After almost a decade of restoration work, one of Death Valley’s most unusual landmarks is finally preparing to welcome visitors again. Scotty’s Castle, a Spanish-style desert mansion built in the 1920s at the northern end of the national park, will reopen this spring and offer limited ranger-guided tours.
The castle’s history reads like pure American folklore, involving conmen, millionaires, desert myths and unlikely friendships. Until it was forced to close indefinitely due to catastrophic flooding in October 2015, the property was a popular attraction.
What was supposed to be a short restoration was, however, complicated by subsequent setbacks, including fires, another flood in 2021, Hurricane Hilary in 2023, and record heat in 2024.
In its heyday, the castle was “the stage for a massive practical joke on all of America”, says Abby Wines, acting deputy superintendent of Death Valley National Park.
The story begins in 1905, when Walter E. Scott, a former performer in Buffalo Bill’s Wild West Show, claimed to have struck gold in this inhospitable basin.
“Death Valley Scotty” based his scheme on investors” reluctance to visit the hottest, driest national park, and the lowest point in North America. What he did not anticipate was that one of his principal investors, Albert Mussey Johnson – who had made his fortune in mining and insurance investments – was not adventure averse.
Ignoring Scotty’s staged “bandit ambushes”, Johnson reached the site… only to realise he had been scammed. Yet instead of going bonkers, he became fascinated by the colourful con man and fell in love with the landscape. Finding the dry air beneficial to his health, he and his wife Bessie began building a winter retreat.
Drawing inspiration from the Spanish Colonial Revival style, the property’s architecture echoes the sandstone buildings and red-tiled roofs of Bessie’s alma mater, Stanford University. Its stucco walls and elaborate woodwork made it stand out against the desert surroundings. Its clock tower overlooks the valley, and inside, guests can enjoy entertainment beneath arched ceilings in a music room which houses a theatre pipe organ and stained-glass details.
The decade-long construction project was halted by the 1929 crash, as evidenced by the unfinished pool on the grounds. This marked the beginning of the property’s use as a tourist destination, as Scott suggested that the Johnsons let rooms in their mansion to generate a new source of income. Perpetuating the “gold mine” myth, Scotty reportedly instructed staff to rattle iron and bang pots in the tunnels below to convince guests that a lucrative mine was operating beneath their feet.
Following the deaths of the Johnsons, the property was transferred to the Gospel Foundation. In 1970, it became part of the National Park Service, which began offering guided tours. Scott lived there as a “permanent guest” until his death in 1954, and he is buried on a nearby hill overlooking “his castle”.
The castle ultimately lived up to its legend, becoming the “gold mine” that Scotty had promised. Around 100,000 people visited it each year, welcomed by guides in period costume into rooms where much of the original furniture remained intact.
Today, $35 reopening tours are already selling out. For those unable to visit in person, the Death Valley Conservancy offers an online 3D virtual reality tour.
@ms_kneenah Scottie's Castle, located in Death Valley National Park, is a Spanish-style mansion built in the 1920s. Despite its name, it wasn’t actually owned by Walter "Death Valley Scotty" Scott, a con man and showman who claimed to have a secret gold mine in the area. The real owner was Albert Mussey Johnson, a wealthy Chicago businessman who befriended Scott and built the estate as a vacation home. The castle, officially called Death Valley Ranch, was designed with luxurious features, including a solar-powered generator and a self-sustaining water system. However, construction stopped during the Great Depression, and after Johnson’s death in 1948, the National Park Service took ownership. Today, Scottie’s Castle remains a popular historical site, though it has been closed for repairs since severe flooding in 2015. At the moment, only guided tours are allowed on the grounds. You must sign up through the NPS. The castle is set to reopen sometime in the near future. #ScottysCastle #DeathValley #DeathValleyNationalPark #HistoricLandmark #DesertAdventure #MojaveDesert #CaliforniaHistory #GhostTownVibes #NationalParks #RoadTripUSA #HiddenGem #DesertOasis #TravelBackInTime #ExploreCalifornia #DesertViews ♬ Vissel – José González
As Wines notes, the attraction lies in the “human side”, the unlikely friendship that transformed a “castle of lies” into a desert legend. Ultimately, as a great man once said, it’s the story that matters, not whether it’s entirely true.
