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Tonopah, located in the hills of the San Antonio mountains, halfway between Las Vegas and Reno, became a boomtown in 1900 after Belmont resident and prospector Jim Butler accidentally discovered rich silver ore on his way to the Klondike. The discovery eventually produced more than $150 million in ore and spawned Nevada's last great mining rush. As residents of nearby towns rushed to the area, the county seat was transferred from Belmont to Tonopah in 1905.
Tonopah was a bustling town after silver ore was discovered in 1900.
Since venture capital was difficult to obtain, the Butlers and their partners initiated the concept of mine claim leasing by the foot, with the lessor receiving 75 percent of all profits from his claim. This arrangement greatly speeded the development of the district. The Butlers eventually sold their interests to a Philadelphia financier, who formed the Tonopah Mining Company. Mines in the Tonopah/Belmont area produced more than five million tons of ore. At today's prices, this amount would be valued in excess of $1,200,000,000.
Tonopah's mines continue to draw tourists to the town.
The Butlers' Mizpah mine turned out to be one of the richest producers in the area but production in the town began to decline noticeably about 1913 and the glory days were a thing of the past. Today, however, Tonopah is far from being a ghost town. In addition to homes, hotels, restaurants and other businesses, the hills are dotted with mining relics. One of the popular local attractions is the Tonopah Historic Mining Park, which encompasses portions of four of the major mining companies and covers over 100 acres.
One of the oldest buildings in town is the Castle House, built by Arthur Raycraft in 1906, at the height of the silver boom. Raycraft, a mining capitalist and entrepreneur, installed the first wireless telegraph system in Nevada. Joni and Dennis Eastley bought Raycraft's Queen Anne in 1998 and proceeded to replace the heating, electrical and plumbing systems, and repaired damage from a fire. As the work progressed, they uncovered the home's original stone exterior, which is now a prized interior wall.
The Eastleys repaired the original ceiling on the second floor, where dances and other social events were once held, reinstalled the home's original windows, and reconstructed the original wood banister. The pair incorporated their collection of architectural salvage in the house, and went on buying trips to Sacramento, Reno and Las Vegas in search of the right wallpapers, moldings and other building materials that were not available in Tonopah. Chris Bramwell, a friend of the Eastleys and owner/restorer of the nearby Belmont Monitor Inn, shared his restoration advice experience throughout the project.
Tonopah Resources
Tonopah's Mizpah Hotel
Central Nevada Museum
Logan Field Road, PO Box 326, Tonopah, NV 89049
775-482-9676, Fax: 775-482-5423
http://www.tonopahnevada.com/CentralNevadaMuseum.html
Nevada Commission on Tourism
401 North Carson Street, Carson City, NV 89701
775 687-4322, Toll-free: 800-NEVADA-8, Fax: 775-687-6779
ncot@travelnevada.com,
http://www.travelnevada.com
Preserving the Glory Days: Ghost Towns and Mining Camps of Nye County, Nevada by Shawn Hall (University of Nevada Press, 1998)
Tonopah Chamber of Commerce
301 Brougher Ave., PO Box 869, Tonopah, NV 89049
775-482-3859, Fax: 775-482-3932
Tonopah Convention and Visitor's Authority.
301 Brougher Ave., PO Box 408, Tonopah, NV 89049
775-482-3558, Toll-free: 877-TONOPAH (866-6724), Fax: 775-482-3932
welcometo-tonopah-nevada@tonopahnevada.com
http://www.tonopahnevada.com
Tonopah Historic Mining Park
PO Box 965, Tonopah, NV 89049-0965, 775-482-9274, Fax: 775-482-9327
http://www.tonopahnevada.com/tonopahhistoricminingpark.htm
A History of Tonopah
Nevada History on the Web
Virginia City and Reno
Images of Days Gone by in Tonopah, Nevada
Letter reaches Tonopah three days after Marine dies in Iraq
Associated Press
March 27, 2003 10:51 a.m.
LAS VEGAS (AP) - Three days after he was killed in Iraq, 2nd Lt. Frederick Pokorney Jr.'s letter reached the Nevada man he considered his father.
The letter was dated March 8, and Pokorney said he was bored. His Marine brigade was waiting in Kuwait to cross the border into Iraq. He wanted to move, or go home. He didn't want to miss his daughter's birthday.
"That was Fred," former Nye County Sheriff Wade Lieseke told the Reno Gazette-Journal on Wednesday from his Tonopah home. "He wanted to get into it."
Lieseke could not be immediately reached Thursday by The Associated Press.
Pokorney, 31, was the first Nevada casualty in the Iraq war.
He was one of at least nine Marines killed Sunday in fighting near An Nasiriyah. The Pentagon said they were ambushed after some Iraqi soldiers feigned surrender.
All were based at Camp Lejeune, N.C., where Pokorney was assigned to the Headquarters Battery, 1st Battalion, 10th Marine Regiment, 2nd Marine Expeditionary Brigade.
A 1989 graduate of Tonopah High School, Pokorney lived for about two years in the high desert town about midway between Las Vegas and Reno. He played basketball and football and made his own way, living with Lieseke and, for about six months, with his basketball coach. He still listed "Nye, Nev.," with the military as his hometown.
The school and Tonopah's 3,600 residents plan a memorial Friday morning at the school.
Pokorney's wife, Chelle, and their 2 1/2-year-old daughter, Taylor Rochelle, live in Jacksonville, N.C., outside Camp Lejeune.
Lieseke said that when a Marine notification contingent arrived at the door of the family home, Taylor screamed.
"She knew," Lieseke said of the toddler. "Pretty perceptive child."
She may have overheard her parents talking about the process the military uses for soldiers caught in harm's way, said Lieseke, who served 12 years as county sheriff before retiring this year.
"If you're wounded, they send you a telegram," he said. "If you're dead, they send a Marine."
Pokorney's letter was upbeat, eager, and "talked about all the things he wanted to do when he got home," Lieseke said.
It spoke of Pokorney's yearning for a custom motorcycle, but said he might buy a boat insteadsomething the whole family could enjoy.
"He was always thinking about his family, what was best for them," Lieseke said.
Lieseke said that Pokorney, a well-muscled 6-5 and 240 pounds, was his family's unwavering foundation.
"He was such a big, strong athlete," Lieseke said. "It didn't seem like anything could hurt him."
Thursday, March 27, 2003
For more information about Lt. Frederick E. Pokorney, Jr.
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