Located off HWY 190 in the Mojave Desert, in between the Sierra Nevada mountains and Death Valley, is where Lorenza (infant) and Larkin (4 years-old) McKellips were laid to rest. The McKellips family ran a stagecoach stop in the 1870’s when their two daughters caught a plague and passed away. Their distraught parents buried their children, closed their stagecoach stop and moved away. What a hard and unforgiving life that must have been back then, in the middle of the desert. In 1947 a miner re-discovered the grave site of the two girls and carved a new wooden cross. When HWY 190 was being built in the late 1950’s, locals petitioned the Division of Highways to protect the graves. Today, the maintaining of the cross and grave site is now a part of Cal Trans maintenance.
Please click the images below:
While heading to the 395 from Stovepipe Wells the white cross caught my eye and I pulled over and visited the grave. What a poignant moment my vigil was, I took a photograph, and every time I view the image my thoughts of distraught parents leaving their girls buried in the desert fill my mind.
It is assuring to know the full story from your web site – especially that the grave is maintained. Well done to all concerned.