Bates Well is marked by a small ranch house last owned and operated by Henry Gray and family. When Organ Pipe Cactus National Monument was established, the Gray family had already been ranching for nearly two decades and were allowed to continue to do so. This arrangement was the source of great idealogical conflict between the Gray family, whose wish was to continue life as it was before the founding of the national park, and rangers and ecologists whose goals were aimed conservation. Henry Gray raised cattle on these lands until his death in 1976. The small house still stands and can be explored by visitors to the ranch. Despite the name, water was not available here and should not be relied upon as a source for refill.