Tuscarora (

Shoshoni language Shoshoni, also written as Shoshoni-Gosiute and Shoshone (; Shoshoni: soni ta̲i̲kwappe'', ''newe ta̲i̲kwappe'' or ''neme ta̲i̲kwappeh'') is a Numic language of the Uto-Aztecan family, spoken in the Western United States by the Shoshone ...

: Tosa Konoki) is an

unincorporated community An unincorporated area is a region that is not governed by a local municipal corporation. Widespread unincorporated communities and areas are a distinguishing feature of the United States and Canada. Most other countries of the world either have ...

Elko County Elko County is a county in the northeastern corner of Nevada, United States. As of the 2020 census, the population was 53,702. Its county seat is Elko. The county was established on March 5, 1869, from Lander County. Elko County is the fourth ...

Nevada Nevada ( ; ) is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, 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. N ...

, United States. The community lies on the east side of the

Tuscarora Mountains The Tuscarora Mountains are a mountain range in Elko and Eureka counties of northern, Nevada. The southern perimeter of the north-south mountain range is the Humboldt River and valley. The community of Tuscarora lies on the east flank of the range ...

approximately 40 miles north of Carlin. Tuscarora is part of the Elko Micropolitan Statistical Area. Far from being 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'' ...

, as several websites proclaim, Tuscarora is home to two schools, a library, a post office and a bar and grill, as well as homes for its very much alive residents.

History

Tuscarora was founded in Elko County after an expedition by trader William Heath to find gold, in 1867. The community derives its name from the

Tuscarora people The Tuscarora (in Tuscarora ''Skarù:ręˀ'', "hemp gatherers" or "Shirt-Wearing People") are a Native American tribe and First Nations band government of the Iroquoian family, with members today in New York, USA, and Ontario, Canada. They c ...

. As miners flocked to the town, a fort was built to offer protection from Indian raids and a water ditch was created to supply the town with water. Many Chinese men who had been employed by the

Central Pacific Railroad The Central Pacific Railroad (CPRR) was a rail company chartered by Pacific Railroad Acts, U.S. Congress in 1862 to build a railroad eastwards from Sacramento, California, to complete the western part of the "First transcontinental railroad" in N ...

(CPR) relocated to the town and began placer mining. By 1870, Tuscarora had a population of 119, of whom 104 were Chinese. A post office was established at Tuscarora in 1871. A boom began following the discovery of

silver ore 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 cond ...

. In 1879, the population of Tuscarora reached 1,500, making it one of the larger settlements in entire Nevada.Nevada Ghost Towns. Tuscarora A second mining boom occurred between 1883 to 1887, racking up an equally high amount of silver as it did during its first boom as a result of several newly built mines in the 1870s. However, the silver production generated in the mines established during this mining boom period did not yield the same amount of production as they had previously, and mining companies in Tuscarora started entering into a decline period, with several mines, such as the Young America mine, closing down in the early 1890s. Despite this, several mining companies continued operating, and at one point, gold production was higher than silver during the late 1890s and early 1900s. In 1987, exploration for microscopic gold mining was initiated, resulting in Horizon Gold establishing a permanent mine for silver and gold extraction in 1989, which lasted until 1991.

Education

Tuscarora is home to two small schools provided by the Elko County School District. Tuscarora has a

public library A public library is a library that is accessible by the general public and is usually funded from public sources, such as taxes. It is operated by librarians and library paraprofessionals, who are also Civil service, civil servants. There are ...

, a branch of the Elko-Lander-Eureka County Library System.

Notable people

Wheezer Dell William George "Wheezer" Dell (June 11, 1886 – August 24, 1966) was an American Major League Baseball pitcher in 1912 and 1915–17. Dell pitched for the St. Louis Cardinals and Brooklyn Robins. He was the first Nevada-born player in major leag ...

, He was the first Nevada-born player in

Major League Baseball Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball organization and the oldest major professional sports league in the world. MLB is composed of 30 total teams, divided equally between the National League (NL) and the American League (AL), ...

History.

References

External links

Elko County website

Unincorporated communities in Elko County, Nevada Unincorporated communities in Nevada Elko, Nevada micropolitan area {{ElkoCountyNV-geo-stub