Nevada Historic Markers in Nye County: Tonopah

Nevada Historical Marker 15
Tonopah
US 95
Tonopah

Nevada Historical Marker 15: Tonopah
Nevada Historical Marker 15: Tonopah
28 February 2008
(Click Photos to Zoom)

1864 Tonopah 1964

To Jim Butler, district attorney of the County, goes the credit for making the ore discovery which ended the twenty-year slump in Nevada's economy. Migratory Indian bands originally applied the name Tonopah to a small spring in the nearby San Antonio Mountains, long before Butler camped in the area in May of 1900. Tonopah became the richest silver producer in the nation and replaced Belmont as county seat in 1905. The mines spawned a railroad, several huge mills and a bustling population of approximately 10,000.

The mines faltered in the 'twenties,' but Tonopah has achieved permanent fame because of the prominent financial and political leaders it produced. Many camps and communities followed in the wake of Tonopah's boom, most of which have become ghost towns.

State Historical Marker No. 15
Division of Historic Preservation and Archeology

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