Crystal Springs is a

ghost town Ghost Town(s) or Ghosttown may refer to: * Ghost town, a town that has been abandoned Film and television * ''Ghost Town'' (1936 film), an American Western film by Harry L. Fraser * ''Ghost Town'' (1956 film), an American Western film by All ...

in the

Pahranagat Valley The Pahranagat Valley is a Tonopah Basin landform in Lincoln County, Nevada. The more fertile part of Pahranagat Valley is a narrow ribbon of green (no more than wide) like an oasis in the vast Nevada desert. It is approximately long running nor ...

region of Lincoln County,

Nevada Nevada ( ; ) is a state in the Western region of the United States. It is bordered by Oregon to the northwest, Idaho to the northeast, California to the west, Arizona to the southeast, and Utah to the east. Nevada is the 7th-most extensive, ...

in the United States. The ghost town is located at the junction of State Route 318 and State Route 375 (Extraterrestrial Highway), just northwest of U.S. Route 93. It is a popular destination for passersby who want to visit the towns of

Hiko Hiko may refer to: * Hiko, Nevada * the male or gender neutral version of Hime * Hiko (juggling), juggling in Tongan dance, see Ula (dance) * Mount Hiko , is a mountain on the border between Fukuoka Prefecture and Ōita Prefecture in Kyūsh� ...

and

Rachel Rachel () was a Biblical figure, the favorite of Jacob's two wives, and the mother of Joseph and Benjamin, two of the twelve progenitors of the tribes of Israel. Rachel's father was Laban. Her older sister was Leah, Jacob's first wife. Her aun ...

. The namesake of the ghost town, the Crystal Springs, lies nearby; it is a large group of

marshes A marsh is a wetland that is dominated by herbaceous rather than woody plant species.Keddy, P.A. 2010. Wetland Ecology: Principles and Conservation (2nd edition). Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, UK. 497 p Marshes can often be found at ...

and springs along the White River. Crystal Springs provides

irrigation Irrigation (also referred to as watering) is the practice of applying controlled amounts of water to land to help grow crops, landscape plants, and lawns. Irrigation has been a key aspect of agriculture for over 5,000 years and has been devel ...

for multiple nearby ranches and farms, some of which lie over 5 miles away from the springs. The ghost town is marked as

Nevada Historical Marker Nevada historical markers identify significant places of interest in Nevada's history. The Historic Marker Program was initiated by the Nevada State Legislature in 1967 to bring the state's heritage to the public's attention with on-site markers. ...

205 (Crystal Springs).

History

The earliest reported uses of the spring were by a Native American village. The springs provided water for people traveling the Mormon Trail. In 1865, Crystal Springs was the first area in Lincoln County where mining grade

silver Silver is a chemical element with the symbol Ag (from the Latin ', derived from the Proto-Indo-European ''h₂erǵ'': "shiny" or "white") and atomic number 47. A soft, white, lustrous transition metal, it exhibits the highest electrical ...

ore Ore is natural rock or sediment that contains one or more valuable minerals, typically containing metals, that can be mined, treated and sold at a profit.Encyclopædia Britannica. "Ore". Encyclopædia Britannica Online. Retrieved 7 Apr ...

was discovered. This led to Crystal Springs becoming the first county seat of Lincoln County from 1866 to 1867, although it was later replaced by

Hot springs

The Crystal Springs

thermal spring A hot spring, hydrothermal spring, or geothermal spring is a spring produced by the emergence of geothermally heated groundwater onto the surface of the Earth. The groundwater is heated either by shallow bodies of magma (molten rock) or by circ ...

has a water temperature of 81°F.

References

{{Lincoln County, Nevada Populated places established in 1866 Ghost towns in Lincoln County, Nevada Springs of Nevada Ghost towns in Nevada Bodies of water of Lincoln County, Nevada 1866 establishments in Nevada Nevada historical markers