Category: Points of Interest

Greenwater California – Inyo County Ghost Town

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In 1904, a copper strike near Greenwater Spring and ensuing rush to profit caused the formation of Greenwater in Inyo County, California. Originally known by two other names, Kunze and Ramsey, the merger of these two small towns led to the formation of Greenwater in 1906.

Greenwater Mining District, CA 1906
Greenwater Mining District, CA 1906

The discovery of gold in Rhyolite triggered a flood of prospecting and brought civilization closer to this remote area of Death Valley. This waver of prospecting found many small mining camps spring into the area and Greenwater was just a town.

Greenwater California 1907
Greenwater California 1907

Greenwater was a short lived venture. The tent city grew to a population of of about 1,000 people. Although the town contained about a dozen saloons, water needed to be transport in and cost $15 / barrel. Despite newspaper promotions at the time and financial backing of investors, the town began to falter in 1907 due to lack of profits.

Greenwater California
Greenwater California

Today, very little remains can be found in Greenwater California. Like many mining towns of its day, the population lived in hastily assembled canvas sided tents. It is easy to imaging, the town literally packing up their tents and moving on the the next great boom.

Greenwater Town Summary

NameGreenwater
Also Known Kunze, Ramsey
LocationInyo County, Death Valley, California
Latitude, Longitude36.179444, -116.616389
Elevation4,280 feet
NewspaperGreenwater Times ( 1906-1908 )

Greenwater Map

References

Panamint City California – Inyo County Ghost Town

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Panamint City California - 1875
Panamint City California – 1875

Panamint City California is a ghost town and silver mine site located in Inyo County. The town site was built in Surprise canyon in the Panamint Mountain Range which is now located within Death Valley National Monument. Currently, the town is only accessible to hikers. Previously, it was possible to drive into the ghost town, however a series of flash floods washed the roads completely out.

Interest is the area was initidated in 1872, when silver was discovered by three bandits who were hiding out in Surprise Canyon. These bandits were William L. Kennedy, Robert L Stewart and Richard C. Jacobs where in Surprise Canyon doing some prospecting and looking for the Lost Gunsite Mine. The men were wanted for robing the Wells Fargo Stages. The men entered into an arrangement, and sold their claim to Nevada Senator John P Jones. Silver samples assayed as high as $3,000 per ton, with the probable average value of metal-bearing ore being at least $125 a ton. The Honorable Mr. Jones arranged for amnesty for the bandits and they agreed repay the stolen $12,000 from their profits.

Senator John Percival Jones
Senator John Percival Jones

Nevada Senator John P Jones and fellow Nevada Senator William M Stewart created the Panamint Mining Company and bought up the larger mines in the canyon. The location started to boom with the involvement of the two senators.

William M. Stewart. Photo by Matthew Brady
William M. Stewart. Photo by Matthew Brady

Panamint City was founded in 1873 – 1974 and soon the town contained all of the services and stores required to support a town of 2000 people. Mines, Saloons, stores, post office, cemetery and a red light district were all built in the upper end of the canyon and arranged along a single road about one mile long. In general, most of these mining booms towns earned a reputation for lawlessness and Panamint City was no different.

Due to the towns reputation, Wells Fargo refused to open an office in Panamint City. To transport the silver from the town, the bullion was caste into 450 round balls, which were then transported in wagon to Los Angeles, CA

Panamint City Stamp Mill
Panamint City Stamp Mill

Flash floods are a constant danger, and on July 24, 1786, Panamint City experience just such a flood. This flood washed out most of the young town. Inyo county maintained a road into Surprise Canyon until 1983 when a flash flood again scoured the canyon. Currently, there is no vehicle access. Much of the Panamint City Stamp Mill is gone, however the tall brick smoke stake still stands as a sentinel in time to mark the location of the town.

Panamint Town Summary

NamePanamint
LocationInyo County
Latitude, Longitude36.1182827, -117.0953327
GNIS1661185
Elevation6,300 Feet
NewspaperPanamint News ( 1874-1875 )

Panamint Map

References

Marietta Nevada – Mineral County Ghost Town

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Located at 4947 feet above sea level, Marietta was formally established in 1877 near Teel’s Marsh and is now a ghost town in Mineral County, Nevada.   F.M. “Borax” Smith, a silver and gold prospector, found his place in the world, when he established a borax works in Teel’s Marsh in 1872.

Francis “Borax” Marion Smith prospected the Marietta Nevada Area
Francis “Borax” Marion Smith prospected the Marietta Nevada Area

Soon after the town was founded, the populations swelled to several hundred people, however exact figures are unknown due to inaccurate record keeping among the Chinese populations who worked in the borax plant.  The town soon boasted 13 saloons, a post office and several stores.

The town had a rowdy image and due to its remote location made it an easy target for robbers, and for criminals to run free.  At one point in the 1880 the stage was reported robbed 30 times. 

In the 1880’s due to increased demand for borax,  Borax Smith relocate is Marietta location down south to larger deposits found in Death Valley.  This moved singled the end of Marietta due to the loss of its biggest industry and by the early 1900s the town was virtually dead.  The was a period resurgence when other mining concerns prospected the area.

Marietta is currently located on BLM land.

Marietta Trail Map

Marietta Personalities

Francis Marion "Borax" Smith

Francis Marion Smith – “Borax Smith”

Francis Marion "Borax" Smith Francis Marion Smith, also known as "Borax" Smith was a miner and business man who made a fortune in the hostile…

References

Nelson Nevada and Eldorado Canyon – Clark County Ghost Town

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Rock spires carved by erosion located in Eldorado Canyon, Nelson, Nevada.
Rock spires carved by erosion located in Eldorado Canyon, Nelson, Nevada.

The ghost town of Nelson, Nevada, which is located in Eldorado Canyon along Lake Mojave, is a quaint destination which offers the visitor a brief glimpse into the past.

History

The Southwest Mining Company Quartz mill located just off the Colorado River.
The Southwest Mining Company Quartz mill located just off the Colorado River.

El Dorado Canyon has a long and storied mining history which includes 150 years of mining activities by Native Americans, Spanish Explorers and Mormons prior to 1861. In 1863, miners from nearby Potosi flooded the area and established four town sites in the narrow canyon, the establishment of which caused some excitement on the western coast.

Many structures are still standing, Nelson, Nevada.
Many structures are still standing, Nelson, Nevada.

In 1864, near the mouth of Eldorado canyon a ten-stamp stamp mile is built. This despite a six month lead time for supplied to arrive in the remote location. At the time, Eldorado canyon was part of the Arizona territory and the Eldorado mill was the first in the Arizona territory.

The steamboat Mohave departing the landing in El Dorado Canyon.
The steamboat Mohave departing the landing in El Dorado Canyon.

As the town grew, in 1865 the town added a post office. However the area was a rough camp with the nearest law about 300 miles away. Vigilantes dispensed justice to those who crossed the line.

Mill in Eldorado Canyon, circa 1890
Mill in Eldorado Canyon, circa 1890

Founded in 1905 Nelson, Nevada is located some seven miles west at the head of Eldorado Canyon. The town of Nelson slumped for two decades beginning in 1909, but the 1930’s found a resurgence in gold production. By 1941, the three cyanide mills processed 220 tons of ore daily. The population reached 600 persons, however increased costs caused the gold production to slow and eventually cease. The Techatticip mine produced over half of the total gold produced in the area. The gold produced by the region has an estimated valued at $10,000,000.00.

In 1951, Davis Damn is completed. The original town site in Eldorado canyon was buried and drowned by the rising waters of Lake Mojave.

A visitors center and store are open to those who travel here. Nelson, Nevada
A visitors center and store are open to those who travel here. Nelson, Nevada

Today

Today, the town of Nelson hosts some 37 people in the 2010 census. The older section of town hosts many old buildings, ruins, cars, mining equipment and all in all is an eclectic collection of mining and western history. The current occupants have a wonderful collection of old mining gear and western history, mixed with an eclectic collection of art.

Nelson, Nevada

The town was recently used as a movie set, and the a tour of the town is available to those interested.

Nelson, Nevada is a quiet destination worthy of a few hours if you are in the area.
Nelson, Nevada is a quiet destination worthy of a few hours if you are in the area.

Nelson and El Dorado trail map

The Amargosa Opera House

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Recently, on a whim, my wife and I loaded up the jeep and opt to just explore the desert West of our home town of Las Vegas and ended up at the Amargosa Opera House. Our original idea was to drive to the winery’s in Pahrump, Nevada. After the winery our plan was to drive up to the townsite of Johnnie, Nevada. The best laid plans were for not. We discovered that the mines of Johnnie, Nevada are located on private property.

The Arargosa Opera House is located in Death Valley Junction, California.
The Arargosa Opera House is located in Death Valley Junction, California.

Honoring the wishes of the Johnnie mine site property owners, we opted to do some exploring. We headed easy through the small town of Crystal, Nevada and drove past the Ash Meadows National Wildlife Refuge. The AMNWR was closed, as the result of, a Government Shutdown.

As our wandering journey continued, we opted to travel South and soon discovered the small desert haven of Death Valley Junction and the world famous Amargosa Opera House.

Death Valley Junction was founded as the town of Amargosa. The town was founded at the intersection of SR 190 and SR 127 just East of Death Valley. Founded in 1907 when the Tonopay and Tidewater railroads ventured into Amargosa Valley.

Corkhill Hall

The Amargosa Opera House began life as Corkhill Hall in 1923-24. Alexander Hamillton McColloch designed the building, which was built by the Pacific Coast Borax Company. The building is a Spanish Colonial Revival style and organized as part of a much larger U shaped complex. The complex features included company offices, dormitories, dining room, store and a 23 room hotel. Corkhill Hall served the small complex as a location for dances, church services, movies and meetings.

The small town, as with many others boomed and busted with the borax industry. During WW2, the valley train tracks were removed. This was done in support of the war effort. Amargosa began to decline in the mid 20th century and slowly edge towards oblivion. In 1967, a flat tire and a performer Marta Beckett forever altered the sleepy little town.

The Opera House

In 1968, Amargosa changed it’s name to Death Valley Junction and Marta Beckett rented the Corkhill Recreation Hall. She oversaw repairs to the facility and repainted the interior with murals for the next five years. In her newly renovated Opera House, Mrs Beckett performed for the next 40 years. On February 12, 2012 Mrs Beckett performed her last show.

The Amargosa Opera House features original hand painted murals by Marta Becket.
The Amargosa Opera House features original hand painted murals by Marta Becket.

Such is life in the Mojave, filled with interesting characters who cherish and thrive in a harsh environment. Sadly, on our visit to Opera House was not open and I was not able to photograph the interior. However, while visiting a young ballerina was being photographed by under the trees outside of the old opera house. A testimony to Marta Becket which we are sure would make her proud.