Tower

The Desert View Tower was originally built from 1922-1928 by Bert Vaughn a realtor developer in Jacumba who had the tower built to serve as a "monument to the pioneers". The tower has no internal frame work but is able to stay erect because of its 4-foot thick concrete walls and cylindrical shape. The center of the towers base was originally a hunting lodge and features a fireplace that extends the tower's total 70-feet and is faced with local quarts crystal found on site. Later, in 1927, the base level and stair way was added which allowed tourist to sit in the bottom of the tower and look out its windows to surrounding desert views. The additional stair case also allowed visitors to climb the tower's spiraling stair case to the observation deck on top. 

There are a total of 57 steps and 3 floors to reach the tower's observation deck and along the way are windows that look out to the desert. Each floor holds an eclectic arrangement of historical photographs and native american artifact. The view from the towers observation deck extends 100 miles so that the Anzo Borrego Desert, the Salton Sea, and the California-Arizona boarder can be seen. 

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Today the Desert View Tower's base room serves as a museum and gift shop. Ledgers from the 1950's preserve the many guests that signed in when they visited the tower and artifacts and historical photographs hang from the walls. Due to it's reach history and eclectic art The Desert View Tower continues to be a popular Roadside Attraction.

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