From 1883 to 1889, wagons hauled borax along this road 165 miles from Death Valley to Mohave. The route was laid out by J.W.S. Perry, and he and a muleskinner named Ed Stiles designed the wagons to carry the heavy loads to the rail depot. The wagon beds were 16 feet long, four feet wide, and six feet deep, with front wheels five feet high and rear wheels seven feet high. When loaded, each wagon weighed 31,800 pounds. Two such wagons and a water tank weighing 9,600 pounds were pulled by a team of 18 mules and two large draft horses. They traveled 15 to 18 miles a day across the mountains and desert, and the round trip took 20 days. Not one animal lost its life on the trail, and no wagons broke down while hauling over 20 million pounds of borax. The courage, strength, ingenuity, and stamina required for such work made these men and animals true heroes of America's past.