Kern County Obituaries

Evelyn A. (Tonie) Seger

Submitted by: Billie Snyder 

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Schmidt tunnel caretaker dies at 95

BY ADAM L. R. SUMMERS, NEWS REVIEW, STAFF WRITER
SPECIAL TO THE, DESERT NEWS

RED ROCK CANYON - Evelyn A. (Tonie) Seger died May 30, at her 
residence near the entrance to the famed Burro Schmidt's Tunnel.
For the last 40 years of her life, Seger cared for the historic tunnel in the 
El Paso Mountains near Randsburg. With her passing, administration of 
the tunnel and surrounding land - recently named a federal historic site - 
will pass to the Bureau of Land Management. BLM has claimed for years 
that, despite objections of Seger and her family, the land around the tunnel 
is public land. Officials have cited a large body of case and statutory law i
n BLM's favor. Dug by hand
The tunnel was dug single-handedly over 32 years by prospector William 
Henry "Burro" Schmidt. It was originally conceived as an ore-hauling route 
through Copper Mountain in Last Chance Canyon, but became Schmidt's 
personal obsession after a road to the Southern Pacific Rail Line made the 
tunnel he was building obsolete.
After it was completed, Schmidt no longer wanted it. According to a 2001 
report by MSNBC, Schmidt sold the tunnel shortly after its completion to his 
friend, Mike Lee. In the same article, Seger claimed she bought the land 
from Lee's estate in 1963.
"I found this place that's high, dry desert," she told MSNBC. "Right in the 
middle of the desert is a hill, and on top of the hill is this tunnel." She picked 
the place to live with her husband after she retired from the Navy as a nurse, 
hoping the desert air would improve his ailing health. (He died a year later at 
age 42.)

BLM claims land

But according to Linn Gum, supervisory geologist at the BLM field office in 
Ridgecrest, the BLM has known for some time that the tunnel and surrounding 
land are actually public lands. "Tonie believed she was the owner, but she was 
not," he said.
Gum said BLM is organizing a committee to plan how to manage the tunnel site, 
saying that all he knows for certain is that "the land will remain open for public 
access." He explained the long delay in asserting BLM's rights to land on which, 
according to BLM, Seger had trespassed for years.
"We knew it would not be the best thing to have the full force and effect of the 
federal government come cascading down on an elderly woman." Gum said he 
has been in contact with Seger's heirs, first communicating with them a 
number of years before her death. Her daughter, son-in-law and 
granddaughter all agreed it would be best to leave Seger on the land in peace 
and "let nature take its course," he said.
Gum pointed out that Seger's family members are being included in the 
planning process for maintaining and operating the site in the future.
Seger is survived by her daughter, Barbara Corbett; son, Henry Dufresne; 
15 grandchildren; 12 great-grandchildren; and one great-great grandchild. 
Private cremation and arrangements were provided by Holland and Lyons 
Mortuary.

BLM says it, not heirs* own property