Editing Tecopa, California (section)

==History of the Community==

===Original Town===

In 1875 two brothers William D. and Robert D. Brown, had discovered lead and silver ore at what would become the Resting Springs Mining District and began promoting it. They established a townsite, calling it Brownsville, {{convert|5|mi|km|0}} southeast of Resting Springs near the head of Willow Creek.<ref name=CGN>{{California's Geographic Names|1207}}</ref>  [[Kasson, California]] was nearby. A camp was established at the site as mines were developed at [[Noonday Camp, California|Noonday Mine]] in the late 1870s.<ref name=CGN /> Jonas Osborne bought out the Browns, and renamed the townsite after [[Northern Paiute|Paiute]] leader [[Chief Tecopa]].<ref name=CGN /> The camp grew into a town; in 1877 a post office began operating at there.<ref name=CGN /><ref>Myrick, David F.  ''Railroads of Nevada and Eastern California, Volume II, The Southern Roads,'' p. 593, University of Nevada Press, Reno, Nevada, 1993.  {{ISBN|0-87417-194-6}}</ref>

In 1878, it was determined that the townsite was 300 yards within  Inyo county. Settling a dispute with San Bernardino County of who controlled the township. Soon thereafter, the town went into decline, with most of the miners moving to Resting Springs in July 1879. Inyo County Sheriff William Welch considered Tecopa a costly mistake because, "it costs five cents a pound freight from San Bernardino here."<ref>{{cite web | url=https://www.vredenburgh.org/mining_history/pages/resting_springs.htm | title=Early History of Resting Springs, Inyo County, California }}</ref>  The original townsite was occasionally occupied but never really revived and in 2006 the Amargosa Conservancy acquired it for preservation purposes <ref>{{cite web | url=https://pvtimes.com/news/fundraiser-set-for-amargosa-trailhead-project/ | title=Fundraiser set for Amargosa trailhead project | date=13 November 2013 }}</ref>

The townsite is currently located in the vicinity of "The Triangle", a small piece of land surrounded by the arms of three "Y's" at the intersection of two roads.  It was reestablished in 1907 when the [[Tonopah and Tidewater Railroad]] reached the site, which was the closest point from the railroad to the mines.<ref>Myrick, David F.  ''Railroads of Nevada and Eastern California, Volume II, The Southern Roads,'' p. 593, University of Nevada Press, Reno, Nevada, 1993.  {{ISBN|0-87417-194-6}}</ref> A post office opened at the new site in 1907, was closed in 1931, and reopened in 1932.<ref name=CGN />  A church, some homes and seasonal eating establishments are also located by the Triangle.

===Hot Springs===

The road heading north of the Triangle leads to the Hot Springs zone of the community where the State of California made indemnity selections in 1927. The State subsequently sold parcels to private citizens.  In the early 1960s John Gregory Dunne documented that several low-income retirees were squatting in trailers within the zone.

The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) granted a 40 acre "Recreational and Public Purposes" (R&PP) lease to Inyo County for County run facilities. The Hot Springs area is currently where the Community Center, Fire Station, Library, several tourist facilities and some homes are located.

===Tecopa Heights===

The Triangle is the west endpoint of the Old Spanish Trail (OST) Heading east, the OST Road passes Tecopa-Francis Elementary School<ref>{{cite web |title=Tecopa-Francis Elementary - School Directory Details (CA Dept of Education) |url=https://www.cde.ca.gov/schooldirectory/details?cdscode=14632716008759 |website=www.cde.ca.gov |access-date=18 November 2023}}</ref> (now closed) to the intersection with the Furnace Creek Road. Southwest of the intersection is most populous part of the community, originally known as "Jackrabbit Flat." In the 1950', the General Land Office, then the BLM began offering parcels under the authority of the [[Homestead Acts#Small Tracts Act|''Small Tract Act of 1938'']] as recreational properties to become known as "Jackrabbit Homesteads.<ref>{{cite web | url=https://www.desertsun.com/story/life/2021/03/28/history-jackrabbit-homesteading-california-desert/7030816002/ | title=History: Jackrabbit homesteading gets its start in the midcentury }}</ref>   The first round of five acre parcels were proofed and patented prior to 1959. After a change in policy second round of a few more parcels were offered at fair market value by BLM.  The lands offered under the first two rounds remain largely undeveloped. The third round of 2.5 acre parcels were offered in 1964 to provide inexpensive land for housing retirees that were squatting at the Hot Springs. Seven parcels were sold, six of which were purchased by the Thilenius and Parrish families who subdivided them and developed water systems. Those parcels now constitute the densist population of what is now known as "Tecopa Heights," the area offered under the Small Tracts Act. The cemetery is on the west side of Tecopa Heights.

Since Tecopa lacks proper water infrastructure that is capable of properly filtering ground water to state standards, the Southern Inyo County Fire Protection District in 2014 received a grant in order to install a water kiosk for the community, The community water kiosk was opened in 2017 east of Tecopa Heights on an R&PP lease granted by the BLM.<ref>{{Cite web | url=https://pvtimes.com/news/a-warning-in-tecopa-dont-drink-the-water/ | title=A warning in Tecopa: Don't drink the water|website=Pvtimes.com | date=29 June 2016 }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web | url=https://pvtimes.com/news/vending-machine-brings-clean-water-to-tiny-california-town/ | title=Vending machine brings clean water to tiny California town |website=Pvtimes.com| date=13 September 2017 }}</ref>