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 #155 - Silver Peak
N 38° 01.100 W 117° 46.549
11S E 431902 N 4208132
Historical marker is located on the south side of US Highways 95/6 at their junction with Nevada State Route 265. Route 265 is the only paved access to 'The Peak', approximately 22 miles to the south-southeast.
Waymark Code: WM1P0D
Location: Nevada, United States
Date Posted: 06/12/2007
Views: 121
Silver Peak played a central family role before and during my childhood. 'The Peak' is where my parents met during a town dance in the late 1930s. During that period "Ma" Brown (Mom's Sister) ran a boarding house located at the main portal for the Mary Mine. Art Zwiebel (another sister's husband) owned a service station and ran a string of mules he hired out for heavy hauling. Dad's brother (Ray) was highly respected in the area as a mine boss and horseman.
During the 50s, I was Dad's constant shadow when he prospected for uranium ore, throughout Mineral, Nye and Esmeralda Counties but primarily around Silver Peak and nearby Weepah. Retired 'old folks' were ‘The Peak's’ residents living out their remaining years in the almost ghost town. Most were acquaintances of my folks. The power house had the only phone in town; a cafe/tavern with fuel pumps, the only thriving business - if my memory serves me well. The 'pond' was open to swimming. OH MAN!! What a wondrous area in which to spend time as a child.
Visit the link below, for a detailed history of milling/mining in the Silver Peak area. For an engaging book about life in 'The Peak', I recommend "Silver Peak: Never A Ghost Town", by Victoria Ford available from the office for the University of Nevada Oral History Program in Reno.
Marker Title (required): Silver Peak
Marker Number (If official State Marker from NV SHPO website above, otherwise leave blank): 155
Marker Text (required):
Discovered 1863
Silver Peak is one of the oldest mining areas in Nevada. A 10-stamp mill was built in 1865, and by 1867 a 20-stamp mill was built. Mining camp lawlessness prevailed during the late sixties, and over the next 38 years, Silver Peak had its ups and downs. In 1906, the Pittsburg Silver Peak Gold Mining Company bought a group of properties, constructed the Silver Peak Railroad and built a 100- stamp mill at Blair the following year.
The town, at times, was one of the leading camps of Nevada, but by 1917 it had all but disappeared. The town burned in 1948, and little happened until the Foote Mineral Company began its extraction of lithium from under the floor of Clayton Valley.
County (required): Esmeralda
Marker Type (required): Full Size (with blue painted mesh)
Other Marker Type (optional): n/a
Is Marker Damaged? (required): Yes, graffiti/written on
Other Damage Type (optional): none that we could detect
URL - Website (optional): [Web Link]
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Visit Instructions:
- The marker must be visited in order to log a Waymark
- Pictures are optional, however, if adding a picture try to include one of a different perspective (e.g. different
angle/season/lighting etc.)
- Add any personal experience or research information that would enhance the history of the marker.
- Thanks!
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