Chicago insurance magnate and gold mine investor Albert Johnson found Death Valley Scotty highly amusing. Johnson and his wife, Bessie, made frequent visits to the valley and became good friends with the desert con artist. The Johnsons liked their desert visits so much that, in the late '20s, they built an elaborate vacation home in what is now the northernmost part of Death Valley National Park. Scotty lived in the house and told acquaintances that the big Spanish-style mansion and its outbuildings belonged to him, hence the name. Now Scotty's Castle belongs to the National Park Service.
Rangers wearing period costumes conduct tours.
Other rangers stroll the grounds dressed in Roaring '20s garb, enriching the atmosphere even further. So, one could leave Death Valley believing it tells the story of how people out West conquered the elements, extracting minerals and vacation pleasures from a hostile environment. But they would be missing the natural wonder of it. Salt deposits and sand cover much of the valley floor. Most of the cliffs and canyons wear alluvial aprons, where infrequent but torrential rains have deposited rocks and soil.