 Seventeen Mile Point acquired its name because the northernmost ridge of the mountain was a landmark along the Mojave Road or Old Government Road.This ridge at which the Mojave Road rounded this northern tip of the Old Dad Mountains was called Point of Mountain.Odometer surveys by the U. S. Army in 1866 and 1867 found that Point of Mountain was about 17 miles away from both Soda Springs and Marl Springs, watering places along the road, and marked the point where the old wagon road turned southwest to follow the course of Willow Wash for several miles upstream.