Lookout City is a former settlement in the Mojave Desert, in Inyo County, California.

In 1875 rich deposits of silver-lead ore were discovered in the Argus Range on top of Lookout mountain.

The discovery was named the Modoc, and was sold to a group of investors which included George Hearst, the famed mining engineer, U.S.

The town of Lookout consisted of 2 general stores, 3 saloons, company offices, and as many as 30 other wood and stone structures.

Remi Nadeau needed a faster route for his teams, so he constructed the Nadeau "Shotgun" road across the Panamint Valley and over the Slate Range to meet the Bullion Trail south of China Lake.