Nevada’s Living and Abandoned Ghost Towns

These Five Former Boomtowns Invite You To Step Into the State’s Mining History

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On the northern edge of the Mojave Desert sits the remnants of a former boomtown. There, visitors are greeted by the crumbling concrete bones of a three-story bank and a general store’s broken facade. At the end of town, a shuttered train depot bakes beneath the desert sun. These fragmented structures are all that’s left of Rhyolite, once one of Nevada’s most prosperous mining towns. But like many such places, this “overnight” settlement went bust as quickly as it boomed.

Nevada is home to more than 600 ghost towns. Most are vestiges of the region’s mining boom-and-bust era, which began with the discovery of gold near present-day Dayton in 1849 and continued into the early 20th century. While some of these towns capture the sense of roughness and lawlessness that characterized the Wild West, others enshrine a far more illustrious boom-town past.

Not all ghost towns are alike, however. Some were abandoned and left to the desert, all evidence of any community now gone. Others are what’s known as “living ghost towns,” partially deserted places that are still home to a handful of residents. All ghost towns offer a glimpse into Nevada’s past.

How Did These Ghost Towns Come to Be?

When pioneer Abner Blackburn struck gold in the western Great Basin Desert in 1849, Nevada’s mining history began. Ten years later, the Comstock Lode—one of the richest silver strikes in history—put Washoe, as the area was then known, on the map. For the next several decades, starry-eyed prospectors from around the globe made their way West, hoping to secure their fortune. New towns and cities were quickly founded with hotels, saloons, general stores, pool halls, newspapers, and anything else miners—often followed by their families—might need. When the mine dried up, residents moved on to the next, vacating the place they called home only to build a new one soon after.

Five Nevada Ghost Towns to Explore

From a city born out of the Comstock bonanza to a living ghost town home to southern Nevada’s oldest bar, here are five historic communities where the ghosts of Nevada history live on (in some cases, literally).

Rhyolite

Nevada’s Living and Abandoned Ghost Towns — Rhyolite, Nevada. Travel Nevada

With its decaying brick and concrete structures set amid a backdrop of desert scrub, this beloved boomtown is a photographer’s dream. Prospector Frank “Shorty” Harris discovered gold in the region in 1904, and within a few short years, Rhyolite—named after the area’s silica-rich volcanic rock—was flourishing. The bustling boomtown was home to 18 grocery stores, 19 lodging houses, and 50 saloons, as well as a miner’s union hospital. At its peak, Rhyolite boasted 8,000 residents who enjoyed modern conveniences like concrete sidewalks, indoor plumbing, and electricity. A Mission-style train depot brought in passengers and freight from three different rail lines, and one enterprising miner, Tom T. Kelly, even built a house out of 50,000 beer and liquor bottles.

However, by 1910 the mines began to fail. Ten years later, only 14 or so residents remained. Today, you can walk among the bones of this once prosperous town and marvel at its almost hypnotic state of arrested decay—a striking balance of crumbling ruins juxtaposed with remarkably preserved details. Tom Kelly’s Bottle House has been restored to its former glory, and the adjacent Goldwell Open Air Museum—a modern outdoor art gallery—has its own artifacts rising from the desert dust. The surreal installations include an ethereal display of ghostly figures known as The Last Supper, as well as a tribute to Shorty Harris, immortalized in all his rusted glory, with a towering penguin as his sidekick.

Goodsprings

Only 32 miles southwest of the Vegas Strip, Goodsprings is another world entirely: a bona fide frontier relic that’s home to southern Nevada’s oldest bar, as well as the occasional burro and wild mustang. Goodsprings—named after local cattle rancher Joseph Good—secured its place on the map with the discovery of gold in 1893. By 1918, this bountiful mining district boasted 800 residents.

Although a fire destroyed many of the town’s original structures, a few buildings like the Goodsprings Schoolhouse still stand, as does the Pioneer Saloon. At the latter, you can saddle up to the same Brunswick bar where actor Clark Gable awaited word of his wife Carole Lombard after an ill-fated plane crash or examine a trio of bullet holes in the saloon’s pressed-tin walls—some say the result of a card game gone awry. The historic watering hole is one of Nevada’s many “Sagebrush Saloons,” a colorful nickname for the state's longest-running drinking establishments.

Goldfield

Founded in the early 20th century, Goldfield was home to what is considered the last great gold rush on the Western mining frontier. This grand city flaunted refinement and sophistication during its 1906 heyday, when up to 20,000 residents walked its streets. Four years later, its population had dwindled to just 5,000.

Today, the “living ghost town” is home to 234 people and nearly 50 historic buildings, including the 1907 Historic Esmeralda County Courthouse, a still-in-use native sandstone structure outfitted with its original Tiffany & Co. lamps. Goldfield’s surviving Santa Fe saloon has been slinging drinks for well over a century, while the Goldfield Hotel, a once lavish space of gold leaf ceilings, crystal chandeliers, and even a working elevator that was said to be the “most luxurious hotel between Chicago and San Francisco” sits in a wondrous state of disrepair. Not only is it a favorite among ghost hunters and paranormal investigators, it’s also open for property tours.

The Goldfield Visitor’s Center provides historic walking tour maps and info on local ghost tours. Just outside town, you can try your luck rockhounding at nearby Gemfield, known for its vast array of colorful chalcedony. For oddball art, Goldfield’s International Car Forest of the Last Church is Nevada’s own “Stonehenge,” although this one’s constructed out of automobiles.

Belmont

Unlike many other boomtowns, Belmont—tucked away in the central Nevada hills about 50 miles northeast of Tonopah—enjoyed an unusually long 20-year growth stretch after prospectors struck silver in 1865. At its peak, about 2,000 residents roamed its streets, though this off-the-grid town has never been completely abandoned. Visitors will find charming relics of the town’s boom years, including the stately Belmont Courthouse, a bevy of preserved miners’ cabins and mill sites, and the Monitor-Belmont Mill chimney—which Army Air Force pilots used as target practice during WWII. Belmont even has two operating businesses: an antique store (open during spring and summer) and Dirty Dick’s Belmont Saloon, where ice cold beers and ample whiskey are yours for the asking.

Virginia City

Virginia City, located about 35 miles southeast of Reno, was born directly out of the Comstock Lode’s mining bonanza. At its height, this thriving metropolis (once one of the West’s largest cities) boasted 25,000 residents and riches so vast that the town helped finance the U.S. government during the Civil War.

On October 26, 1875, a massive fire tore through the community, destroying many of its structures. Residents immediately rebuilt its homes, churches, and saloons, but by 1880 Virginia City’s bonanza period was coming to an end.

Today, around 800 people reside here, and its historic district is brimming with wonderfully preserved structures. Spend a night at the historic Gold Hill Hotel and Saloon—which also operated as a private residence, rooming house, and brothel during its 150-plus years. Take a tour of Piper’s Opera House, where local newspaper reporter Mark Twain (a.k.a. Samuel Clemens) once shared his extraordinary stories on stage—or embark on an underground mine tour. The ghosts of Virginia City’s past are said to haunt the rooms of the Washoe Club, once the most elite private social club around, along with Piper’s and the Italianate-style Mackay Mansion, the former property of Comstock millionaire John Mackay.