Carlsbad Caverns National Park, New Mexico

Jim White's first descent into the cave was in 1901. During the next few years he was unable to convince anyone of the attractions of the cave sufficiently to have them pay much attention to its beauty. But as early as 1903 interest developed in the guano known to be there. In that year Abijah Long filed a placer mining claim to guano and other mineral rights for twenty acres around the entrance to the caverns. This claim is recorded in the Eddy County Mining Records. Again in 1908, and later in 1910 and 1912, other placer mining claims were filed on land in the vicinity of the cave entrance. This land was never patented. However, the land to the east, over the Bat Cave, belonged to the Santa Fe Railroad and was sold in 1905, and ownership of this forty acres changed hands a number of times before it was finally acquired by the government.

Jim continued to work on the ranch for awhile, but when the guano operations began, his interest in the cave induced him to go to work for the company removing the fertilizer. Although it is estimated that about a hundred thousand tons of guano were removed from the Bat Cave between 1903 and 1923, it was probably not a very profitable operation; for at least six different companies had a fling at it. Jim worked for all but one of them off and on, and never did any more than just make a bare living.