Chuckawalla Bill
Encyclopedia
Chuckawalla Bill was a Spanish-American War
veteran, a sapper
in the British army during WW I, a prospector
, a cook, and vagabond. His birth name was William Anthony Simon, although he most frequently used the name Anthony W. Simmons. Later in life, he settled down in Palo Verde, CA. He is buried in the Los Angeles National Cemetery, Los Angeles, CA
In 1968, Colin Fletcher
came across a cave near the Colorado River (about 5 miles southeast of Boulder City, Nevada
) in which Bill had been living in and abandoned around 1916. The Man from the Cave
was a 1981 book written by Fletcher, which detailed how, after finding a trunk and belongings abandoned by someone, Fletcher spent years putting together the life story of "Trunkman."
Colin Fletcher's quote about Chuckawalla Bill:
"We both valued solitude and silence and square, smoothed-off granite boulders."
Spanish-American War
The Spanish–American War was a conflict in 1898 between Spain and the United States, effectively the result of American intervention in the ongoing Cuban War of Independence...
veteran, a sapper
Sapper
A sapper, pioneer or combat engineer is a combatant soldier who performs a wide variety of combat engineering duties, typically including, but not limited to, bridge-building, laying or clearing minefields, demolitions, field defences, general construction and building, as well as road and airfield...
in the British army during WW I, a prospector
Prospecting
Prospecting is the physical search for minerals, fossils, precious metals or mineral specimens, and is also known as fossicking.Prospecting is a small-scale form of mineral exploration which is an organised, large scale effort undertaken by mineral resource companies to find commercially viable ore...
, a cook, and vagabond. His birth name was William Anthony Simon, although he most frequently used the name Anthony W. Simmons. Later in life, he settled down in Palo Verde, CA. He is buried in the Los Angeles National Cemetery, Los Angeles, CA
In 1968, Colin Fletcher
Colin Fletcher
Colin Fletcher was a pioneering backpacker and writer.In 1963, Fletcher became the first to walk the length of Grand Canyon entirely within the rim of the canyon "in one go" — only second to complete the entire journey — as chronicled in his bestselling 1968 memoir The Man Who Walked Through Time...
came across a cave near the Colorado River (about 5 miles southeast of Boulder City, Nevada
Boulder City, Nevada
Boulder City is a city in Clark County, Nevada, United States. It is approximately from the City of Las Vegas. As of the 2010 census the population of Boulder City was 15,023.Boulder City is one of only two cities in Nevada that prohibit gambling....
) in which Bill had been living in and abandoned around 1916. The Man from the Cave
Colin Fletcher
Colin Fletcher was a pioneering backpacker and writer.In 1963, Fletcher became the first to walk the length of Grand Canyon entirely within the rim of the canyon "in one go" — only second to complete the entire journey — as chronicled in his bestselling 1968 memoir The Man Who Walked Through Time...
was a 1981 book written by Fletcher, which detailed how, after finding a trunk and belongings abandoned by someone, Fletcher spent years putting together the life story of "Trunkman."
Colin Fletcher's quote about Chuckawalla Bill:
"We both valued solitude and silence and square, smoothed-off granite boulders."