ghost town
A ghost town, deserted city, extinct town, or abandoned city is an abandoned settlement, usually one that contains substantial visible remaining buildings and infrastructure such as roads. A town often becomes a ghost town because the economi ...
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 ...
, in the United States.
History
Toano was created by the
Central Pacific Railroad
The Central Pacific Railroad (CPRR) was a rail company chartered by U.S. Congress in 1862 to build a railroad eastwards from Sacramento, California, to complete most of the western part of the "First transcontinental railroad" in North Americ ...
in 1868. A post office was in operation at Toano from 1869 until 1906. The town was the western terminus of the Salt Lake Division of the railroad. In 1870, Toano had a population of 117, including hotels and stores. Between 1873 and 1874, the town was plagued by two fires that destroyed several buildings and a hotel. The start of the end of the town was in 1884, when the
Oregon Short Line Railroad
The Oregon Short Line Railroad was a railroad in Wyoming, Idaho, Utah, Montana and Oregon in the United States. The line was organized as the Oregon Short Line Railway in 1881 as a subsidiary of the Union Pacific Railway. The Union Pacific int ...
was completed and all traffic from Idaho was eliminated leading to the town quickly losing its importance. Toano officially became a
ghost town
A ghost town, deserted city, extinct town, or abandoned city is an abandoned settlement, usually one that contains substantial visible remaining buildings and infrastructure such as roads. A town often becomes a ghost town because the economi ...