{"nrhp_refnum":"75000431","name":"Bandit Rock","other_names":["Robbers Roost"],"category":"site","location":{"address":"SW of Inyokern near jct. of CA 14 and 178","address_restricted":false,"city":"Inyokern","county":"Kern County","state":"CA","lat":35.591063502000054,"lon":-117.94979571899995,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"1975-10-31","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Social History"],"significance_levels":["local"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"Bandit Rock, also called Robbers Roost, is a jagged rock outcrop about 4,000 feet in elevation west of Freeman Junction near Inyokern, Kern County, California, easily seen from Highway 14. It is a five-acre site administered by the Bureau of Land Management.","why_significant":"The rock served as the lookout and hideout of the bandit Tiburcio Vasquez (spelled Tiburico in the form) and his gang in 1874-1875. Vasquez held up travelers at nearby Coyote Holes before his capture and hanging in San Jose in 1875. The nomination calls it a historic and scenic landmark tied to lawlessness in the California desert.","narrative":"Bandit Rock, also known as Robbers Roost, is a craggy rock outcrop rising to about 4,000 feet west of Freeman Junction near Inyokern in Kern County, California. Visible from Highway 14, it covers roughly five acres and is managed by the Bureau of Land Management. Its height gave a view for miles across the desert, and its crevices and caves offered shelter from harsh weather as well as a place to hide. In 1874 and 1875 it served as the camp and lookout of Tiburcio Vasquez and his gang, who robbed travelers at Coyote Holes, a stage station where the Walker Pass road met the freight road to Los Angeles. Army detachments from Camp Independence pressed the gang, and Vasquez was later captured, tried in San Jose and hanged on March 19, 1875. The outcrop was listed for its link to this chapter of desert lawlessness and remains much as the bandits knew it.","period_of_significance":"1874-1875","architect_builder":null,"architectural_style":null,"criteria":[],"status_note":"Described as in good condition, unaltered and on its original site, remaining much as it was when Vasquez used it; the form marks it as unoccupied, with unrestricted public access.","vacant_flag":null,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:55:31.476969-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/lz/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_CA/75000431.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/75000431/4582debdf8-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/75000431/4582debdf8-1600.webp","licence":"CC BY-SA 3.0","author":"Pastordonn","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:RobbersRoostKern.jpg\" rel=\"noopener\">Pastordonn</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:RobbersRoostKern.jpg"},"district":null,"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/123858844","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robbers_Roost_(Kern_County,_California)","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q7340817"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/california/kern-county/bandit-rock-75000431/"}