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Bullionville Nevada

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Bullionville Nevada

Bullionville Nevada Overview

Remnants of this ghost town located in Lincoln County, Nevada are still visible towards the east of the park entrance but no structures from the original site are visible. 

Founded in 1869, Bullionville was built on the discovery of silver ore near Pioche which was prosperous between 1870 and 1882.

Bullionville Nevada is Nevada State Historical Marker #203.

RELATED ARTICLES >> 

  1. Things to do in Lincoln County Nevada
  2. Nevada State Historical Markers
  3. Nevada Ghost Towns
Bullionville loading tailings b 1880.jpg

 By Unknown photographer – Stanley W. Paher, Ghost towns, and Mining Camps, (1970), Howell North, p 297, courtesy of Nevada Historical Society, Public Domain, Link

Bullionville Nevada History

The site for Bullionville was selected due to the location being near a dependable source of water from Meadow Valley Creek. 

The town had hotels, stores, multiple saloons, blacksmith shops, and daily stage service to Pioche. Unfortunately, none of the buildings of the original site survived.

Timeline

  • February 1870 – John H. Ely and W. H. Raymond moved a five-stamp mill to the site and Ely City was established and a year later renamed Bulloinville.
  • 1870 – The 1870 Federal Census shows 96 residents on the census for Buillion Ville, Lincoln County, Nevada.
  • 1870 to 1872 – Nearby Pioche’s mills were built at Bullionville because of its excellent water supply.
  • 1872 – The construction of a narrow gauge railroad with the purpose of hauling ore between the mills and nearby mines.
  • 1872 to 1875 – Bullionville’s population grew quickly with a population of 500.
  • 1873 – The 21-mile-long Pioche and Bullionville Railroad was moving ore.
  • April 1874 – The post office opened.
  • 1875 – A water system between Bullionville and Pioche was completed, which supported Pioche’s water requirements for milling.
  • 1875 – Bullionville slowly declined
  • 1875 – 1877 – The settlement’s mills were moved.
  • 1880 – The 1880 Federal Census shows 68 residents on the census for District 030, Bullionville, Nevada.
  • 1880s –  The railroad between Pioche and Bullionville stopped running and the town was eventually abandoned.
  • November 1886 – The post office closed in November 1886
  • 1900 – The 1900 Federal Census shows the Morgan family (3 persons) and the Clark family (10 persons) living in District 0026, Buillionville, Lincoln County, Nevada.
  • October 1892 – The post office reopened
  • July 1898 – The post office closed again.

 

Unknown photographer, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons

How to Get to Bullionville Nevada

How to Get to Bullionville Nevada

  • Panaca – 2.4 miles – 5 minutes via NV-219 and US-93 N
  • Pioche – 11 miles – 12 minutes via US-93 S
  • Crystal Springs – 59 miles 58 minutes via US-93 N
  • Ely – 117 miles – 1 hour 45 minutes via US-93 / Great Basin Boulevard
  • Las Vegas – 166 miles – 2 hours 33 minutes via US-93 N

Bullionville Cemetery

The Bullionville Cemetery Trail is found at Cathedral Gorge State Park. Cathedral Gorge is located 1 mile north of the intersection of US Highway 93 and State Route 319.

While the land is open to public access, it requires skirting private lands, and possibly opening and closing gates.

There are 10 recorded graves in the Buillionville Cemetery from 1873 – 1941.

The Kiernan Family is buried in the Bullionville Cemetery. John was originally from New York and Philippa was from Denmark.

  1. John Henry Kiernan: 5 Jul 1845 – 6 Jan 1904
  2. Philippa Andrea Anderson: 4 Dec 1854 – 19 Nov 1941 
  3. John Henry Kiernan Jr.: 15 Oct 1879 – 1 Jul 1892
  4. Emery P. Kiernan: 25 Apr 1875 – 27 Sep 1875
  5. Lena P. Kiernan: 5 Mar 1889 – 7 Jul 1892
  6. Lizzie A. Kiernan: 12 Feb 1874 – 25 Jul 1892

Others buried in the Bullionville Cemetery:

  1. Silas B. Goodrich: 1812 – 19 Nov 1873
  2. Keren Happoch Russell Barnum: 1 Feb 1846 – 12 Apr 1876
  3. John Daniel Yoacham: Feb 1873 – 2 Jun 1876
  4. Charles W. “Charley” Knowlton: 20 Nov 1828 – 9 Feb 1900
Bullionville Nevada

Bullionville began early in 1870 when John H. Ely and W. H. Raymond, removed their five-stamp mill at Hiko and placed it at this point. The enterprise prospered and during the next two years most of nearby Pioche’s mills were located here because of the proximity to water. The town grew rapidly and by 1875 it had five mills. A population of 500 and the first iron foundry in eastern Nevada During the same year a water works was constructed at Pioche which eventually led to the relocation of the mills. Although a plant was erected here in 1880 to work the tailings deposited by the former mills. This failed to prevent the decline of Bullionville.

Bullionville Post Office

  • Apr. 27, 1874 – Nov. 11, 1886
  • Oct. 29, 1892 – Aug. 5, 1897
  • Aug. 16, 1897 – Jul. 27, 1898

Population of Bullionville Nevada

At the height of the town’s existence, the town had a population of approximately 500 residents before the town was abandoned.

Nevada Historical Marker Transcription

Bullionville, Nevada is Nevada Historical Marker #203 for the category of Cemetery and Mining and is identified with a blue marker at the GPS coordinates of 37.806563, -114.406246. 

Click here to view the complete list of Nevada State Historical Markers.

Bullionville began early in 1870 when John H. Ely and W. H. Raymond, removed their five-stamp at Hiko and placed it at to this point.  The enterprise prospered and during the next two years most of nearby Pioche’s mills were located here because of the proximity to water.  The town grew rapidly and by 1875 it had five mills, a population of 500, and the first iron foundry in eastern Nevada.  During the same year a water works was constructed at Pioche, which eventually led to the relocation of the mills.  Although a plant was erected here in 1880 to work the tailings deposited by the former mills, this failed to prevent the decline of Bullionville.

STATE HISTORICAL MARKER No. 203

STATE HISTORIC PRESERVATION OFFICE

NEVADA HISTORICAL SOCIETY

Nearby Historical Markers

Lincoln County is home to fourteen Nevada Historical Markers. As we visit each we will link the articles below for you to learn more about the history of the site the marker represents.

Click here to view Nevada Historical Markers.

  1. #203 Bullionville 
  2. #205 Crystal Springs 
  3. #55 Culverwell’s Ranch 
  4. #90 Delamar 
  5. #206 Hiko 
  6. #204 Jackrabbit 
  7. #57 Old Boundary (Nevada’s Southern Boundary 1861-1867) 
  8. #38 Pahranagat Valley 
  9. #39 Panaca 
  10. #93 Panaca Mercantile Store 
  11. #160 Panaca Spring 
  12. #182 Panaca Ward Chapel 
  13. #5 Pioche 
  14. #249 Union Pacific Depot – 1923 

Things to Do

A visit to Cathedral Gorge State Park is a must!

Resources Used

Bullionville Nevada