Goldfield (Nevada)

Goldfield
	; Goldfield Court House from 1907
Location in Nevada
	Goldfield
	Goldfield
Basic data
Foundation :	around 1902
State :	United States
State :	Nevada
County :	Esmeralda County
Coordinates :	37 ° 43 ′ N , 117 ° 14 ′ W Coordinates: 37 ° 43 ′ N , 117 ° 14 ′ W
Time zone :	Pacific ( UTC − 8 / −7 )
Residents :	268 (as of 2010 )
GNIS ID :	854468

Goldfield is a former gold rush town on US Highway 95 in the US state of Nevada . Today the city is sometimes viewed as a ghost town , although about 440 people still live there. It is the administrative seat of Esmeralda County .

history

Goldfield 1904

Gold was discovered in the region in 1902. As early as 1904, gold was mined to the value of 2,300,000 dollars, which alone accounted for 30% of state production that year. Goldfield mines produced $ 86 million in gold between 1903 and 1940. Goldfield quickly grew to a considerable size and housed up to 30,000 residents during its boom. In 1905 Virgil Earp , one of the Earp brothers and involved in the OK Corral shooting , was hired as sheriff in Goldfield. However, he died of pneumonia a few months later. His brother Wyatt Earp , who was also in Goldfield, then left the city.

In 1906 Goldfield had a population of 30,000. The people of Goldfield wanted to bring their place into the spotlight of the US and asked for the help of Tex Rickard . He knew that boxing matches would get the attention they wanted in the newspapers. He managed to bring the lightweight boxing world championship (57-60 kg) to the city. Tex Rickards had converted his “Northern Saloon” into a boxing arena with 8,000 seats, but twice as many spectators came to see the boxing match between Joe Gans and Oscar Mathæus Nielsen . The fight took place on the 1st Monday in September (Labor Day) 1906. In the most famous fight of the lower weight classes of the early 20th century, the Danish-born Nielsen ("Battling Nelson") met the counter-boxer Gans, the second African-American world champion in modern boxing history. On lap 42, Gans won after a low blow from Nelson. This record is still in the " Guinness Book of World Records ". The winner, Joe Gans, received $ 30,000 in prize money. On July 4, 1908, Nelson challenged him again to regain the title, knocking him out in the 7th round. In another fight two months later, Nelson won again in round 21.

Strikes by the miners in Goldfield first made the radical union Industrial Workers of the World known. The IWW worked there with the Western Federation of Miners . In addition to the miners, she succeeded in organizing large sections of the workforce in the then booming gold rush town. The city administration also sympathized with the union. During a banking crisis in 1907, the miners were no longer paid in cash but in promissory notes. The subsequent strikes took the mine owners as an opportunity to break the influence of the IWW. They arranged for federal troops to be deployed, which John Sparks , then governor of Nevada, called for help. US President Theodore Roosevelt later rated the use of troops as inappropriate.

In 1907, Goldfield State Bank collapsed following the demise of one of the leading mining companies. As early as 1910, the city had only 4838 inhabitants. In 1923, a large part of the city fell victim to a fire. The wooden buildings in particular were destroyed. A few historic brick buildings such as the remarkable Goldfield Hotel, the old schoolhouse, and the mine building have survived to this day.

The Goldfield Hotel

Goldfield Hotel, 2009

From 1907 to 1908, the Goldfield Hotel was built for the then unbelievable sum of about $ 300,000 to $ 400,000 and was considered the most spectacular hotel in Nevada at the time. President Teddy Roosevelt even appeared at the opening ceremony . Champagne is said to have flowed down the entrance steps. The 154 rooms were furnished with valuable wallpaper and carpets as well as with telephones, electric lights and steam heating . Many rooms had their own bathroom. The entrance hall was entirely mahogany and furnished with black leather upholstery. Valuable crystal chandeliers hung from the gold leaf decorated ceilings with the gilded pillars. The hotel had one of the first elevators west of the Mississippi . It was considered the most luxurious home between the Rocky Mountains and the Pacific Ocean . During the Second World War , soldiers were housed in the now dilapidated house. It closed its doors in 1945 after the war. There are plans to reopen it. The renovations that have started are currently on hold.

Legend has it that a ghost is believed to haunt the Goldfield Hotel. It is said to be the ghost of a prostitute named Elizabeth who is said to have been expecting a child from the then owner of the hotel, George Wingfield. To cover up a scandal, he is said to have locked her in room 109 of his hotel. Legends differ as to whether she died in childbirth or Wingfield killed her. The child was allegedly thrown into one of the mine shafts. Since then, Elizabeth is said to have haunted the hotel to look for Wingfield - allegedly, a baby's soft whimper can be heard from time to time. The historical truth content is likely to be rather low, but the legend has contributed to the fame of the house to this day.

International Car Forest

In the southern part of Goldfield, the artist Chad Sorg from Reno , together with a local resident named Mark Rippie, created the “ International Car Forest of the Last Church ”, an art project made up of around 40 cars and buses, most of which are upright with the front or the stern is buried in the ground and decorated with various graffiti . The artwork is reminiscent of the much better known Cadillac Ranch near Amarillo, Texas .