Ultimately, this is a story about the thrill of Gold.
If you’ve read my earlier article about the neighborhood I grew up in, you’ll remember that I have an affinity for industrial neighborhoods. Stands to reason, I’d also have an affinity for abandoned places. Though not lost, this place had been forgotten—at the least, not known by most people. Rather than me tell you a long story about Rhyolite, I’ll show you what I came across on my photographic safari one-hundred years after the gold-rush began there.
In 1904, a guy named Shorty Harris found gold in the Bullfrog Hills of Nevada. That set off a chain of events which boomed into a town called Rhyolite. Over the course of four years, the place grew into a small city with help from names that are familiar today (Schwab). Population growth from zero to 5000 in that timeframe. By 1918, it turned into a ghost town!
Do you enjoy wearing jewelry? How much thought have you put into where the jewelry you wear comes from? This is not a criticism. I remember buying a gold chain, and not thinking where it came from or how it got to be around my neck.
According to this article on Gold, 50% of the world’s gold is in the form of jewelry. The U.S. Federal Reserve has about 17% in gold bars (presumably).
I’ve never been a big fan of jewelry—admittedly, I did own some gold jewelry. I sold them off quite a few years ago. The only piece of jewelry I own now (silver) is a school class ring.
I’m not sure how long this chair has been standing there. It doesn’t look as old as Rhyolite, but it’s better days are gone. Aesthetically, this is one of my favorite photographs taken on this photographic safari.
One hundred yards/46m up a small hill from the living shack, I came upon this bird coop. Where there’s people, there’s a need for food. I’m not sure how much crop farming one can do in the Desert, but animal farming was part of the fabric of Rhyolite.
What would any U.S. Town be without it’s requisite jail? I always wonder how true-to-life those western TV shows & movies were. The good & bad of humanity is forever present—everywhere.
Steel doors have been sealed as a safety precaution.
Above is a view of the Northeast section of the town, with the Jail & Brothel in the middle. All Brothels were, of course in what was known as the Red Light District.
In the distance, just in front of the hills is the Rhyolite Train Station.
I find it interesting that this Brothel survived to be one of the last buildings standing in town with roof and walls intact. There were more, but this one is the only one left.
The Los Angeles & Salt Lake Railroad served the Desert Southwest. This Caboose (wheels removed) was being used as a Gas Station, see the gas tank behind on the left.
There are so many other aspects to this place I’ve not shown: grocery stores, banks, schools, telephones, and running water from underground pipes—many of the things people would need in a society to operate and survive in The Desert.
Note that it is twenty years since these photographs were taken. Rhyolite is now 120 years old. It looks quite different now than it does in my photographs. The same way it looked different twenty years before I photographed there. The passage of time wears all things down.
This visit showed just a glimpse of the town. I hope it added some value to your life’s knowledge. Let me know your thoughts on the town, or life in general.
I thank you for taking the time to read, til next time…
Kenneth
P.S. I hope you’ve noticed my visual approach seen in the photographs accompanying this article. No two photographers take photos in the same way. That’s what makes us unique from each other, the same way that no two people are alike. I spent the afternoon walking in and around Rhyolite, assessing vantage points, points of interest, researching the Town’s history to come up with what you see here. Thank you!