Tonopah, Millers, Last Hope, Gilbert, Belmont, Manhattan, Nevada

Tonopah

 Located on US 95 about midway between Reno and Las Vegas. Although Tonopah is a small town, with a population of just 3700 people, the town has plenty of services.  Like many Nevada towns, Tonopah began life as a mining town. In 1900, the discovery of silver brought many prospectors to the area and the town boomed. Although the silver soon ran out, the mining history of Tonopah remains.

Construction of the hotel began in 1907, during the great Nevada silver boom replacing the site of the former one-story Mizpah Saloon and Grill.  At a cost of $200,000, the Mizpah Hotel was completed and celebrated its grand opening on November 17, 1908. Boasting five floors, the hotel was the tallest building in Nevada at the time.

The Clown Motel has become quite the Tonopah landmark! It was named “America’s Scariest Motel” due to its clown theme and proximity to the Old Tonopah Cemetery.

William Murphy know as "Big Bill" is Tonopah's local hero, due to his courageous actions during the Belmont Mine Fire.  On February 23, 1911, 17 miners were killed including Bill, when working at the 1,100 foot level caught on fire.  Bill went down in the mine cage a number of times to rescue stricken miners.

Wow, a grocery store.
We haven't had any type of store since we left Redlands, California on day 3 of the trip.

Stocking up on fresh produce

Not sure of the actual name of the RV Park. It's called the "Man Camp" by the locals.

Muckers is Tonopah's High School mascot.

Central Nevada Museum
Step into the past and explore the rich and colorful history

Early Nash sedan

2,000 lb Radio controlled glide bomb.
This first generation Smart Bomb was tested near Tonopah during 1944.

Sunset on our last night

Millers

Millers came to life as a result of the furor in Tonopah. In 1901 the Tonopah and Goldfield Railroad was constructed and by 1904 Millers was founded as a station and watering stop along the rail line. The name of the town honors Charles R. Miller, a director of the railroad who was also once the Governor of Delaware. Miller also worked as vice president of the Tonopah Mining Company and played a key role in bringing that company's 100-stamp cyanide mill built in Millers in 1906. In 1907 the railroad company constructed repair shops in Millers and another large mill went up. By 1910 Millers had a post office, a business district and a population of 274. A year later, in 1911, the railroad shops and mill had moved and the town began a slow decline. By 1941, Millers had 28 inhabitants. When the railroad went under in 1947 the town of Millers followed suit and became a ghost town.

Pronghorn

Last Hope Mine was a gold and silver mine.

Gilbert

Rich ore discoveries in 1924 brought hordes of prospectors to the area and Gilbert soon had a population of over 500.  The town was supported by the Black Mammoth Mine and when the ore vein gave up, so did the town. 

More recent Open Pit Mining

Belmont

Gold and silver were discovered at the head of Ralston Valley in 1865 and the town of Belmont developed and grew, later to become the County Seat of Nye County.  The mines produced $15 million in gold and silver and 11,000 flasks of mercury before the town finally died in 1903. The old courthouse and many false front business houses as well as dwellings can still be seen, along with countless foundations and the gaunt frames of the several mills in the area. 

Built in 1876, the Belmont Courthouse was the seat of Nye County government until 1905.

Dave used to drive one of these

Philadelphia House
This grand old building known as the Philadelphia House, was built by the Combination Silver Mining Company of New York in 1866.  Constructed of native stone acquired from a nearby quarry, the building served as headquarters for mine operations and living quarters for the Superintendent.  Over a twenty year span $15,000,000 was yielded in mineral production.

Old Adams Leaning Wheel Grader No. 12

1868 Belmont Bank building

East Belmont
East Belmont developed shortly after Belmont's boom began in 1865. It was located around a mile southeast of the larger town just over a small hill, and was also the location of many of its larger mines and most of the mills. The 10-stamp Highbridge Mill opened in 1867, followed by the Combination and El Dorado mills. East Belmont was also the location of Chinatown. Many stone ruins are scattered around the area, and the brick ruins of the Combination and Cameron mills dominate the site.

Combination Mill Stack
The 40-stamp Combination Mill started operation in February 1868 and cost $225,000 to build. It was the largest mill in Belmont. Sometime before July 1878, the mill became idle. It was then taken over by the newly formed Highbridge Consolidated Silver Mining Company and renamed the Highbridge Mill. Their repairs to the mill were completed in December 1878, and it restarted using twenty-five stamps. By October 1879, however, it was again idle.

Following the 1880 boom at Gold Mountain in Esmeralda County, equipment was moved from the Combination Mill to the new camp. The large brick building lasted until 1914, when it was torn down and its bricks salvaged to construct the Cameron Mill the following year.

Combination Mill - Explosives Store Room

Someone has tossed metal rings onto the tree.

Monitor Belmont Mining Company Flotation Mill also known as Cameron Mill
In 1914, Belmont began to experience a revival. The Monitor-Belmont Mining Company acquired many of the old mines and in 1915 constructed the Cameron Mill out of bricks salvaged from the old Combination Mill.  The Cameron, named for the Company's superintendent Donald C. Cameron, had ten stamps and a 150-ton flotation system. Ore was obtained from the Company's 21 claims as well as from reworking old tailings piles. A powerline was built from Manhattan and the mill employed thirty.  It lasted until 1917.

Monitor-Belmont Mill Stack
 The 20-stamp Monitor-Belmont Mill was built in 1867 by the Belmont Silver Mining Company. Sometime before the late 1870s, the mill was closed. It was reopened in June 1881, but ore was inconsistent. By 1887, mining in Belmont had slowed and the mill was only processing ore from nearby Barcelona. It closed before the end of that year.

Found on East Manhattan Road somewhere between Belmont and Manhattan.  There appears to have been a spring here at one time.

Manhattan

Originally founded in 1867 as part of the silver mining boom and abandoned in 1871. Then, in 1905, as part of the gold boom, "4,000 people flooded into the region". The Nye and Ormsby County Bank, the only stone structure to be built in the town, was erected in 1906, but a decline followed the 1906 San Francisco earthquake and the 1907 depression.  The bank was forced to close. However, another boom in 1909 resulted in mining continuing into the late 1940s.  Major mining operations opened and operated through the 1970s to the 1990s, but production has recently scaled back significantly.

Today, the town of Manhattan has a relatively small population of around 100 people.

Weather was changing.  Notice the snow flurries?