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Goldfield, Nevada, is located on U.S. Highway 95 north of Las Vegas and south of Tonopah. It was established following the discovery of gold there in 1902. Starting from a couple of prospectors in that year the town's population grew to 30,000 by 1906. In 1907 it was made the county seat of Esmeralda County. At their zenith, Goldfield mines produced enormous amounts of gold and many people became fabulously wealthy. The town boasted opulent hotels, saloons and bawdy houses that rivaled those found in San Francisco. Virgil Earp served as Deputy Sheriff in 1905. A fire destroyed most of the city in 1923 and the remaining buildings have deteriorated a great deal in the eight decades since that disaster, but it is well worth a visit if you are interested in the old West. Goldfield bridged the period between the horse & wagon and the automobile and was one of the last true mining boom towns.
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