Midas is a small

unincorporated community An unincorporated area is a parcel of land that is not governed by a local general-purpose municipal corporation. (At p. 178.) They may be governed or serviced by an encompassing unit (such as a county) or another branch of the state (such as th ...

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 landlocked state in the Western United States. It borders Oregon to the northwest, Idaho to the northeast, California to the west, Arizona to the southeast, and Utah to the east. Nevada is the seventh-most extensive, th ...

. Although its population has fluctuated greatly over the years, it has never been completely abandoned. Alongside Jarbidge, the town was known as one of the biggest twentieth-century gold mining towns in Elko County.

History

Midas' history began with the town being named Gold Circle. In June 1907, James McDuffy discovered gold at the base of Owyhee Bluffs in

Elko County, Nevada Elko County is a County (United States), county in the northeastern corner of Nevada, United States. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the population was 53,702. Its county seat is Elko, Nevada, Elko. The county was established ...

. Two towns, Gold Circle and

Summit A summit is a point on a surface that is higher in elevation than all points immediately adjacent to it. The topographic terms acme, apex, peak (mountain peak), and zenith are synonymous. The term (mountain top) is generally used only for ...

were quickly created in proximity thereto. A post office was established at Gold Circle in 1907, and remained in operation until 1942. By 1908, many people moved to Gold Circle to establish mines, with the population exceeding 1,000 people by April that year. Then in 1909, with the dissolution of Summit, the federal government changed the name of Gold Circle to Midas, after

King Midas Midas (; ) was a king of Phrygia with whom many myths became associated, as well as two later members of the Phrygian royal house. His father was Gordias, and his mother was Cybele. The most famous King Midas is popularly remembered in Greek m ...

. Despite the number of available gold ores in the area, miners found themselves unable to fully reap benefits due to the lack of

stamp mill A stamp mill (or stamp battery or stamping mill) is a type of Mill (grinding), mill machine that crushes material by pounding rather than Mill (grinding), grinding, either for further processing or for extraction of metallic ores. Breaking materia ...

s, leading to only the highest quality gold ores being prioritized for shipping to mills located at a distance from Midas. Due to this limitation, the sudden influx of residents in Midas was soon followed by an equally drastic reduction: by the end of 1909, only 250 residents remained. To address the pressing need for stamp mills, several mining companies that had taken residence in the town ended up establishing six mills by the end of 1909, which, in total, could accommodate 119 tonnes of gold. With this expansion and others in the following years, Midas experienced a second mining boom that lasted from 1916 to 1921.

References

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