Cottonwood Charcoal Kilns - Heavily weathered, adobe-brick, beehive-shaped ovens once buzzed with activity during the gold rush. The kilns were used to slowly transform locally available wood into charcoal. Logs were brought out of the Sierra, down Cottonwood Canyon by a flume. The charcoal made at the Cottonwood Charcoal Kilns was used to fuel the silver mine smelters in nearby towns. The charcoal was hauled to Steven's Wharf on Owens Lake, then loaded on the steamer "Bessie Brady" and ferried across the lake to Swansea. From there the charcoal was hauled by mule to Cerro Gordo and Darwin, where it fueled the mills, stamps, and smelters. These relic kilns remain as testament to this bygone era.