We kept seeing the McGill Drug Store on the map of what to do and see around Ely, so we drove the 10 miles from our campsite and found it on Main Street.
It operated as a pharmacy and drug store from 1915 to 1979 when the owner-pharmacist died. The pharmacy was emptied of prescription medicine by the appropriate officials, and his wife continued the drug store for another 10 years. When she retired, she locked the doors behind her, deeding the store to a museum in Ely. Everything is as she left it, including the fixtures. Some applicants are from before WWII, and products from the 1950s and 60s are still on the shelves. It was like going back to our childhoods. Have a look.
Keith said that this small town produced a number of notable people. One high school graduate went to Annapolis and then went onto be commander of all air assets in the Pacific (not sure what year), another graduate was on the design team responsible for the Mars rover, a third was U.S. Coast Guard rear admiral A.J Carpenter, and Kathy Ong became the wife of Nevada governor Steve Sisolak. Pat Nixon, wife of President Richard Nixon, was born in nearby Ely.
As were were talking with Sue and Keith, we kept seeing these large trucks pulling 2 or 3 huge covered bins, and we asked about them. Sue said they were they carrying copper ore from the same mine as before (now Robinson Nevada Mining Company) to the trains up north to be sent eastward. Then they told us that in the smelting days, the ore without copper had been dumped for years in the open basin area to the west of town. To control the dust and to get some good out of the land, the residents started dumping dirt on the layer of ore and then planting hay and hemp. Now they are making a profit out of the dumped ore, making lemonade out of lemons again.
behind the pharmacy counter
fun products on the shelves
McGill info
to the mill. No wonder they wanted to process it so just the copper
could extracted for sending to factories in the East.
local swimming pool
Sue told us about the town’s warm spring pool that she took her kids to almost every day when they were young. Her youngest could swim across it by the age of 2 because of her swimming lessons! Sue said the water was warm when the air was cool and cool when the air was warm.
Keith told us about a beautiful drive that starts just north of town, so we’re off for a drive on Success Loop.
