The Searchlight Boom

The discovery of the Searchlight Mining District was a gradual process. The region west of the Colorado River had been explored by prospectors since the early 1850's.1 Mining had been done in nearby areas continually in that period. 2 Considerable capital had been invested in districts such as Crescent, Ivanpah, Chloride (Arizona), and El Dorado Canyon and occasional profits made.:l

The purpose of the foregoing paragraph is to illustrate that the location of the Searchlight Mining District was not the result of the first exploration for minerals in the area. The area had been close to an intercontinental railroad (AT&SF) since the early 1880's, and had been covered by prospectors thoroughly. The probable reason for the late discovery was the surface barrenness of the veins and their indistinct 'outcrops. Another problem in the historiography of this study area is the date given by most sources for the initial location of claims at Searchlight. All authorities cited 1897 as the date of discovery! Later statements by pioneers in the camp refute that date and maintain that 1896 was the correct time period.

Their accounts are summarized as follows." For some years prior to 1896, Fred W. Dunn of Needles, California had corresponded with Boston capitalists to secure financial support for his ventures. Colonel C. A. Hopkins, early in 1896, saw a letter from Dunn describing the Sheep Trail Mine near Needles. He was interested and wrote to Dunn about securing an option on the mine. Dunn was unable to obtain an option, and hired John C. Swickard to locate claims at $1 per location. Swickard located claims in parts of both the Searchlight and Crescent districts. While engaged by Dunn, Swickard located the best of the lodes worked in Searchlight-the Quartette.

At length, Dunn believed he had sufficient properties to interest Hopkins and invited him out for an inspection. Nothing came of the 1896 trip, but Dunn was retained to represent Hopkins.

Swickard had retained ownership of the Quartette and other claims. When he had originally located the Quartette, he left unclaimed two small fractions at either end of the vein. These were claimed by G. Fred Colton and Gus Moore in 1897. In order to have complete title to the outcrop of 'Lincoln, Mining Districts . .. , 19. "Searchlight BIIlletill, August 19, 1910, p. 1. "Engilleering and Mining JOIIl'llal, April 29, 1899. 'Eugene Callaghan, Geology of the Searchlight District, Clark COllllt)', Nevada, U.S. Geologic Survey Bulletin No. 906-D, (Washington: D. S. Government Printing Office, 1941), p. 135.

"Searchlight BIIlletill, February 8, 1907, p. 1; Searchlight BIIlletin, November 27, 1908, p. 1. Henry Hudson Lee, My Memoirs, 2 Vols.; in this paper which was read before the January 24, 1966 meeting of the Southern Nevada Historical Society, Lee describes a trip he made to Searchlight and Goodsprings in 1898-1900 to visit the new mining camps.

22 El Dorado Canyon and Searchlight Mining Districts the vein, Swickard traded the Duplex property to Colton and Moore for their fractional claims on the Quartette. Swickard sold the Quartette to Macready, Hubbard, and Fisher in 1898. They attempted to raise capital to work the vein, but finally sold the property to Col. Hopkins in 1899. The sale to Hopkins was the genesis of Searchlight as a mining district. Although low-grade surface ores had been known since 1896, no development had taken place, nor any indication seen of the richer ores present at depths of more than 100 feet from the surface. Hopkins quickly 'organized the Quartette Company among his associates in Boston. They raised $25,000 and employed the former owner, Macready, as superintendent.

A shaft was sunk to 300 feet along the vein. The findings were not promising, averaging only $3,84 in gold per ton. Macready was in Los Angeles, and received a telegram from his foreman telling him that the 300-foot level had been reached and the $25,000 operating capital had run out. Macready sent back a message telling the foreman to crosscut south. Within two shifts of work, an ore shoot 'of $40 per ton value was struck. From that point, the Quartette Company was able to finance its operation from the proceeds of ore shipments or sale of stock. The production from the Quartette served as a spur to the rest of the camp. Capital became available, and by 1903 the camp was in a boom that lasted to 1911."

Formal organization of the district 'occurred on July 20, 1898. The prospectors of the area gathered in the evening within a frame shack, the only building in camp. At that time it was a 10-day trip to Pioche, the county seat. It was decided to maintain a local office for recording claims. Fourteen men signed the articles establishing the district. Many were to be well-known figures in Searchlight for the next 20 years. 7 An often expressed question is "How did Searchlight get its name, and who gave it?" Two alternatives are given by the local newspaper. The first story is that Fred Colton came into his camp during 1897 and said, "there is something here, but it would take a searchlight to find it." Another offering is that the name was taken from a popular brand of sulphur matches. 8 There was not certainty even in Searchlight just 5 years after the discovery. It is generally conceded that Colton gave the name, but he never commented on it later.

Early Development of El Dorado Canyon and Searchlight Mining Districts JOHN M. TOWNLEY

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203

The Searchlight Boom

Introduction

Previous Work

Prior to 1897

Spanish Mining

Nineteeth Century

Searchlight Boom

Development

Decline