Nevadaville was a

gold-mining Gold mining is the extraction of gold resources by mining. Historically, mining gold from alluvial deposits used manual separation processes, such as gold panning. However, with the expansion of gold mining to ores that are not on the surface, ...

town in

Gilpin County Gilpin County is a county located in the U.S. state of Colorado, smallest in land area behind only the City and County of Broomfield. As of the 2020 census, the population was 5,808. The county seat is Central City. The county was formed in 18 ...

Colorado Colorado (, other variants) is a state in the Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. It encompasses most of the Southern Rocky Mountains, as well as the northeastern portion of the Colorado Plateau and the western edge of t ...

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

. It was also known in the 1860s and 1870s as Nevada City. The post office at Nevadaville was called the Bald Mountain post office, to avoid confusion with other Nevadas and Nevadavilles. The community is now largely 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), ''Ghost Town'' (1936 film), an American Western film by Harry L. Fraser * Ghost Town (1956 film), ''Ghost Town'' ...

, although not completely deserted. The Nevadaville Masonic Temple that started in 1861 still holds regular meetings.

History

Nevadaville started in 1859, soon after John H. Gregory found the first lode gold in what is now Colorado. At the time, the townsite was in western

Kansas Territory The Territory of Kansas was an organized incorporated territory of the United States that existed from May 30, 1854, until January 29, 1861, when the eastern portion of the territory was admitted to the United States, Union as the Slave and ...

. The town grew to house the miners working the Burroughs lode and the Kansas lode. The population was predominantly Irish. The town was one of the most important mining settlements in the area. A Masonic lodge was organized in 1859 from the Kansas Grand Lodge, becoming Nevada Number 36. After only one regular meeting, the lodge relinquished their charter and came under the jurisdiction of the new Grand Lodge of Colorado who had taken over the territory. The new charter was granted and the lodge became

Nevada Lodge Number 4 The Nevadaville Masonic Temple is the Masonic lodge building in the ghost town of Nevadaville, Colorado, just outside of Central City, Colorado. History The building has served and continues to serve one lodge of Freemasons, that of Nevada Lodge N ...

. The lodge still holds meetings as the only Ghost town lodge in Colorado. In 1861 a large fire destroyed 50+ buildings, (including naturalist and taxidermist

Martha Maxwell Martha Ann Maxwell (née Dartt 21 July 1831 – 31 May 1881) was an American naturalist, artist and taxidermist. She helped found modern taxidermy. Maxwell's pioneering diorama displays are said to have influenced major figures in taxidermy h ...

's boardinghouse). However, residents made effective use of TNT to save the remaining parts of the city from the fire. Nevadaville rebuilt after fire destroyed a large piece of the town. A more serious threat to the town was the fact that the near-surface oxidized portions of the veins were worked out in the early 1860s. The rudimentary ore mills had trouble recovering gold from the deeper sulfide ores. The continued prosperity of Nevadaville was assured by the construction of successful ore smelters in nearby

Black Hawk Black Hawk and Blackhawk may refer to: Animals * Black Hawk (horse), a Morgan horse that lived from 1833 to 1856 * Common black hawk, ''Buteogallus anthracinus'' * Cuban black hawk, ''Buteogallus gundlachii'' * Great black hawk, ''Buteogallus ur ...

.Charles W. Henderson (1926) ''Mining in Colorado'', US Geological Survey, Professional Paper 138, p.30. Nevadaville prospered until about 1900, after which the population declined sharply.

Geography

Nevadaville is south of

Central City In urban planning, a core city, principal city metropolitan core, or central city, is the largest or most important city or cities of a metropolitan area. A core city is surrounded by smaller satellite cities, towns, and suburbs. A central city i ...

at , at an altitude of 9050 feet (2760 m) above mean sea level.

References

External links

Rocky Mountain Profiles: ''Nevadaville Colorado Townsite - Ghost town''

Ancient Free and Accepted Masons of Colorado: ''Nevada Lodge #4''

Western Mining History: ''Nevadaville, Colorado''

Full Resolution Ghost Town and Historic Photos by Coloradopast.com
Former populated places in Gilpin County, Colorado Geography of Gilpin County, Colorado Ghost towns in Colorado Pre-statehood history of Colorado {{US-ghost-town-stub

History

Geography

See also

References

External links