The silver state. [volume] (Unionville, Nev.) 1870-1903, 1902-01-08
TONOPAH LETTER.
G. D. Van Duzer Gives His Impressions Of the
Famous Mining Camp.

|
bulous mineral riches. The Comstock
was the first to furnish the world with
a sensation. and then followed Eureka,
| Phoebe, Austin, Tuscarora and other
| camps Of less fame in Nevada Mon
| tana furnished her Butte City; Colo
rado her Cripple Creek. Virginia City.
Butte City and Cripple Creek are the
three greatest mining camps in the his
| tory of mining in the West. Tonopah
| Is destined to complete the list and
make a quartette which will be known
as the Big Four"-the Comstock,
Butte, Cripple Creek and Tonopah.
OF the four camps the early history
Of Tonopah is the most picturesque
and sensational Scarce one year old.
it has turned out s1,5Oo.0oo in cash re-
turns. has now on the road to be work
ed $500, 900, has on the dumps, conserva-
lively, SO. .000, ,000, 900, has in sight $1,000
600 more-s1o. 100000 in one year.
| This represents a space 220 feet deep
and 1900 feet long. Where the leasers
| ceased working they have six to eight
feet Of $500 ore. Frank Golden took out
$4,000 the last day Of his lease. Lynch,
Sullivan and Omeara were taking out
$3.50 day the last few days. Cutting
& Brown have on their dump In sacks,
piled like ramparts. about 1000 tons
of sacked ore valued at 5000 per ton.
1000 tons of ore assaying 800
and 1000 tons of $50 rock, representing
$45o, 900. Golden & Sinclair have about
the same. So have Lynch, Sullivan
& Omeara and the Broughers, repre-
famous Mizpah lode.
Nome beach only produced $3.S00,0 600
the first season and caused 10000 peo-
pie to rush to Alaska. Dawson, the
first year. did not equal the first year
of Tonopah's production. 1t was years
before Butte, Cripple Creek or Virginia
City had made such a showing.
1 AS Tonopah stands today, 1t repre-
! sents $10,0000 900 and a permanent camp
for several years to come If the ore
does not go another foot deeper. Con-
servative mining men predict that the
camp is good for ten years and an out
put of 100000, 600
1t is safe to say that Tonopah will
have 5000 population within one year.
Should the various companies now at
west, and the Salt Lake Company
strike the Valley View under the cap
ping that covers the country. the great
est excitement of modern times will
follow and Tonopah will be city of
10000 people.
The elevation of Tonopah is $500 feet
and the surrounding country is highly
mineralized in character. Volcanic
buttes rise to the east and south. 1t is
in burned up desert waste. with a
broken series of volcanic ranges on all
sides.
Water and wood are scarce. Wood
is SIS a cord, water 81 so per barrel,
milk so cts. gallon, eggs so cts. a
dozen. chickens 81 apiece. board s35 a
month, washing So so a dozen. There
are over 500 buildings up and Others
rapidly building. There are eighteen
saloons, two banks, one dozen restau-
rants. two hotels. two drug stores, five
doctors, number of lawyers. a we'll
edited newspaper. numerous stores, two
daily stage lines-cne to Candelaria
and one to Sodaville. Five hundred
head of stock are used in transporting
freight and ore. There is a church.
public school with eighty pupils, and
Miners Union of 600 members. Two
telephone lines are being built.
Tonopah is the greatest drinking
town ever known, and at the same time
the most peaceable and orderly So far
it has cost Nye county only $6S. There
are twenty-five licensed games run
ming. There have been no shooting
scrapes. The big-hearted hospitality
y tha thas made the State of Nevada ia
nous has found it's highest types right
here, and the palmy days of Phoebe.
Austin. Eureka. Virginia City, Tusca-
rora never had better men, more gen
erous in need nor quicker to respond to
4 distress and the needs of sickness. The
old puard of miners whose training
was gained in the early camps in Ne