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Searchlight Nevada

Searchlight Nevada

Searchlight Nevada Overview

In 1897, gold and other ore discoveries were made here.

In 1907, a Railroad spur connected the town with the then main Santa Fe line from Needles to Mojave.

This town is also the birthplace of former U.S. Senator and Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid.

Category

  • Mining
  • Person
  • Railroad

Marker Type

Blue marker, which is unreadable.

Nevada Historical Marker Number

Searchlight Nevada is Nevada Historical Marker #116.

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

County

Clark County, Nevada

GPS Coordinates

35.468306, -114.922614

Nevada Historical Marker Transcription

Initial discoveries of predominately gold ore were first made at this location on May 6, 1897.  G.F. Colton filed the first claim, later to become the Duplex Mine.  The Quartette Mining Company, formed in 1900, became the mainstay of the Searchlight district, producing almost half of the area’s total output.  In May 1902, a 16 mile narrow-gauge railroad was built down the hill to the company’s mill on the Colorado River.

On March 31, 1907, the 23.22 mile Barnwell and Searchlight Railroad connected the town with the then main Santa Fe line from Needles to Mojave.  By 1919 trains travelled over the B. and S. Railroad only twice a week.  A severe washout on September 23, 1923, halted traffic completely.  Train service was never restored.

Searchlight is the birthplace of U.S. Senator Harry Reid (b.1939) who became the first Nevadan to serve as the Senate Majority Leader, a position he assumed in 2007.

STATE HISTORICAL MARKER No. 116

STATE HISTORIC PRESERVATION OFFICE

References Used

Searchlight Nevada