Potosi, Nevada

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Potosi or Potosi Camp, was called Crystal City in the 1870s, a mining ghost town in Clark County, Nevada. It lies at an elevation of 5705 feet. [1]

Ghost town City depopulated of inhabitants and that stays practically intact

A ghost town is an abandoned village, town, or city, usually one that contains substantial visible remains. A town often becomes a ghost town because the economic activity that supported it has failed, or due to natural or human-caused disasters such as floods, prolonged droughts, government actions, uncontrolled lawlessness, war, pollution, or nuclear disasters. The term can sometimes refer to cities, towns, and neighbourhoods that are still populated, but significantly less so than in past years; for example, those affected by high levels of unemployment and dereliction.

Clark County, Nevada County in the United States

Clark County is located in the U.S. state of Nevada. As of the 2010 census, the population was 1,951,269, with an estimated population of 2,231,647 in 2018. It is by far the most populous county in Nevada, accounting for nearly three-quarters of the state's residents – thus making Nevada one of the most centralized states in the nation.

Contents

History

The Potosi Mine 35°57′44″N115°32′12″W / 35.96222°N 115.53667°W / 35.96222; -115.53667 [2] is thought to be the site of the oldest lode mine in Nevada. Its lead deposits were discovered in 1847 but it was not until 1856 that Mormon miners from their colony of Las Vegas Springs began a lead mine there. Operations ceased in 1857 after 9,000 lbs of lead were extracted due to difficulties in smelting the ore. [3]

Potosi Mining District

The Potosi mining district, or Potosi, was an area in Clark County of southern Nevada, U.S. It is listed on the National Register of Historic Places and includes three structures. The town was named after the famous silver-mining city of Potosi, Bolivia.

Lead Chemical element with atomic number 82

Lead is a chemical element with the symbol Pb and atomic number 82. It is a heavy metal that is denser than most common materials. Lead is soft and malleable, and also has a relatively low melting point. When freshly cut, lead is silvery with a hint of blue; it tarnishes to a dull gray color when exposed to air. Lead has the highest atomic number of any stable element and three of its isotopes are endpoints of major nuclear decay chains of heavier elements.

Las Vegas Springs

The Las Vegas Springs or Big Springs is the site of a natural oasis, known traditionally as a cienega. For more than 15,000 years, springs broke through the desert floor, creating grassy meadows. The bubbling springs were a source of water for Native Americans living here at least 5,000 years ago. Known as The Birthplace of Las Vegas it sustained travelers of the Old Spanish Trail and Mormons who came to settle the West. The springs' source is the Las Vegas aquifer.

Nothing further was done with the mine until 1861. That year the Colorado Mining Company, began to mine silver in the Potosi Mine. They first set up a large smelter at Potosi Spring 35°58′14″N115°32′28″W / 35.97056°N 115.54111°W / 35.97056; -115.54111 [4] and established Potosi as its mining camp. Potosi had a population of 100 until mining ceased there in 1863. [5]

Silver Chemical element with atomic number 47

Silver is a chemical element with the symbol Ag and atomic number 47. A soft, white, lustrous transition metal, it exhibits the highest electrical conductivity, thermal conductivity, and reflectivity of any metal. The metal is found in the Earth's crust in the pure, free elemental form, as an alloy with gold and other metals, and in minerals such as argentite and chlorargyrite. Most silver is produced as a byproduct of copper, gold, lead, and zinc refining.

After the Salt Lake and San Pedro Railroad was built through Clark County in 1905, it became possible to mine zinc in the Potosi Mine. From 1906 to 1928, zinc was mined there. [5]

Zinc Chemical element with atomic number 30

Zinc is a chemical element with the symbol Zn and atomic number 30. Zinc is a slightly brittle metal at room temperature and has a blue-silvery appearance when oxidation is removed. It is the first element in group 12 of the periodic table. In some respects zinc is chemically similar to magnesium: both elements exhibit only one normal oxidation state (+2), and the Zn2+ and Mg2+ ions are of similar size. Zinc is the 24th most abundant element in Earth's crust and has five stable isotopes. The most common zinc ore is sphalerite (zinc blende), a zinc sulfide mineral. The largest workable lodes are in Australia, Asia, and the United States. Zinc is refined by froth flotation of the ore, roasting, and final extraction using electricity (electrowinning).

Today

The site of Potosi appears barren of ruins. [1]

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References

Coordinates: 35°58′15″N115°32′27″W / 35.97083°N 115.54083°W / 35.97083; -115.54083

Geographic coordinate system Coordinate system

A geographic coordinate system is a coordinate system that enables every location on Earth to be specified by a set of numbers, letters or symbols. The coordinates are often chosen such that one of the numbers represents a vertical position and two or three of the numbers represent a horizontal position; alternatively, a geographic position may be expressed in a combined three-dimensional Cartesian vector. A common choice of coordinates is latitude, longitude and elevation. To specify a location on a plane requires a map projection.