Charles Brown
Charles “Charlie” Brown came to the Death Valley region during the Greenwater copper boom in the early 1900s. While thousands poured into Greenwater, most left when the copper craze collapsed. Brown was one of the few who stayed. He served as sheriff of Greenwater and gained a reputation as a steady hand in a wild district. Unlike so many who drifted off when the boom ended, he chose to build a life in the desert.
The Brown HomeIn 1910, Brown married Stella Fairbanks, daughter of Ralph “Dad” Fairbanks, another man who had seen promise in the desert when others gave up. By marrying into the Fairbanks family, Brown became deeply tied to Shoshone, a small but strategic settlement along the route into Death Valley. By 1920, Charles and Stella had made Shoshone their home.
Brown threw himself into the work of shaping Shoshone into a real community. Alongside Dad Fairbanks, he built businesses that anchored the town. They opened the Old Timers Inn in 1926, one of the first motels in the region, providing a stopover for travelers heading toward Death Valley. Brown also oversaw the building of a general store on the site of Fairbanks’ earlier Mesquite Room. In 1929, he built the Brown House, located near the store, which became his family residence until his death in 1963.
Beyond business, Charles Brown played a civic role. He pushed for better transportation, working to replace rough wagon tracks with real roads. He supported the construction of the Eichbaum toll road from Lone Pine to Stovepipe Wells, a project that opened Death Valley to greater travel and tourism. His influence extended into politics as well; he later served as a State Senator, representing the interests of his desert district.
Brown was also involved in the mining world long after Greenwater’s bust. He held interests in mines like the Gunsight and the Noonday, continuing to see opportunity in places where others saw only abandoned claims.
Through all of this, Charles Brown became a fixture of Shoshone and Death Valley. He was remembered not only as a sheriff and senator, but also as a town-builder who believed in the desert’s future. His partnership with Dad Fairbanks laid the foundation for Shoshone as the “Gateway to Death Valley,” a legacy that carried on through his family and community ties long after his passing.
Timeline
1900s (early) Charles Brown arrives in the Death Valley region during the Greenwater copper boom. He serves as sheriff of Greenwater, a rough mining town.1907–1908 As Greenwater collapses, most miners and speculators leave, but Brown chooses to remain in the region.
1910 Brown marries Stella Fairbanks, daughter of Ralph “Dad” Fairbanks, making him part of a pioneering desert family with growing ties to Shoshone.
1920 Charles and Stella Brown settle in Shoshone, California, alongside the Fairbanks family.
1926 Brown and Dad Fairbanks build the Old Timers Inn, one of the first motels in the Death Valley area, serving travelers and tourists.
1929 Charles Brown builds the Brown House in Shoshone, near the general store he helped establish on the site of Dad Fairbanks’ old Mesquite Room.
1920s–1930s Brown is active in promoting improved transportation through Death Valley. He supports road development, including the Eichbaum toll road from Lone Pine to Stovepipe Wells, which helps open Death Valley to wider travel.
1930s–1940s Brown remains involved in mining, with interests in the Gunsight and Noonday mines, continuing his ties to the desert’s mineral economy.
Later years Charles Brown enters politics, serving as a State Senator, representing his district and strengthening the voice of desert communities in state affairs.
1963 Charles Brown dies in Shoshone, where he had lived for decades, leaving behind a legacy as sheriff, senator, and builder of a desert town.
Charles & Stella Brown
Photo courtesy S. Sorrells, Shoshone, Ca.