Golden Queen processes 4.5 million tons of ore annually, employing 190-300 workers in its open-pit operation.
This economic sustainability comes through advanced automation and IT infrastructure that minimizes costly downtime.
As Reefer City’s largest employer, the mine’s contribution extends beyond jobs to tax revenues and community development, maintaining the region’s financial liveliness.
Daily Life in California’s Refrigerator Car Community
While Golden Queen Mining provided the economic foundation for Reefer City, residents carved out a distinctive way of life in one of California’s most unusual communities.
You’d find miners adapting old railroad refrigerator cars into functional homes starting in 1936, creating a unique desert settlement. Community resilience emerged through shared experiences and the pragmatic use of limited resources in harsh conditions.
Three aspects that defined daily existence in Reefer City:
- Mining families transforming metal reefers into personalized living spaces
- The temporary integration of Marine families during WWII, creating a diverse social dynamic
- Adaptation to desert living without extensive amenities, requiring self-sufficiency
This innovative housing solution persisted until mining declined and the military base closed, leading to the community’s dismantling by 1971.
War Changes Everything: The 1942 Mining Shutdown
You’ve witnessed how peacetime prosperity shaped Reefer City, but the December 7, 1942 issuance of Executive Order L-208 radically transformed this mining community by forcing all gold mines to close in support of war production.
The Golden Queen mine, having produced over $3 million in gold by 1939, fell silent as miners were redirected to copper operations in Montana, Utah, and Arizona to address critical war material shortages.
As Reefer City’s miners departed, personnel from the Marine Corps Auxiliary Air Station Mojave moved in, renting the abandoned refrigerator car homes throughout the war years and beyond.
Executive Order Impact
Although gold mining had been deemed “non-essential” to the war effort through a previous regulation, Executive Order 9066 in February 1942 delivered the decisive blow to California’s remaining gold operations.
This presidential order, ostensibly for national security, led to the forced removal of Japanese Americans from the West Coast, including many who worked in Reefer City’s mining industry.
- You’d have witnessed entire families forced to abandon their homes and businesses with only what they could carry, victims of wartime hysteria rather than actual security threats.
- Your Japanese American neighbors disappeared almost overnight, sent first to assembly centers then remote internment camps.
- Your community’s fabric was torn apart in what would later be recognized as one of the most egregious civil rights violations in American history.
Gold Mining Sacrificed
After the removal of Japanese American workers had already weakened Reefer City’s mining operations, the War Production Board delivered the fatal blow with Limitation Order L-208 on October 8, 1942.
Unlike other mining sectors that continued producing war-essential metals, gold mining was uniquely targeted for closure. You’d have seen immediate effects as gold production plummeted to levels not witnessed since before the 1848 Gold Rush.
The government’s reasoning was clear—labor and materials devoted to gold were considered wasteful when the war effort needed resources elsewhere.
This wasn’t merely a temporary setback. The mining decline became permanent for many operations as flooding, structural collapse, and neglect made post-war reopening economically unfeasible.
With gold prices fixed at $35 per ounce and new environmental regulations emerging, Reefer City’s mining industry, like many California gold towns, never recovered.
Marines Replace Miners
When Executive Order L-208 shuttered Reefer City’s gold mining operations on December 7, 1942—exactly one year after Pearl Harbor—it altered the community’s identity overnight.
The military shift began when Dr. Leroy Schultz and his wife Freda purchased the abandoned mining properties in 1943, ushering in an entirely new era for the settlement.
What followed exemplified remarkable community adaptation:
- Marines stationed at the nearby Auxiliary Air Station Mojave, along with their families, replaced miners as residents.
- Former gold mining housing became military quarters, completely changing the town’s economic function.
- This military occupation continued throughout the war and intermittently afterward until the base’s closure in 1960.
The unique transformation—from booming gold camp to military housing—sustained Reefer City’s existence for nearly two additional decades before its ultimate dismantling in 1971.
Second Life as Military Housing During WWII
As World War II intensified across the globe, Reefer City underwent a remarkable transformation from mining community to military housing complex. The housing innovation began when Dr. Leroy Schultz and his wife Freda purchased the property in 1943, capitalizing on infrastructure already in place from mining operations.
You’ll find the story of military adaptability in how fifty Southern Pacific railroad cars were repurposed as dwelling units for service members and their families. Marines stationed at the nearby Marine Corps Auxiliary Air Station Mojave occupied these converted “reefers” throughout the war.
The community, which once housed 300 mining residents, now served military personnel in a cost-effective rental arrangement. This practical housing solution continued after the war, with Edwards Air Force Base personnel inhabiting the community until the 1960s.
Vanishing Into the Mojave: the Ghost Town Today
Today’s Reefer City exists largely in memory, with the physical remnants of this once-vibrant mining and military community having all but disappeared from the Mojave landscape.
Only memories remain of Reefer City, its physical traces vanished from the Mojave’s unforgiving terrain.
When you visit, you’ll find little evidence of the refrigerated railcars that gave the town its name, as they were completely removed by 1971. Recent operations at the Golden Queen mine have further erased historical traces, clearing what ruins once stood nearby.
The ghost town‘s historical preservation challenges reflect the transient nature of desert settlements:
- The site remains barren, with only sporadic foundations marking what was once a community.
- Desert conditions accelerated the decay of wooden and metal structures.
- The ongoing industrial activity continues to erase Reefer City’s physical history.
Frequently Asked Questions
Were There Any Notable Crimes or Incidents in Reefer City?
You’ll find no documented crime history in Reefer City. Historical records show no murders, robberies, violent incidents, or ghost sightings. The town’s decline stemmed from economic factors rather than criminal activity.
What Happened to Former Residents After Reefer City Was Dismantled?
With nearly 100% displacement, you scattered to nearby towns like Mojave and Ridgecrest. Your life after Reefer City involved seeking new employment in agriculture or military bases, while community rebuilding remained largely undocumented.
Did Reefer City Have Its Own School or Church?
No, you won’t find evidence of dedicated schools or churches in Reefer City. Historical records show Reefer City education and religion services were likely accessed in nearby Mojave due to limited infrastructure.
Can Tourists Visit Any Preserved Reefer Cars From the Town?
Ever wonder what remains of the past? You can’t visit any preserved reefers from Reefer City as tourist attractions. The site was dismantled in 1971, leaving no original refrigerator cars behind.
Were There Any Famous People Associated With Reefer City?
No famous residents are historically associated with Reefer City. You’ll find its significance lies in mining operations and unique boxcar housing, not celebrity connections during its operational years.
References
- https://beyond.nvexpeditions.com/california/kern/reefercity.php
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_ghost_towns_in_California
- http://wikimapia.org/5317482/Reefer-City-site
- https://www.scopeofwork.net/2023-08-07/
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Reefer_City
- https://www.trainorders.com/discussion/read.php?18,3460864
- https://erroluys.com/greatdepressionarchive8.html
- https://www.californiarailroad.museum/visit/exhibits
- https://vredenburgh.org/mining_history/pages/west_mojave_desert.htm
- https://www.publiclandsforthepeople.org/wp-content/uploads/2015/06/Desert-Fever-History-of-Mining-in-the-CDCA.pdf
