In 1862 Owens Valley ranchers and miners appealed to the government for help with fighting the local Paiute Indians. The government responded by sending solders from Fort Tejon. The troops arrived on July 4,1862 and setup camp on Oak Creek in Owens Valley, they raised the flag and named their camp in honor of the day.
  One year later the Indian troubles seemed to be over and Camp Independence was abandoned for two years. The camp was reactivated in 1865 when Indian troubles flared up again and the camp was manned for the next twelve years.

  The soldiers of Camp Independence would escape the hot summers of Owens Valley here at the higher elevation of "Soldiers Summer Camp". 
  The "Soldier's Summer Camp" site consists of the ruins of tumbled down buildings made of hand-hewn logs held together by hand-whittled pegs. Several log and stone corrals can also be found here. A blacksmith's stump was found here with a few hand-hammered rusty nails buried in the ground nearby.
  The soldiers would spend time off here prospecting, several large glory holes with copper-stained tailing dumps can be found nearby.

 This historic Army Camp is now protected as part of the expansion of Death Valley National Park.