The water tanks, once used to add water to steam locomotives, are more than 100 years old. One of the tanks was once inscribed with the words "1,000 Miles of Shoreline," a reference to Mohave County's proximity to the Colorado River. The tanks were rusty and leaking, and were scheduled for demolition in 1986. Betty McBrayer, a former Kingman resident, led a grassroots effort to save the tanks as historical artifacts.