Potash wars (California)

Stafford Wallace Austin and wife Mary Hunter Austin in 1910[1]
Wyatt Earp, part of the Potash wars
Searles Lake playa bounded by the Argus and Slate Mountains
Searles Lake
Trona, California, abuts northwest of the dry Searles Lake bed.
LocationTrona Rd at Center St., San Bernardino County, California
Coordinates35°45′28″N 117°22′38″W / 35.7577694444444°N 117.377358333333°W / 35.7577694444444; -117.377358333333
DesignatedAugust 16, 1962
Reference no.774
Potash wars (California) is located in California
Potash wars (California)
Location of Searles Lake in California
Dennis Searles in 1890 at Searles Lake
John W. Searles in 1873

The Potash wars were a series of events that took place from 1910 to 1915 in the Searles Valley near Searles Lake, a dry lake (also called Slate Range Lake and Borax Lake), near the current town of Trona in the San Bernardino County of California. The Potash wars gained national and international news at the time due to the involvement of famous lawman Wyatt Earp and the importance of the valley's supply of potash at the time. Potash is an important crop fertilizer and the Searles Valley was a major supplier in the 1910s.