Letter to the Editor,
PahrumpValleyTimes,11/24/06

Tecopa boycott

Gone is the laughter and happy faces once seen in this small town called Tecopa. This small hot spring town appears to be in a economic downfall.

Driving through this place last week, it appeared to be a ghost town of its former self. Chief Tecopa American Indian and generous heroic figure and founder of this once lively place willed the county hot springs to the public with a stipulation that it would be free of charge and be open always. This treaty was also recognized by the president of united states, so they say. This is not the case today.

The treaty was broken and a company called CLM (California Land Management) has taking over this once hot spring gathering place of older disabled people and not so old visitors who made the trek to this place, sometimes from 500 miles plus – each winter season. They are a commercial business with fees they now charge and the place appears to have changed forever. The locals and not-so-locals are flaming mad and are boycotting the whole town as it looks to me and many others. There are many Web sites supporting a boycott and "the people have spoken" by not going to Tecopa anymore.

Driving through the town last week, we were eyed by the Tecopa guards as we stopped to have a look at the now fenced-off hot spring building and guard shack and almost empty parking lot, which used to be full before the takeover of this once happy hot spring.

On closer look we learned also that the waters are highly bromated and much cooler than before. The manager of this place seemed to be edgy with us and impatient to get our fee. We were in no hurry to give this guy any fee because doing so would be a part of breaking a Treaty Chief Tecopa had once had with the state. Besides, all the people we once knew were gone, and looking at this guard shack and fenced off place appeared to me in my opinion looked like a prison camp rather then a place of healing.

The CLM campgrounds had around five RV campers from what we could see. This time of the season would have no less than 70 to 100 campers or more throughout the town of Tecopa. It was, to say the least, sad, as we were. The three private commercial hot springs were almost empty also. Yes, the town is in a downhill spiral economically. I mean, anyone could see that. I wondered then how much this would affect Pahrump economically as well as Shosone. After stopping and hearing some stories of a local resident we ran into on the way out of town, we heard that CLM patrols the town to see where RV campers are camping. He says the manager of CLM has said he dislikes a lot of what he sees in town and will change it. What? I asked. The wild bath out in BLM land mysteriously closed and was destroyed soon after this guy's arrival and he is now patrolling the town after hours, we heard.

Yes, in my opinion, this place is now like a controlled prison camp rather than a place of healing. We have been visiting Tecopa now for over 20 years and will go no more. We support the boycott of this place and will never return to this place we once loved. Tecopa is a ghost town now to us and will be thought of as when we think of this place. There is no more disabled persons' pool anymore, as we hear this room is being charged 20 bucks for a party pool.

Gone is the laughter and happy faces that we once knew, and gone are us who will return no longer as long as CLM is in charge. The other private campgrounds have little to offer us as they are too expensive for us and we hear in CLM's back pocket. Strange, their prices went up after CLM took over. We support all the people who boycott Tecopa. We also pray that Chief Tecopa will somehow come to this little town's rescue as he did once before.

BOB KELLEY AND FRIENDS

Re: Fwd: PVTimes, Letter to the Editor,11/24/06
To: "morgana sage"
Thank you for sending this letter to me. every time i hear things like this it saddens my heart. I drive thru Tecopa 3 to 4 times a day and have noticed the difference in the type of people that come to this little town. Boy do I miss the old ways!
I have noticed the way the water has made my skin itch the last time I visited the hot springs back when they first where OVER TAKEN! The woman that came to TAKE my money had explained to me how they put something called bromate in the water to keep it clean(what does this do to the healing minerals in the water?).
Dawn- the school bus driver

Local history contributed by Leanne Conan,
Titular Tecopan since the last half of the 20th Century

The man they call Chief?? Well he was not a chief. In fact, the real chief sent him to Tecopa to get rid of him, from the Mitchel Caverns just off I-40. That’s the headquarters of 'The Scattered Tribes'. In the early 20's, the medicine woman here, Lillian Weed, sent a message on her air waves to her people to send some help to save the hot baths for the people. The Chief had been pondering how to get rid of this little drunk and Lillian's plea gave the Chief his answer. The tribe had a naming ceremony and changed his name to Cap Tecopa, put him on the train for Tecopa with the mission to save the baths for the people. When he arrived here he went to the bar and being very funny, entertained the bar. One of the owners of the rail road (a Dr.) took a liking to this little Indian. When he learned why he had come to Tecopa, he liked the idea and had his company do just that…turn the baths over to the people. The railroad owned the land that the baths are on. I know that the Paiutes were here first but they never tried to get anything back from the whites, they just minded their manners and became good white men (like George Ross). I have talked to Tecopa's grand daughters. They live in Pahrump and even though they all swore that they had papers there was never anything in writing. I went to see them (the sisters) before they stole our baths from us. All they had was a bluff. They told me they never expected any one to call them on their bluff. The Dr. gave his handshake to seal the deal with his friend Cap Tecopa. Tecopa lived to be 106. He traveled to L.A. once and promptly got himself arrested for being drunk and spent a couple of nights in jail. When he returned to Tecopa he said that L.A. had real nice accommodations, he was sorry to have to leave, the food was good he said. This is closer to the truth then some of the stories you may have heard making the rounds here.