General Patton Memorial Museum at
Chiriaco Summit – How it all Began.
Story and photos by Mike Russell
Famous sculpture, Austin Deuel designed and
sculpted the statue of General Patton that stands
12 feet high in front of the General Patton
Memorial Museum, Chiriaco Summit, CA.
How did Chiriaco Summit, Calif. get its start? Humm, that’s a long story, but here goes. Joe Chiriaco (sheer-ache-oh) came out to see Alabama play Stanford in the Rose Bowl in 1925. He enjoyed California so much he never returned home. Instead he found employment with the Los Angeles Bureau of Water and Power as a surveyor. His work brought him to an area in the desert called Shaver Summit. After several years he gave up his job with the Bureau and settled down at Shaver Summit, which he later purchased from J.E. Cram of Mentone, Calif.
Altar built at museum by Gina Wagner and others.
In the early 1900’s there was only a gravel road running east out of Box Canyon that passed by Shaver Summit, toward Blythe. Rumor had it that a paved road was to be built that would take motorists from Indio to Phoenix. When he heard this news, Joe began constructing buildings. On August 15, 1933 he opened his gas station and general store. He had one dollar left in his cigar box till, and that dollar remains at the Summit today. On that day the newly paved highway U.S. 60 also opened, which passed directly in front of Shaver Summit.
Actual relics of Camp Young near Chiriaco Summit.
Joe had earlier met a beautiful blonde Norwegian nurse named Ruth Bergseid, who worked at Coachella Valley Hospital. They were married on June 25, 1934. After roughing it for years at the store, the family grew, and despite their hardships, life was good. Little running water, gas lights, no air conditioning, but lots of 18-hour days were their lives for many years. Things improved somewhat after the Metropolitan Water District constructed the aqueduct from the Colorado River to the Los Angeles basin.
And later the Imperial Irrigation District brought electric power to the area in 2000.
With the advent of World War II and the U.S. Government sending General George S. Patton to establish the Desert Training Center in 1942, the desert came alive. The California-Arizona Maneuver Area (DTC-CAMA) was its official name. Today it is managed by the Bureau of Land Management. Many camp sites still remain. Some are easily visible, while others are not.
Chiriaco Summit was next to Camp Young, where thousands of soldiers were trained to fight in the harsh desert climate. They were then shipped to North Africa to fight the German General Erwin Rommel, with his powerful Panzer Division of fighting tanks.
Sherman Tank at Gen Patton Museum
General Patton came over to have a beer with Joe Chiriaco at Joe’s general store. They became friends. When the war ended in 1945, Joe and Ruth established a rugged memorial to General Patton at Chiriaco Summit. That memorial has grown today into a modern museum where thousands of visitors come to learn about the history of General Patton and his hard-fighting soldiers. Today Joe and Ruth’s daughter, Margit Chiriaco Rusche continues to guide the family business, as have other family members in the past. And as they will continue to do well into the future. The very popular café still stands, although now updated and modernized. The gas station and Foster’s Freeze are now in place of the other buildings. The airport is open. And best of all, the General Patton Museum is open daily with a great array of memorabilia from WWII and the great tradition of General George S. Patton.
Troops under the command of General Patton
at Desert Training Center near Chiriaco Summit, Calif.
Photo courtesy of General Patton Museum.
GENERAL PATTON MEMORIAL MUSEUM
CHIRIACO SUMMIT, CA
760-227-3483
www.desertusa.com/mag99/feb/stories/paton.html