Some 60 years ago, I grew up in a small town in eastern Nevada (pronounced “Neh-VADD-uh”). When people would ask where you were from, the typical response would be “Well I’m from White Pine County”. Sounds like an odd response, but when you consider back in 1970, the census had the entire population of the county at 10,150 residents. There were three main towns in the county, McGill, Ely and Ruth with a few other much smaller communities.
White Pine County was our playground and backyard. There was 8,897 square miles for us to play in and explore as it was all BLM or National forest land. We hunted, fished, camped, and drove the many miles of dirt roads in the hills and mountains. The main economy back in the 60’s was mining, and we mined millions of tons of copper ore from the open pit mine at Ruth. Ely had the railroad and supplies, whereas McGill had the smelter that turned the ore into copper. To move the ore from Ruth to McGill, there was a train which ran back and forth. We were proud of our mining heritage, which brings me to the story I’d like to tell…
Back in the late 60’s, I was fishing with my father on a small reservoir called Illipah @48 miles to the west of Ely. Fishing was slow with the sky heating up, and I remember my dad asking me if I wanted to go see an old ghost town? Being curious, I said “okay”! So, we loaded up the gear and drove higher into the mountains to what would become a lifelong passion for exploring our western history. As we cleared the last crest, I saw my first ghost town…Hamilton, Nevada.
Hamilton Nevada
In 1859 large, rich silver deposits were discovered at Virginia City making it one of the richest regions in the country. On April 12th, 1861, the Civil war between the North and South began in the East and in early 1864, President Lincoln proposed the 13th Amendment banning slavery. To gather support in congress, Lincoln realized by making the Nevada territory a state and making the right appointments he could hedge his chances of winning an election and gaining support for his proposed 13th Amendment.
But time is of the essence, to be considered for statehood, a territory needs to submit a state constitution so it can be ratified by congress. Now imagine this, it’s late October, the next national election takes place in a few weeks, you just finished the document and your stuck out in the middle of a territory. What do you do?
Send it by telegraph of course! State officials sent the entire document via a series of “dots and dashes” to Washington DC. It was pushed through congress and on October 31st, 1864, Nevada became the 36th state in the Union. Thus, the state motto “Battle Born”.
A plate of beans
As the story goes, in 1867 an Indian broke into a miner’s cabin, ate his leftovers and was caught by the miner. To repay the miner for eating his plate of beans, he took the miner to the top of a 10,500 ft peak where there was an outcropping of silver.
This outcropping would soon yield to a 40’ wide by 70’ long silver strike that was only 28’ below the surface. By 1869 over 6,000 people lived on top of the mountain in a town called Treasure Hill which stretched for over a mile.
The mined ore was transported down the mountain by mule to another newly created town called Hamilton.
When Hamilton was first created it was known as “Cave City” with many of the miners living in caves in the surrounding hills.
In 1869, the city of Hamilton had an estimated population of 12,000. It boasted over 100 saloons, breweries, over 60 general stores, theaters, dance halls, skating rinks, and miners’ union hall. There was @200 mining companies who operated in the area. It was soon to be the county seat for White Pine County.
Rapid Decline
As with most silver strikes in Nevada, the town of Hamilton was to be short lived. By 1870, the silver deposits were proving to be very shallow and unprofitable. Many of the mining companies had packed up their equipment and moved on to other areas.
By 1870, the population of the town had declined to less than 3,900 people. Tragedy struck the town on June 27, 1873, when a fire ravaged the business district, burning down most of the buildings including many of the town’s records and documents. By the end of 1873 only 500 people remained in the town and in 1887 Ely became the newly designated county seat of White Pine.
A few residents remained in Hamilton until 1931, but with the closing of the Post Office the town became a ghost town. But in its short history, it was said the mines brought out over 20 million dollars in silver and some of the purest ore produced in the state.
Present Day
Today, its hard to imagine the grandeur that existed some 150 years ago in the once thriving towns of Hamilton and Treasure Hill. Not much remains, just scattered stacks of stone where buildings once stood, traces of old foundations and wood structures that are in near collapse from years of weather. Some of the last remaining walls have had their mortared interior “pock marked” from bullet holes. But there are still enough of the structures to admire the architecture and craftsmanship of hand fit stonework. If you visit the cemetery, you will see many immigrants from Italy, Germany, Ireland, and other countries where stonework was perfected. It is evident that the immigrants brought their skillsets to the lonely Nevada hillsides. Another interesting fact is many of the roofs you may see are actually tiled with flattened steel cans. If you look careful, you might be able to make out the old labels.
To Reach Hamilton
To reach the Hamilton/Treasure Hill area from Ely, take Highway 50 east for @47.5 miles then look for the Illipah Reservoir turnout. Turn towards the reservoir looking for the sign that points towards Hamilton. It’s a ten-mile road that climbs higher into the mountains. The road is very passible and an a 4WD is not generally required (depends on seasonal weather). Along the way, you may see mule deer or some of the many wild mustangs that graze in the area.
Once you arrive at Hamilton, the existing county road is what used to be the main street. If you want to go to Treasure Hill, turn right at the fork on the south end of the town then proceed to the top of the peak using the same road that once had hundreds of mule teams pulling heavy ore carts. Be advised, this road can be rough and do expect to get some “pin-stripping” from the overgrown brush. If you visit the area, please remember to tread lightly…
As this blog builds, I will talk about other ghost towns and tidbits of the west. I hope you will join me on my journey as I explore more of our western heritage… 
Next post I’ll take you into the Belmont mine just to the west of Hamilton. Stay tuned…
Although we have been to Hamilton, & Belmont, we enjoyed the history you printed out. Always wondered where the “Battle Born” motto came from. The area is beautiful & always fun to throw a line in at Illipah!
Margaret Cooper
Cool photos. I too like to snoop around the old farmsteads here on the nd prairie. Looks like fun.