Dana Burks was a Palm Springs and Los Angeles real estate developer who saw the potential of developing Borrego Valley. He purchased thousands of acres of land after the Great Depression. The slow economic recovery following the Depression made him lose interest in the area. His heirs still owned 1600 acres in 1974 when they decided to donate it to the state. [Burks came to valley in 1932, said to have purchased 13,500 ac, presumably all railroad lands, built adobe home in Sec 23, T11S R6E, 1933, which became the core of the Desert Lodge; bought Beaty's Coyote Canyon ranch 1933, raised tomatoes, grapes, and even some cotton. Still interested in valley affairs 1937; sold adobe to N Crickmer ca 1937. See Lindsay (2001) p 91.]
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The Borego School District was finally officially organized in 1931, and a Board of Trustees was elected. Around 1934 the school was moved to the Dana Burks ranch, where La Casa del Zorro resort is today. Burks also donated the land for a permanent school site. "They wanted it more centrally located," Lelah Porter explains, "so Dana Burks offered this land where the grammar school is now, and he gave us supposedly five acres, but he forgot the last quarter [section in the legal description]—I don't know whether intentionally or unintentionally—so we got 20 acres instead of five acres. Well, at that time land was so cheap that he didn't care."
During the construction of Highway 78, the Borrego Valley caught the eye of Dana Burks, a Los Angeles and Palm Springs real estate developer. In 1932 he and a group of investors acquired 13,500 acres in and around the valley— much of it raw, desert land. Burks hoped to entice both agriculture and resort living to the valley. [San Diego Union, 19 March 1933. Burks and his associates had already planted thirty acres of grape vines, and were discussing tomatoes, squash, peas, cucumbers, and sweet potatoes.] In 1933, developer Dana Burks bought the Alfred Armstrong Beaty Ranch and renamed it the Rancho de Anza. In 1934 he sold out to Albert Ahern and Donald Armstrong, who also acquired 1,000 more acres in the mouth of the canyon. Tomatoes and alfalfa remaiend the major crop. Ahern built a home on the ranch in 1937, which still stands.
Agriculturally, he was relying on Borego's desert climate, which would allow grapes, tomatoes, and other crops to be harvested early, and reach the markets ahead of other growers' crops. "We are not interested in growing anything that will not beat the market," Burks told the San Diego Union. "We feel that here we can ripen our products at any time we desire, selecting our own market and assuring it." Burks' vision of the valley as a center of resort living sounds like some of the later publicity for Borrego Springs:
"Burks [en]visions the valley as a great winter playground, dotted with productive desert estates and encircled by the wild, mountainous desolation of the Borego desert [state] park. An authentic Spanish flavor of architecture and development will match the landscape, according to his plan, and the settlers will be specialists in agriculture and in living the fullness of desert life."
But the bottom of the Depression was no time to start a new, isolated, desert development and Burks soon became discouraged. In 1937 he sold his own "Spanish" style adobe in Borego to Noel and Ruth Crickmer. They added some cabins, and in 1939 opened The Desert Lodge, Borego's first hotel. Today, it is known as La Casa del Zorro.
Borego's other big booster was Harry Woods (1874-1964), a real estate agent who first visited the valley in 1925. "If it hadn't been for him I don't think the valley would have progressed at all," says Lelah Porter. He encouraged a number of new homesteaders and developers to come into the valley, including Dana Burks, A.A. Burnand, G.M. Jones, and the Fearneys.
Burks was still interested in Borego Valley affairs as late as 1939. By 1946 the Crickmers had sold The Desert Lodge to the Burnand interests and were running a guest ranch in Tub Canyon. [See the Borrego Sun, 31 July, 14 & 28 August, 1971]. Their original hotel was acquired by the Copley family in 1960, and given its present name. The Copleys are best-known as the publishers of the San Diego Union-Tribune, but have also owned the bi-monthly Borrego Sun (founded in 1949) since 1954.
~ source: https://sandiegohistory.org/journal/1997/january/borrego/
________________________
The Borego School District was finally officially organized in 1931, and a Board of Trustees was elected. Around 1934 the school was moved to the Dana Burks ranch, where La Casa del Zorro resort is today. Burks also donated the land for a permanent school site. "They wanted it more centrally located," Lelah Porter explains, "so Dana Burks offered this land where the grammar school is now, and he gave us supposedly five acres, but he forgot the last quarter [section in the legal description]—I don't know whether intentionally or unintentionally—so we got 20 acres instead of five acres. Well, at that time land was so cheap that he didn't care."
During the construction of Highway 78, the Borrego Valley caught the eye of Dana Burks, a Los Angeles and Palm Springs real estate developer. In 1932 he and a group of investors acquired 13,500 acres in and around the valley— much of it raw, desert land. Burks hoped to entice both agriculture and resort living to the valley. [San Diego Union, 19 March 1933. Burks and his associates had already planted thirty acres of grape vines, and were discussing tomatoes, squash, peas, cucumbers, and sweet potatoes.] In 1933, developer Dana Burks bought the Alfred Armstrong Beaty Ranch and renamed it the Rancho de Anza. In 1934 he sold out to Albert Ahern and Donald Armstrong, who also acquired 1,000 more acres in the mouth of the canyon. Tomatoes and alfalfa remaiend the major crop. Ahern built a home on the ranch in 1937, which still stands.
Agriculturally, he was relying on Borego's desert climate, which would allow grapes, tomatoes, and other crops to be harvested early, and reach the markets ahead of other growers' crops. "We are not interested in growing anything that will not beat the market," Burks told the San Diego Union. "We feel that here we can ripen our products at any time we desire, selecting our own market and assuring it." Burks' vision of the valley as a center of resort living sounds like some of the later publicity for Borrego Springs:
"Burks [en]visions the valley as a great winter playground, dotted with productive desert estates and encircled by the wild, mountainous desolation of the Borego desert [state] park. An authentic Spanish flavor of architecture and development will match the landscape, according to his plan, and the settlers will be specialists in agriculture and in living the fullness of desert life."
But the bottom of the Depression was no time to start a new, isolated, desert development and Burks soon became discouraged. In 1937 he sold his own "Spanish" style adobe in Borego to Noel and Ruth Crickmer. They added some cabins, and in 1939 opened The Desert Lodge, Borego's first hotel. Today, it is known as La Casa del Zorro.
Borego's other big booster was Harry Woods (1874-1964), a real estate agent who first visited the valley in 1925. "If it hadn't been for him I don't think the valley would have progressed at all," says Lelah Porter. He encouraged a number of new homesteaders and developers to come into the valley, including Dana Burks, A.A. Burnand, G.M. Jones, and the Fearneys.
Burks was still interested in Borego Valley affairs as late as 1939. By 1946 the Crickmers had sold The Desert Lodge to the Burnand interests and were running a guest ranch in Tub Canyon. [See the Borrego Sun, 31 July, 14 & 28 August, 1971]. Their original hotel was acquired by the Copley family in 1960, and given its present name. The Copleys are best-known as the publishers of the San Diego Union-Tribune, but have also owned the bi-monthly Borrego Sun (founded in 1949) since 1954.
~ source: https://sandiegohistory.org/journal/1997/january/borrego/
Dana Burks was a Palm Springs and Los Angeles real estate developer who saw the potential of developing Borrego Valley. He purchased thousands of acres of land after the Great Depression. The slow economic recovery following the Depression made him lose interest in the area. His heirs still owned 1600 acres in 1974 when they decided to donate it to the state. [Burks came to valley in 1932, said to have purchased 13,500 ac, presumably all railroad lands, built adobe home in Sec 23, T11S R6E, 1933, which became the core of the Desert Lodge; bought Beaty's Coyote Canyon ranch 1933, raised tomatoes, grapes, and even some cotton. Still interested in valley affairs 1937; sold adobe to N Crickmer ca 1937. See Lindsay (2001) p 91.]
________________________
The Borego School District was finally officially organized in 1931, and a Board of Trustees was elected. Around 1934 the school was moved to the Dana Burks ranch, where La Casa del Zorro resort is today. Burks also donated the land for a permanent school site. "They wanted it more centrally located," Lelah Porter explains, "so Dana Burks offered this land where the grammar school is now, and he gave us supposedly five acres, but he forgot the last quarter [section in the legal description]—I don't know whether intentionally or unintentionally—so we got 20 acres instead of five acres. Well, at that time land was so cheap that he didn't care."
During the construction of Highway 78, the Borrego Valley caught the eye of Dana Burks, a Los Angeles and Palm Springs real estate developer. In 1932 he and a group of investors acquired 13,500 acres in and around the valley— much of it raw, desert land. Burks hoped to entice both agriculture and resort living to the valley. [San Diego Union, 19 March 1933. Burks and his associates had already planted thirty acres of grape vines, and were discussing tomatoes, squash, peas, cucumbers, and sweet potatoes.] In 1933, developer Dana Burks bought the Alfred Armstrong Beaty Ranch and renamed it the Rancho de Anza. In 1934 he sold out to Albert Ahern and Donald Armstrong, who also acquired 1,000 more acres in the mouth of the canyon. Tomatoes and alfalfa remaiend the major crop. Ahern built a home on the ranch in 1937, which still stands.
Agriculturally, he was relying on Borego's desert climate, which would allow grapes, tomatoes, and other crops to be harvested early, and reach the markets ahead of other growers' crops. "We are not interested in growing anything that will not beat the market," Burks told the San Diego Union. "We feel that here we can ripen our products at any time we desire, selecting our own market and assuring it." Burks' vision of the valley as a center of resort living sounds like some of the later publicity for Borrego Springs:
"Burks [en]visions the valley as a great winter playground, dotted with productive desert estates and encircled by the wild, mountainous desolation of the Borego desert [state] park. An authentic Spanish flavor of architecture and development will match the landscape, according to his plan, and the settlers will be specialists in agriculture and in living the fullness of desert life."
But the bottom of the Depression was no time to start a new, isolated, desert development and Burks soon became discouraged. In 1937 he sold his own "Spanish" style adobe in Borego to Noel and Ruth Crickmer. They added some cabins, and in 1939 opened The Desert Lodge, Borego's first hotel. Today, it is known as La Casa del Zorro.
Borego's other big booster was Harry Woods (1874-1964), a real estate agent who first visited the valley in 1925. "If it hadn't been for him I don't think the valley would have progressed at all," says Lelah Porter. He encouraged a number of new homesteaders and developers to come into the valley, including Dana Burks, A.A. Burnand, G.M. Jones, and the Fearneys.
Burks was still interested in Borego Valley affairs as late as 1939. By 1946 the Crickmers had sold The Desert Lodge to the Burnand interests and were running a guest ranch in Tub Canyon. [See the Borrego Sun, 31 July, 14 & 28 August, 1971]. Their original hotel was acquired by the Copley family in 1960, and given its present name. The Copleys are best-known as the publishers of the San Diego Union-Tribune, but have also owned the bi-monthly Borrego Sun (founded in 1949) since 1954.
~ source: https://sandiegohistory.org/journal/1997/january/borrego/
________________________
The Borego School District was finally officially organized in 1931, and a Board of Trustees was elected. Around 1934 the school was moved to the Dana Burks ranch, where La Casa del Zorro resort is today. Burks also donated the land for a permanent school site. "They wanted it more centrally located," Lelah Porter explains, "so Dana Burks offered this land where the grammar school is now, and he gave us supposedly five acres, but he forgot the last quarter [section in the legal description]—I don't know whether intentionally or unintentionally—so we got 20 acres instead of five acres. Well, at that time land was so cheap that he didn't care."
During the construction of Highway 78, the Borrego Valley caught the eye of Dana Burks, a Los Angeles and Palm Springs real estate developer. In 1932 he and a group of investors acquired 13,500 acres in and around the valley— much of it raw, desert land. Burks hoped to entice both agriculture and resort living to the valley. [San Diego Union, 19 March 1933. Burks and his associates had already planted thirty acres of grape vines, and were discussing tomatoes, squash, peas, cucumbers, and sweet potatoes.] In 1933, developer Dana Burks bought the Alfred Armstrong Beaty Ranch and renamed it the Rancho de Anza. In 1934 he sold out to Albert Ahern and Donald Armstrong, who also acquired 1,000 more acres in the mouth of the canyon. Tomatoes and alfalfa remaiend the major crop. Ahern built a home on the ranch in 1937, which still stands.
Agriculturally, he was relying on Borego's desert climate, which would allow grapes, tomatoes, and other crops to be harvested early, and reach the markets ahead of other growers' crops. "We are not interested in growing anything that will not beat the market," Burks told the San Diego Union. "We feel that here we can ripen our products at any time we desire, selecting our own market and assuring it." Burks' vision of the valley as a center of resort living sounds like some of the later publicity for Borrego Springs:
"Burks [en]visions the valley as a great winter playground, dotted with productive desert estates and encircled by the wild, mountainous desolation of the Borego desert [state] park. An authentic Spanish flavor of architecture and development will match the landscape, according to his plan, and the settlers will be specialists in agriculture and in living the fullness of desert life."
But the bottom of the Depression was no time to start a new, isolated, desert development and Burks soon became discouraged. In 1937 he sold his own "Spanish" style adobe in Borego to Noel and Ruth Crickmer. They added some cabins, and in 1939 opened The Desert Lodge, Borego's first hotel. Today, it is known as La Casa del Zorro.
Borego's other big booster was Harry Woods (1874-1964), a real estate agent who first visited the valley in 1925. "If it hadn't been for him I don't think the valley would have progressed at all," says Lelah Porter. He encouraged a number of new homesteaders and developers to come into the valley, including Dana Burks, A.A. Burnand, G.M. Jones, and the Fearneys.
Burks was still interested in Borego Valley affairs as late as 1939. By 1946 the Crickmers had sold The Desert Lodge to the Burnand interests and were running a guest ranch in Tub Canyon. [See the Borrego Sun, 31 July, 14 & 28 August, 1971]. Their original hotel was acquired by the Copley family in 1960, and given its present name. The Copleys are best-known as the publishers of the San Diego Union-Tribune, but have also owned the bi-monthly Borrego Sun (founded in 1949) since 1954.
~ source: https://sandiegohistory.org/journal/1997/january/borrego/
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