Category: Ghost Towns

Ghost towns are fun places to explore and commonly great destinations for a 4×4 trip.

Oreana Nevada – Pershing County Ghost Town

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Oreana Nevada is a milling town which was active from 1865 – 1885 in Pershing County Nevada and home to the Montezuma Smelting Works. The townsite is located on Interstate 80 / U.S. 95 about fourteen miles north east of Lovelock.

Smelting Works. Oreana, Nevada. ca. 1857 by Timothy H. O'Sullivan - U.S. National Archives and Records Administration
Smelting Works. Oreana, Nevada. ca. 1857 by Timothy H. O’Sullivan – U.S. National Archives and Records Administration

In 1865 a five stamp mill was relocated from Trinity and located on the eastern bank of the Humboldt River. This mill is used to process ore from the nearby Montezuma mine and the Arabia district.

In 1857 the Montezuma Smelting Works is built in Oreana, Nevada by the Trinity and Sacramento Company. The location of the smelting works is a bold choice for its Superintendent A. W. Nelson, who built the factory, which contained eight furnaces if a location with little fuel. The nearby mining districts of Arabia and the Trinity mining district were the primary source of ore to supply the plant with raw materials.

Montezuma Silver Works. Oreana, Nevada. ca 1857 by Timothy H. O'Sullivan - U.S. National Archives and Records Administration
Montezuma Silver Works. Oreana, Nevada. ca 1857 by Timothy H. O’Sullivan – U.S. National Archives and Records Administration

A hotel, boarding houses, post office, restaurants, meat market and general store kept the citizens feed and houses. In addition to mining and smelting, a livery and blacksmith and kept them working. The Oreana Jockey Club kept them entertained by sponsoring horses races. So long as the mines produced ore, the smelters processed it 24 hours a day.

At the time, Oreana is the largest in the Humboldt Valley. This title would later be taken by Lovelock, Nevada. Despite its solid foundations, Oreana found itself in financial trouble. Debt and Taxes caused a shutdown in 1869. And again in 1871. Today not much remains to indicate a town.

Oreana Town Summary

NameOreana Nevada
LocationPershing County, Nevada
Latitude, Longitude40.310833, -118.370556
GNIS
Elevation4160 Feet
Post OfficeFebruary 1867 – July 1869
February 1870 – September 1873
October 1873 – March 1883

Oreana Map

References

Darwin California – Inyo County Ghost Town

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Darwin is a unincorporated community, gold mining town and ghost town located in Inyo County, California about 22 miles from Keeler. The town was named for Darwin French, who lead a party of prospectors into Death Valley in 1860 looking for the mythical gunsight lode. This prospecting eventually lead to the wash, canyon and town named in his honor.

The site which became Darwin was formed in 1874 following a discovery of lead and silver. The overall grwoth of the town was limited by its water supply which is piped from over eight miles away. This discovery coincided with near by Panamint, although the rush to Darwin was more muted. Darwin has a population of about 700 at this time.

The Coso Mining News published weekly from 1875 – 1878 by T.S. Harris. The newspaper closed in September 1878 and the publisher moved up north to Bodie. The moved of the newspaper is symptomatic and followed by many others including miners seeker greener pastures. The town of Darwin had a remaining population of about 250 people. Despite the plunging population the town still supported six saloons, four stores, three restaurants and a drug store. Between the years of 1874 and 1877 newspapers reported at least 80 murders.

Darwin is a rarity and survived its original boom. The town remained viable until World Was I, when larger mining operations could profit of lower yielding ores. A post office opened in 1875 and closed in 1902. Eventually, the post office reopened and remains open today.

The Darwin Store run by Reynolds and Etcharren Partners, 1906. | Photo: Courtesy of the Eastern California Museum.
The Darwin Store run by Reynolds and Etcharren Partners, 1906. | Photo: Courtesy of the Eastern California Museum.

Darwin Today

In 2011, a documentary called Darwin is available on Amazon Prime. The documentary is described, “Propelled from society by tragic turns, the isolated community of Darwin, Death Valley (population 35) must now find ways to coexist in a place without a government, a church, jobs, or children.” I did watch the documentary and found it interesting. However, its focus was on the people living there now and not much on the history.

Recently, Brent Underwood, owner of Cerro Gordo featured Darwin on his youtube channel. He was scrounging old boards from buildings in Darwin to help rebuild Cerro Gordo. I am not sure how I feel about damaging one old town to rebuild another…

Darwin Town Summary

NameDarwin, California
LocationInyo County, California
Latitude, Longitude36.268056 -117.591667
Elvation4,790 ft ( 1460 m )
GNIS241269
Population3500
Post OfficeOpen
NewspaperCoso Mining News ( Nov. 6, 1875 – Sept. 4, 1878 )

Darwin Town Map

Resources

Johntown Nevada – Lyon County Ghost Town

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Located in Gold Canyon between Silver City and Dayton, Johntown Nevada is the first ghost town in Lyon county. None of the buildings are currently standing to mark the site of the original workings. The camp was started as a placer mining operation just off of the road in Gold Canyon in the early 1850s. The initial camp started when James Fenemore setup his tent in the side of the hill and started washing gravel for gold.

Placer mining, 1880s, in Gold Canyon. The original site of Johntown mining settlement , south of Silver, City Nevada - Stanley W. Paher, Nevada Ghost Towns and Mining Camps, Howell North, 1970, p 70. courtesy of Nevada Historical Society
Placer mining, 1880s, in Gold Canyon. The original site of Johntown mining settlement , south of Silver, City Nevada – Stanley W. Paher, Nevada Ghost Towns and Mining Camps, Howell North, 1970, p 70. courtesy of Nevada Historical Society
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Hedges California – Imperial County Ghost Town

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Previously known as Tumco, Hedges California is a ghost town and former mining town located in Imperial County, California along the Tumco Wash in the Cargo Muchacho Mountains. The Hedges Cemetery is located just out of town to the north east.

[Circa 1905] Tumco Historic Mining Town, California - Hedges California
[Circa 1905] Tumco Historic Mining Town, California – Hedges California

The Spanish first started mining in the western Cargo Muchacho Mountains as early as the 1780s. The Yuma Revolt in 1781 halted early operations until 1823. Mexican prospectors operated in the area at some point prior to 1848.

A mining camp known as Gold Rock was formed in 1884 around the Gold Rock Mine which was discovered by Peter Walters of nearby Ogilby, California. Mr Walters sold his interest in the operations and the mine was renamed Gold Cross in 1892. A stamp mill is constructed by the Golden Cross Mining and Milling Company and soon the town of Hedges was founded. The town is named for C. L Hedges who served as vice president of the Golden Cross Mining and Milling Company.

The town was later named Tumco in 1910. Tumco is an abbreviation of The United Mines Company. The town site and its mines operated on and off up until 1942.

Town Summary

NameHedges, California
AliasGold Rock, Tumco
LocationImperial County, California
AliasTumco – Hedges – Ogilby
Latitude, Longitude32.8793891573, -114.837144612
GNIS243332
Elevation575 Feet
Population3200

California Historical Landmarks

NO. 182 TUMCO MINES – Pete Walters of Ogilby discovered the first gold vein at Gold Rock on January 6, 1884. From his Little Mary Claim began a gold camp which reached its peak development between 1893 and 1899 as Hedges, with 3,200 residents. Nearly closed, 1900-10, it was reopened as Tumco, 1910-13, and worked intermittently until 1941. Tumco has long been a California ghost town.

California Historical Landmarks 

Hedges Town Map

References

Potholes California – Colorado River Steamship Landing

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Potholes California is a former gold mining camp and ghost town located in Imperial County, California. The town is located on the western side of the Colorado River near the present day Laguna Dam. The location was first mined by Spanish Miners in 1871. These early workings and miners were lost during the Yuma War, 1850 – 1853.

Potholes California

From 1852 through 1909, Colorado Steamships ferried people and supplies up and down the Colorado River to mining camps and outposts. Following the discovery of gold in California, westward expansion of the United States was on the mind of most people seeking their fortune of livelihood. Wagon trains, horses and trains all brought people deep into the new county seeking their fortune. Lesser known is the role of the steamships, which brought supplies and people up the Colorado River from Baja California to the Green River in Wyoming.

There has been some little excitement in this part of the, country, caused by the discovery of new gold fields on the Rio Colorado, some fifteen miles above Fort Yuma, on the California side. I have just returned from the diggings, and find, after a careful examination of three days, that gold exists there in paying quantities, for many miles on both sides of the river. While at the newly discovered diggings, a considerable quantity of the oro has been taken out, considering the short time- they have been worked. From the claim of Messrs. Crandell & Co., $200 per day have been dug daily for the past six days. The manner of working is the same at at Jila city, heretofore described. The earth must be carried on the back a distance of one mile, and washed in a cradle. It is said that the total amount of the gold taken from Crandell & Co ‘s claim is about $4,000. – They have now constructed a cart-road from the mine to the river, and hereafter will be able to work at better advantage. Several other claims in the vicinity are paying from $10 to $16 per day; but most of the claims — for a good manner have been located — will not pay more than $2 per day to the hand, by the present process of working. If water could be obtained and sluice* used, from $40 to $100 per day might be washed. [We had news of these diggings in oar San Diego correspondence, published this morning, and the corroborating testimony of .our Fort Yuma correspondent is of much value, as confirmatory of the reports from San Diego. — Eds. Alta.]

I think, however, that the Gila mines are much more valuable, or will yield much more gold than these new diggings on the Colorado. Th« former have the advantage of being easily supplied with water, works for that purpose being now in progress.

Mining operations resumed again in 1859 with the rediscovery of gold. Placier mining operations proved successful in the 19th century. A steamship landing was established to ferry people and supplies to the location 15 miles up river from Yuma, Arizona.

The town of Potholes California was established during the building of the All American Canal and Laguna Dam.

Daily Alta California, Volume XI, Number 42, 12 February 1859

Town Summary

NamePotholes, California
LocationImperial County, California
Latitude, Longitude32.8289329, -114.5046713
Elevation160 feet
GNIS247730
Post Office1905 – 1909, 1920 – 1922

Potholes California Map

References