About Joshua Tree, California
Joshua Tree is nestled in a segment of the Southeastern California’s Mojave Desert, thirty-five miles from
Palm Springs, California off the I-10 freeway on State Route 62. Joshua Tree is the gateway community to the West Entrance
of Joshua Tree National Park, an 800,000 acre wilderness
preserve, with groves of Joshua Trees, incredible multi-colored, gigantic boulders and some the
best rock climbing in the world!
The community of Joshua Tree encompasses 96 square miles and is adorned with spectacular desert and geological scenery in addition to the
ancient Joshua tree itself. It is believed that Mormon pioneers, traveling through the area, named this tree after
the biblical figure Joshua, because its uplifted limbs reminded them of him praying and waving to the heavens.
Later, an early western explorer, John Fremont called the Joshua tree, "The most repulsive tree in the vegetable
kingdom." This tree is unlike any other, and it does create atypical responses. The Joshua tree does not have
growth rings like a normal tree, so determining its age can be difficult. But, most biologists have estimated the age
range of these trees to be somewhere around 500 to 900 years old. This spectacular tree, protected by law, is considered a prominent
icon of the area.
History
The earliest known history on the Joshua Tree community is when homesteaders
first filed on a site in the fall of 1911. Within a few short years, the Joshua Tree Townsite Company
constructed its first offices along the Twentynine Palms Road, close to the West Park Entrance. Then in 1938,
Congress passed the “Baby Homestead Act,” allowing five-acre, non-agricultural homestead sites.
Developers had hoped this act would bring new settlers to the area but World War II intervened. Instead, the war
triggered gas rationing, restrictions on building supplies, and prevented growth into the outlying desert areas.
By 1941, Joshua Tree’s total population reached forty-nine people with twenty-two occupied buildings.
Towards the end of the conflict, cabins, homes, and commercial buildings sprouted up throughout the desert. In
1944, the Joshua Journal reported total population had
increased to 227 inhabitants.  A short time later, the
first business block was built on the northwest corner of Park Blvd. with five stores connected under one roof.
Subsequently, Joshua Tree opened its first Post Office. Grace Aldridge, postmaster, serviced her 300 postal clients
out of the Little Joshua Tree Market. By 1947, there were 144 established buildings, forty-six new buildings
under construction, and the population had expanded to 550 people. During this era, many of the early
homesteaders built turkey ranches in the Sunfair vicinity with a turkey population well over 47,600; and there were
plans to name the area Turkey Town, USA.  But for some
unknown reason, these farms faded away. Wild turkeys are still spotted occasionally by local residents.
Subsequently, new businesses, churches, schools, a fire station, live theatre, and a community center were established in the region.
The
Desert Tortoise, now a protected species, used to be the subject of "Turtle Races" in downtown Joshua
Tree. Myrtle the Turtle, a large desert tortoise sculpture, has been a landmark in downtown
Joshua Tree for many years. Learn
more about Myrtle here.
Joshua Tree Today
Today, Joshua Tree,
with an estimated population of approximately 9,000, is unincorporated
and governed by the San Bernardino County Board of Supervisors. The Municipal Advisory Council (MAC),
a small group of residents and business people appointed by the Supervisor's office, meets regularly to address local
issues and provide feedback from public meetings to the County.
Joshua Tree remains a favorite tourist destination for over a million people per
year, and a weekend getaway for the Los Angeles, San Diego, Palm Springs and Las Vegas metro areas.
The weather is ten degrees cooler than the lower desert communities in summer and twenty degrees
warmer than the mountain communities in the winter; creating near-perfect, year-round living with an average altitude of
2,700-3000 feet. Most rainfall occurs in July, August, and January - averaging four to six inches in annual precipitation. The climate is pleasantly moderate,
discernibly four-seasoned, with smog-free air. The dawn skies and the evening sunsets are a photographer’s delight.
The days are typically sunny and the star-studded night skies are nothing less than magnificent!
Annual celebrations and events are widely attended and enjoyed throughout southern California. They include the
Turtle Days Street Fair in May and the
Wild West Coyote Fest
in October. Other great local events include the Joshua Tree
Music Festival, Copper Mountain College’s "Earthworks Now,"
The Gram Parsons Festival,
Open Studio Art Tours and The Sportsman's Club's Gem & Mineral Show. Please contact the
Chamber or check out our Calendar of Events for dates and times.
Shops and Services
Several small shopping centers supply Joshua Tree residents
and visitors with fine art and local crafts in small galleries and shops, with plenty of souvenirs to be found at
local gift shops and in the Joshua Tree National Park Visitor's Center. Joshua Tree hosts beauty
salons, rock climbing shops, health food stores, gourmet foods, cafes and restaurants, a saloon,
physicians, dentists, a hobby shop, gas stations, a music store, auto repair shops, and a laundromat. The US Post
Office, The Hi-Desert Playhouse Cultural Center, MBTA (public bus service), San Bernardino County Court House, San
Bernardino County Sheriff’s Office, the California Highway Patrol, and the Hi-Desert Airport serve local inhabitants and guests.
Residents enjoy clean, pure water from local wells drawn from aquifers (below ground lakes) from the Joshua Basin
Water District. Other services to the community are Southern California Edison for electricity; Verizon for
telephone; and in limited areas, Southern California Gas. Satellite and cable are both available for television
viewing; plus there is a wide variety of Internet access portals (including dial-up, DSL, and satellite)
offered to World-Wide Web users. Hi-Desert Publishing is the local newspaper source (Hi-Desert Star and
The Desert Trail); and great local radio can be found at 92.1 (Alternative and Hip/Hop), 96.3 (Country), and 107.7 (community).
The town employs
The San Bernardino County Fire Department for major emergency services. Morongo Basin Ambulance Association
provides outstanding medical emergency services to the area. The Hi-Desert Memorial Health Care District is comprised of
179 licensed beds: The Hi-Desert Medical Center is a modern, 59-bed acute care hospital providing 51 medical, surgical,
and telemetry beds; a four-bed intensive care unit; a comprehensive birthing center; a 14-bed emergency
department; as well as radiology, laboratory and cardiopulmonary departments. The District also operates the
Continuing Care Center, a 120-bed skilled nursing facility on the campus of Hi-Desert Medical Center. Airway Outpatient
Center, a full-service outpatient surgery and diagnostic center, and The Behavioral Health Centre—providing partial
hospitalization services—are both located in Yucca Valley. Home Health & Hospice, and a variety of community outreach
services are also provided. The local American Red Cross is utilized for disaster services, first aid, and training.
Schools
There are two outstanding elementary schools located in Joshua Tree:
Friendly Hills Elementary and Joshua Tree Elementary. Within the local basin-wide area, there are 2 high schools,
two middle schools, continuation schools, and private schools - all available with bus service. For complete public
school information, please call the Morongo Basin Unified School District at 760-367-9191.
We
are privileged to include in our area, Copper Mountain
Community College - offering 2-year transferable,
associate degrees, in addition to A+, Microsoft, and Cisco
Certifications.
Community Center
The Joshua Tree Park
and Recreation Community Center on Sunburst Avenue in Joshua
Tree contains playgrounds, tennis
courts, handball courts, a skate park for skateboarders, and picnic facilities.
A water park has been
approved and will begin construction in 2006-2007. The center supports the “Joshua Tree Kids Club” – a safe,
supervised, educational, and recreational program for
children before and after school. There is a senior
nutrition center available and a variety of ongoing community classes
for all age groups.
In addition, the
Joshua Tree area has multiple community associations, clubs,
and organizations covering a wide range of activities for
all interest groups. Downtown Joshua Tree incorporates
SBC’s Joshua Tree Public Library. The library carries a
large array of books and periodicals, in addition to
providing free Internet access to the public.
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