In 1963, Frances died, and six years later, on June 28th, 1969, Bill Keys joined her. As we left the Desert Queen Ranch, I spotted a fresh, clean American flag snapping in the steady breeze. Below it, a wrought iron fence surrounds the graves of the Keys family; Frances, Bill and three of their children are buried there.

The Keys Ranch is the prime example of early settlement in the Joshua Tree National Park area. Bill Keys was the area's leading character, and his ranch is a symbol of the resourcefulness of early settlers. The ranch is an extensive complex of small frame buildings built between 1910 and Keys' death in 1969.

2021年7月7日 · Keys had been imprisoned for 12 years for defending himself. In light of the new evidence, he was offered parole. Keys continued to press for some sort of justice and restoration of his good...

Bill Keys, homesteader and miner, built the Desert Queen Ranch in Joshua Tree. From working the Desert Queen Mine to raising a family in the harsh Mojave, Keys left a lasting mark on the desert landscape.

In 1943, Bill Keys shot and killed Worth Bagley, in what Keys maintained was an act of self-defense. He was charged with murder and sent to San Quentin State Prison in Northern California.

2023年10月26日 · Keys Ranch was built in 1910 and lived in by William and Frances Keys along with their children for over 60 years. Having first moved to the desert in search of gold, William Keys started this ranch as he built up a life for himself with mining and ranching.

2023年8月8日 · William F. (Bill) Keys had worked on several cattle ranches, hunted outlaws as a deputy sheriff along the Utah-Arizona border, and prospected and mined along the Colorado River and in Death Valley before he arrived in the Joshua Tree area.

2021年8月3日 · Yet it was here, in 1917, that Bill Keys chose to establish a ranch and raise a family. Keys and other 20th-century homesteaders lived much as earlier pioneers in the West had, working hard to make their marginal land holdings successful. Today, Keys Ranch is preserved as part of Joshua Tree National Park.

William F. Keys was born in Russia on September 27, 1879, Bill Keys and his family moved to Nebraska in the early 1890s. He left home at the age of 15 and began working at mills, mines, and cattle ranches.