Category: Points of Interest

Tenabo Nevada

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Located at 5,354 above sea level, Tenabo Nevada is a gold mining camp and ghost town located in Lander County, Nevada

Wagon train hauling silver ore from the Little Gem mine in Tenabo to the railhead at Beowawe, 25 miles south - 1910 - Stanley W Paher, "Nevada Ghost Towns and Mining Camps, (1970), Howell-North Books, William Kornmayer collection, p 91
Wagon train hauling silver ore from the Little Gem mine in Tenabo to the railhead at Beowawe, 25 miles south – 1910 – Stanley W Paher, “Nevada Ghost Towns and Mining Camps, (1970), Howell-North Books, William Kornmayer collection, p 91

In 1907, silver is discovered in the Bullion mining district. The discovery lead to the formation of Tenabo on the eastern slope of the Shoshone Range. The townsite is platted out and located just east of the mining district. Several wooden structures are built and with months a population of about 1,000 people called the town home.

The citizens of Tenabo ran and were serviced by several businesses including a hotel, restaurant, assay office, grocery store, school, post office. Saloons and “Sporting Houses” kept the men inline and happy. Goods and services along with people are delivered with tri-weekly stage service from Beowawe. Automobiles and a steam traction service also provided access to the town.

For three years, several active mines kept the mill running in Mill Gultch. After 1911, the high cost of goods and water hauling hampered continued mining operations. The post office is closed on July 31st, 1912.

About 1916, A. E. Raleigh finds placer gold in Mill Gulch and soon a camp is named for him. Placer mining continue in the surrounding ravines for the next twenty years. In the 1930’s a floating dredge continue placer mining operations and recovered significant amounts of gold until the 1940’s

In 1972, the mines near Tenabo are purchased by the Mid-West Oil Corporation. Mid-West Oil in turn sold the mining rights to the Tenabo Gold Placers Limited Partnership. Today the mines are still actively worked by the Flowery Gold Mines Company of Nevada.

Tenabo Town Summary

NameTenabo Nevada
LocationLander County, Nevada
Latitude, Longitutude40.314444, -116.676667
Elevation5,354
GNIS844209
Post OfficeDecember 7, 1906 – July 31, 1912
Population1,000

Tenabo Map

Directions

Tenabo Nevada is located about twenty five miles south east of Battle Mountain, Nevada just off I-80 at the Beowawe exit.

References

Nevada’s Birthplace – Nevada State Historic Marker 12

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Founded in 1851, Carson City is Nevada’s Birthplace the state capitol of Nevada and the subject of Nevada State Historic Marker number 12. Carson City is a wonderful little city to visit with a lot of history to explore. The city features a very high density of Nevada State Historic Markers and is a must do if you are trying to visit the complete list.

Nevada's Birthplace Nevada State Historic Marker 12, Carson City, NV
King Street, General View, 1880, Carson City, Carson City, NV

Nevada’s Birthplace – Nevada State Historic Marker 12 Text

Nevada State Historical Markers identify significant places of interest in Nevada’s history. The Nevada State Legislature started the program in 1967 to bring the state’s heritage to the public’s attention with on-site markers. These roadside markers bring attention to the places, people, and events that make up Nevada’s heritage. They are as diverse as the counties they are located within and range from the typical mining boom and bust town to the largest and most accessible petroglyph sites in Northern Nevada Budget cuts to the program caused the program to become dormant in 2009. Many of the markers are lost or damaged.

Carson Valley is the Birthplace of Nevada.  By 1851, people settled at a place they called Mormon Station, renamed Genoa in 1856.  With the early establishment of a post office and local government, the community can lay claim to the title of “Nevada’s first town.”

Thousands of emigrants moved over the old road skirting the west bank of the Carson River as they prepared to cross the Sierra, feeding their livestock on grass cut along the river.  At Genoa; at Mottsville, settled in 1852; and at Sheridan, settled by Moses Job about ’54; emigrants stopped to enjoy produce of the region’s first gardens.  Pony Express riders used this route in 1860, switching a year later to the shorter Daggett Trail, now Kingsbury Grade.

NEVADA CENTENNIAL MARKER No. 12
STATE HISTORIC PRESERVATION OFFICE

Nevada State Historic Marker 12 Summary

NameNevada’s Birthplace
LocationDouglas County, Nevada
Latitude, Longitude39.0038, -119.7604
Nevada State Historic Marker12

Nevada State Historic Marker 12 Trail Map

References

Pahranagat Valley

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The beautiful Pahranagat Valley is located in Lincoln County, Nevada and Nevada State Historic Marker number 38. Pahranagat Valley, nestled in the vast expanse of Nevada, offers a serene retreat from the bustling cities and a glimpse into the raw beauty of nature.

The wetlands of Pahranagat Valley
The wetlands of Pahranagat Valley is Nevada State Historic Marker number 38.

Pahranagat Valley is situated in southeastern Nevada, approximately 90 miles north of Las Vegas. It spans approximately 40 miles in length and is characterized by a picturesque landscape of rolling hills, lush meadows, and expansive desert plains. The valley is flanked by the towering peaks of the Sheep Range to the east and the imposing Pahranagat Range to the west, creating a dramatic backdrop against the azure sky.

The centerpiece of the valley is the Pahranagat National Wildlife Refuge, a haven for migratory birds and other wildlife. The refuge encompasses several natural lakes, including Upper Pahranagat Lake, Middle Pahranagat Lake, and Lower Pahranagat Lake, which serve as vital habitats for waterfowl, shorebirds, and various aquatic species.

The valley is a haven for birdwatchers, with over 260 species of birds recorded within the refuge. Migratory waterfowl such as ducks, geese, and swans flock to the lakes during the winter months, while songbirds and raptors are a common sight year-round. Visitors may also encounter mammals such as mule deer, coyotes, bobcats, and desert bighorn sheep, which roam the rugged terrain.

The regeon holds cultural significance for indigenous communities, including the Southern Paiute people, who have inhabited the region for centuries. The valley provided sustenance in the form of wildlife, plants, and water sources, shaping traditional lifeways and spiritual practices. Today, the Paiute Tribe continues to maintain a connection to the land, participating in conservation efforts and sharing their cultural heritage with visitors.

State Historic Marker Text

Pahranagat Valley is named after a local Shoshone Native American Tribe.  Three local springs fill the valley’s lakes, which farmers have used for irrigation since the mid-nineteenth century.

In the late 1860s, outlaws pastured hundreds of head of stolen cattle in the valley meadows.  

In 1865, ore was discovered in the area.  The following year, a stamp mill was established at Hiko, twenty miles to the north to crush the ore.  Hiko became the center of activity for the valley and the county seat between 1866 and 1871, when local mining declined and Pioche claimed the county seat.

The valley received international notoriety in 1867 when Dan De Quille of the Territorial Enterprise published an article titled “The Rolling Stones of Pahranagat,” about magnetic traveling stones.  De Quille was notorious for publishing comedy and satire, sometimes mistaken by his readership for truth.  In this case, De Quille described these round stones as having a magical quality that, when scattered on the floor, would immediately began travelling toward a common center.  De Quille published similar articles on the stones in 1876, 1879, and 1892.

The town of Alamo before you, established in 1900, is the valley’s largest present-day settlement.  Watered by Pahranagat Creek, the area includes several ranches and the Pahranagat Valley National Wildlife Refuge.

STATE HISTORICAL MARKER NO.  38
STATE HISTORIC PRESERVATION OFFICE
LINCOLN COUNTY AREA DEVELOPMENT COMMITTEE

Nevada State Historic Marker Summary

NamePahranagat Valley
LocationLincoln County, Nevada
Latitude, Longitude37.3484, -115.1502
Nevada State Historic Marker38

Nevada State Historic Marker Map

References

Myers Ranch

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Myers Ranch is a privately owned ranch located in Goler Wash in the Panamint Mountains of Death Valley National Park, California. The forty acre ranch is privately owned ranch and located about .5 miles from Barker Ranch.

Myers Ranch, Panamint Mountain
Myers Ranch, Panamint Mountain

A Family Affair

Bill and Barbara Myers settled in Goler Wash in 1932, building themselves a comfortable house complete with such amenities as flush toilets, a swimming pool, an orchard, and of course, a garden. They raised three children there: Charles, Pat and Corky. The Myers family reluctantly moved to Fresno in 1960, so that their children could have a better education.

The ranch is built from wood ties used by the Searles Lake epsom salt monorail, it burned in 1999. The Myers ran a gas and food stop called Wildrose Station, which was demolished by the National Park Service.

Manson Family

Myers Ranch was the original destination for Charles Mason and his “family”. In 1968 he started to look for a desert location to move his “brood”. He choose the desert because “Out there, things aren’t so crazy”. One of his followers is Cathy (Cappy) Gilles is a grand daughter of Bill and Barbara Myers. “Cappy” obtained permission from the family matriarch for her and some girls to come up and stay at the ranch. He later received permission and based his activities at Barker Ranch.

From October 1968 to January 1969, Manson lived / camped in the area. In October 1969, CHP Officer Jim Pursell and a task force raided Goler Wash. Over the course of two days, they arrested seventeen people in the area. Charles Manson was arrested while hiding in a cabinet in the bathroom of Barker Ranch.

Myers Ranch Map

Myers Ranch Summary

NameMyers Ranch
LocationGoler Wash, Panamint Mountains, Death Valley, California
Elevation3700 Feet
Latitude, Longitude35.86162,-117.08227

References

Powell of the Colorado Nevada State Historic Marker 37

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Powell of the Colorado Nevada State Historic Marker 37 is a marker commemorating the 1869 exploration of the Grand Canyon by Major John Wesley Powell. The historic landmark is located overlooking Lake Mead, Nevada.

Powell of the Colorado Nevada State Historic Marker 37- The 1871 Powell Expedition preparing to depart Green River. Photo NPS
The 1871 Powell Expedition preparing to depart Green River. Photo NPS

After 1867, Powell led a series of expeditions into the Rocky Mountain, Green River and Colorado rivers. In 1869, he set out to explore the Colorado River and the Grand Canyon as part of several trips. Along with ten men and equipped with four boats and food for 10 months, Powell set out from Green River, Wyoming, on May 24. Passing through dangerous rapids, the group passed down the Green River to its confluence with the Colorado River (then also known as the Grand River upriver from the junction), near present-day Moab, Utah, and completed the journey on August 30, 1869.

Powell retraced part of the 1869 route in 1871–72 with another expedition that traveled to the Colorado River from Green River, Wyoming to Kanab Creek in the Grand Canyon. Powell used three photographers on this expedition; Elias Olcott Beaman, James Fennemore, and John K. Hillers, who documented the journey.

Nevada State Historical Markers identify significant places of interest in Nevada’s history. The Nevada State Legislature started the program in 1967 to bring the state’s heritage to the public’s attention with on-site markers. Budget cuts to the program caused the program to become dormant in 2009. Many of the markers are lost of damaged.

Nevada State Historic Marker Text

On August 30, 1869, Major John Wesley Powell landed at the mouth of the Virgin River, about 12 miles south of here, thus ending the first boat expedition through the Grand Canyon of the Colorado River.

The expedition left Green River City, Wyoming Territory, on May 24, 1869. For three months Powell and his men endured danger and hunger to explore, survey and study the geology of the canyons along the Green and Colorado Rivers.

Exhausted and near starvation, the Powell party was warmly greeted and fed by the hardy Mormon pioneers of St. Thomas, a small farm settlement about 11 miles north of here.

The original sites of St. Thomas and the junction of the Virgin and Colorado Rivers are now beneath the waters of Lake Mead.

This, and later Powell surveys, stimulated great interest in the water conservation problems of the Southwest.

Marker Summary

Nevada State Historic Marker 37
NamePowell on the Colorado
LocationLake Mead National Recreation Area, Nevada
Latitude, Longitude36.3072, -114.4201

References

USGS