Fieldwork in remote desert environments requires more than endurance. It depends on coordination, technical expertise, and a clear purpose. Through partnerships with the National Park Service and GBI support cultural resource work in places like Death Valley National Park, where crews help document and protect historic and precontact sites spread across vast and often inaccessible terrain.
During a recent site visit, GBI Cultural Resource Services (CRS) Program Coordinator Isabelle Sengupta and Program Manager Karen B. Supak followed GBI’s Abandoned Mines Archaeology crew tasked with surveying historic mining and other cultural resources in some of the park’s most remote areas. Isabelle reflects: “Site visits are invaluable for seeing the crew’s daily activities firsthand, which helps me better understand and communicate the roles we host. It’s also a great way to connect with project partners in person.” With a background in archaeology, she adds, “getting into the field was personally exciting, I’m a history nerd and seeing these locations at Death Valley and learning the stories was amazing.”
This project team is made up of Crew Lead Paige, and crew members Logan and Mitchell. Paige brings both field experience and an academic background in anthropology and bioarchaeology to the team. Originally from Pennsylvania, she previously led work for GBI at Mendocino National Forest, CA, and now guides the team through the logistical and methodological demands of desert fieldwork. Crew members Logan, from Wyoming, and Mitchell, from Oregon, make up the rest of the team. Both Logan and Mitchell hold degrees in anthropology and archaeology, applying their academic knowledge directly to fieldwork as they survey, document, and interpret cultural resources.
Their work blends GIS mapping created and processed by GIS Manager, Nick, with archaeological field methods, producing detailed records of sites that reflect over a century of mining exploration, industry, and abandonment in the Mojave Desert. In addition to evidence of mining and other historical activities, the team also frequently encounters and documents evidence of the precontact occupation and seasonal use of this area by the Timbisha Shoshone and other tribes who have lived in this region for thousands of years. Operating far from established roads or infrastructure, the crew relies on careful planning and precision to ensure each site is accurately documented.
Within the crew, each member plays a distinct role in that process. Nick, the GIS Data Manager, translates field observations into spatial data, creating maps that anchor sites and newly recorded waypoints within the larger landscape. Originally from Long Island, New York, he has spent the past two years working in the park and began with the Great Basin Institute after his federal position was discontinued.
Their work plays a vital role in how the National Park Service manages and preserves sites like Leadfield. By systematically surveying, recording, and updating spatial data, the crew helps create official records used for compliance, planning, and long-term preservation. This documentation ensures that even as physical structures deteriorate over time, the historical and cultural significance of a site is not lost.
Logan shares, “We record and survey the ruins of abandoned mining camps and infrastructure in Death Valley National Park. Mining sites often pose hazards to visitors, staff, and to the environment. Ultimately, our survey work will contribute to the Section 106 compliance that will allow structural and safety concerns at abandoned mining sites to be addressed with repairs, mitigations, and [where necessary] closures. Our work will make Death Valley a safer place.”
Logan shares, “We record and survey the ruins of abandoned mining camps and infrastructure in Death Valley National Park. Mining sites often pose hazards to visitors, staff, and to the environment. Ultimately, our survey work will contribute to the Section 106 compliance that will allow structural and safety concerns at abandoned mining sites to be addressed with repairs, mitigations, and [where necessary] closures. Our work will make Death Valley a safer place.” So far, the crew has surveyed several large mining sites. Logan highlights a key accomplishment: “We completed the compliance surveys for multiple historic gravel pits so that they can be reactivated to resume maintenance on the badly washboarded Saline Valley Road. This will improve the travel experience in the remote Saline Valley area of the Park and decrease the strain on vehicles that use the road.”
During the day spent with the GBI Abandoned Mines Archaeological Crew, GBI personnel spent the day driving through Titus Canyon, a route closely tied to the park’s mining history that is currently closed to the public. Along the way, they stopped at Leadfield—one of the most well-known ghost towns in the park, and a clear example of the boom-and-bust cycles that shaped the region.
According to the National Park Service, lead and copper claims in the area date back to 1905, but Leadfield’s rapid development didn’t begin until 1926 when promoter Charles C. Julian took control of the Western Lead Mines Company and heavily promoted the site. His efforts attracted a surge of investors and miners, and the town was quickly assembled during its brief period of growth (National Park Service, “Death Valley Ghost Towns”). Like many mining ventures in Death Valley, Leadfield’s success depended on both speculation and actual mineral production. When the mines failed to produce expected returns and financial backing collapsed, the town declined just as quickly as it had formed. It was abandoned within a short period, leaving behind scattered remains that still mark the canyon today (National Park Service, “Death Valley Ghost Towns”).
During the stops throughout Titus Canyon, the crew actively scanned the surrounding landscape for cultural material. In several locations, they identified scattered remnants of early 20th-century occupation, including rusted cans, structural debris, and fragmented materials likely associated with the Leadfield-era activity. These small but important finds help fill in gaps in the historical record, offering clues about daily life in an otherwise short-lived settlement.
In addition to historic mining-era materials, the team also observed precontact-era petroglyphs in areas of the surrounding landscape. These rock art panels, created by Native American peoples long before mining activity began, represent enduring cultural and spiritual connections to the land between tribes who both previously and presently occupy the Death Valley area. The presence of these petroglyphs underscores the depth of the region’s human history and highlights the importance of careful, non-invasive documentation to ensure these fragile cultural expressions are preserved and respected. As CRS Program Manager and archaeologist, Karen B. Supak emphasizes, “Petroglyph panels and other spiritual sites remind us of the sacred nature of the relationship that tribes who lived here long ago and those who live in the park now have with the Death Valley landscape. We can best respect this sacred relationship, these people, and these sites by not touching rock art panels and not disturbing any artifacts that may be found in association with them. In this way, we can help to steward these sacred places for the descendants of the tribes who left them and ensure their preservation for generations.”
Although Leadfield’s lifespan was brief, its story continues through this type of fieldwork and the resulting storytelling our national parks can relay. By capturing detailed GIS data and documenting surface materials that are incorporated within state and park site records and archaeological reports , the GBI Abandoned Mines Archaeology crew contributes to a growing, dynamic archive of the human footprint on the landscape: one of several GBI teams that support ongoing cultural preservation efforts across Death Valley National Park.
