Cerro Gordo has survived through boom-to-bust cycles across three centuries. Its mineral wealth was harvested from a network of more than 25 miles of underground tnnels. During its productive times, Cirro Gordo was a leading producer of lead, silver and zinc. The commerce generated by the transshipment of silver lead bullion from Cerro Gordo through the Owens Valley and across part of the Mojave Desert into Los Angeles helped the sleepy and dusty pueblo to grow into a modern city. By Cecile Page Vargo