We had heard about a ghost town just outside of the park toward Beatty, Nevada, so we took off for a day of exploring (and cooling off since we’d be at a higher elevation).
Rhyolite is the largest ghost town in Death Valley, boasting a population of nearly 10,000 people during its peak between 1905 – 1911. We so enjoyed walking around the ruins and imagining. Please walk with us.
came to the town to take out the mined gold.
Time line:
- 1904 – gold found
- 1905 – town established and town-site platted; it was well laid out main street with stores on both sides, a Nob Hill for fancy homes, and many streets
- 1906 – San Francisco earthquake destroys California financial district, jeopardizing funding for Nevada mines
- 1907 – financial panic in the East negatively impacts Nevada mines
- 1908 – estimated population is 5000 – 8000; mines’ production levels fall
- 1910 – people begin to leave; gold production drops!
- 1919 – post office closes
- 1920 – population is estimated at 14
Now for some buildings
Bishop Jewelry (see safe in middle of picture with the door missing?); erected in 1907 at a cost of $45,000 to build; bank had electric lights and indoor plumbing—luxuries for the times
another heavy metal door going into the cell area
2-room building erected in 1905. Although originally built as a residence, was thought to have been a brothel—probably why it lasted in such good shape.
next to a road, we think it was a tavern. See the stairs leading up
from the road to the building?
A gold mine.
growth of the town
Tom Kelly’s Bottle House
It served as a residence to the winning family for many years
and was then a curio shop. The bottles provided insulation so cooler in summer and warmer in winter. It was filled in with adobe and then covered with plaster.
new look at Last Supper
Fascinating place with the ghost town and the art. One more blog on Death Valley to go!
