{"nrhp_refnum":"74000338","name":"Eagle Borax Works","other_names":["H.s.-1"],"category":"district","location":{"address":"Death Valley National Monument","address_restricted":false,"city":"Furnace Creek","county":"Inyo County","state":"CA","lat":36.20119401500003,"lon":-116.86595358227336,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"1974-12-31","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Industry","Transportation"],"significance_levels":["state"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"The remains of the first borax plant in Death Valley, located north of Bennetts Well within Death Valley National Monument, Inyo County, California. The works were established in 1882 and now survive as ruins.","why_significant":"It was the site of the first borax plant in Death Valley and a typical marsh-type operation. It reflects the pioneer beginnings of borax mining and processing in the United States, which is closely tied to Death Valley. The form also notes its value for public interpretation.","narrative":"Eagle Borax Works is the ruin of the earliest borax plant in Death Valley, set near Bennetts Well in what is now Death Valley National Monument. Isidore Daunet, a French-born prospector who noticed borate deposits after a near-fatal summer crossing in 1880, formed a partnership in 1882 and brought in equipment, using water from a nearby spring. The plant heated water in a furnace and boiler, dissolved the borax in a tank and crystallized it in vats. Output was hauled by wagon to the railhead at Daggett; by the end of 1883 the partners had shipped 260,000 pounds. Work stopped in summer, when heat prevented crystallization. After Daunet's death in 1884 the business folded, and the land later passed to U.S. Borax, Borax Consolidated, and eventually the National Park Service. Today only the furnace fire box and earth mounds remain, with tamarisks overtaking native vegetation. The site is valued as a typical marsh-type operation and an interpretive opportunity.","period_of_significance":"19th Century (specific date 1882)","architect_builder":"Isidore Daunet and partners (M. McDonald, M. Harmon, C.C. Blanch) set up the operation","architectural_style":null,"criteria":[],"status_note":"Described as ruins; little remains beyond the furnace fire box and earth mounds. Preservation work is marked in progress and stabilization in present condition is recommended.","vacant_flag":null,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:55:32.201592-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/lz/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_CA/74000338.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/74000338/fff814fac5-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/74000338/fff814fac5-1600.webp","licence":"CC BY-SA 3.0","author":"Plazak","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:EagleBoraxWorksCA.jpg\" rel=\"noopener\">Plazak</a>, <a href=\"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0\" rel=\"license noopener\">CC BY-SA 3.0</a>, via Wikimedia Commons","source_page":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:EagleBoraxWorksCA.jpg"},"district":null,"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/123858823","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eagle_Borax_Works","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q5325030"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/california/inyo-county/eagle-borax-works-74000338/"}