Rio Tinto 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 Elko 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.

History

Rio Tinto was one of the last mining boom towns. It was named after the prosperous copper mines in

Andalusia Andalusia (, ; es, Andalucía ) is the southernmost autonomous community in Peninsular Spain. It is the most populous and the second-largest autonomous community in the country. It is officially recognised as a "historical nationality". The t ...

, Spain that produced ore for 3,000 years.. The discovery of copper mines near Rio Tinto is credited to Franklyn Hunt, who had explored in the west for many years. Hunt had found traces of copper a few miles from Mountain City, Nevada. He had claimed his discovery, but no one except the brothers Walt and Jack Davidson had enough faith in Hunt to grub stake him. For years, Hunt predicted that ore would be found at . He found copper in 1932. This information spread and started a rush in the area, including creation of the town. Rio Tinto was not affected by the onset of

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...

. The decline of the mine began after the end of the war: the price of copper had decreased and the mine became unprofitable. All operations had ceased by 1948 and Rio Tinto quickly became a ghost town. The post office, started in 1936, was discontinued in February 1948. Oddly, Rio Tinto itself does not have a GNIS entry, but the Rio Tinto post office has a GNIS entry. Some cleanup was done, and many of the old buildings were moved. Nowadays what remains are a few houses and the school (the largest building).

Notes

{{Elko County, Nevada Ghost towns in Elko County, Nevada Elko, Nevada micropolitan area Ghost towns in Nevada