Eagle Mountain is a ghost town in the California desert in Riverside County founded in 1948 by industrialist Henry J. Kaiser.

Other amenities included an auditorium, a park, a shopping center, a community swimming pool, lighted tennis courts, and a baseball diamond.

In 1942, Kaiser built such a mill at Fontana, California, which is located 112 miles (180 km) west of the Eagle Mountain Mine.

This was a contingent strategy Kaiser used to utilize rail and raw materials for an industrial operation in a previously agricultural (pig farm) area.

[5] Increased environmental concerns in the 1970s and stiff foreign competition led to a reduction in iron output and a drop in population to a low of 1980.

Only 750 workers were brought back to the town with an additional 150 (with uncertain employment futures) in Indio, some 60 miles (97 km) west.

On November 3, 1981, Kaiser Corporation announced the phasing out of half the Fontana works and the entire Eagle Mountain Mine operation over several years.

[3] In June of that year, the last official graduating class celebrated their commencement at Eagle Mountain High School, followed by the closing of both the mine and mill.

Eagle Mountain experienced a resurgence in 1986 when the California Department of Corrections proposed placing a unique privately operated prison for low-risk inmates in the town.

The shopping center was converted in 1988 into the Eagle Mountain Community Correctional Facility, which operated until state budget problems and a fatal riot led to the closing of the prison in December 2003.

The project is praised by supporters for the purpose of bringing more renewable energy in California, while also being criticized by environmentalists for potential damages to plant and animal life in and around Joshua Tree National Park.

A portion of the Eagle Mountain Railroad was used in the filming of the 1986 movie Tough Guys in a scene wherein a train is hijacked - pulled by a locomotive Southern Pacific 4449 - and run full throttle to the Mexican border.

During the filming of the exterior shots of Southern Pacific 4449, the train was stored nightly at the Eagle Mountain rail yards.

In season 2's third episode, "America's Strongest Pickup," Eagle Mountain was used for the final challenge including pulling down a house.