Unionville, Nevada

Last updated
Unionville, Nevada
Unincorporated community
Unionville, Nevada.jpg
Unionville, 2007
USA Nevada location map.svg
Red pog.svg
Unionville, Nevada
Coordinates: 40°26′45″N118°07′20″W / 40.44583°N 118.12222°W / 40.44583; -118.12222
CountryUnited States
StateNevada
District Pershing County
Area
[1]
  Total0.77 sq mi (2.01 km2)
  Land0.77 sq mi (2.01 km2)
  Water0.00 sq mi (0.00 km2)
Elevation
5,050.03 ft (1,539.25 m)
Population
 (2020)
  Total27
  Density34.88/sq mi (13.46/km2)
Time zone UTC-8 (Pacific)
  Summer (DST) UTC-7 (PDT)
FIPS code 32-76400
Reference no.145
Wells-Fargo office in Unionville 1870s Unionville NV 1870s 002-Colorized.jpg
Wells-Fargo office in Unionville 1870s
House in Unionville, 2006 House in Unionville, Nevada.jpg
House in Unionville, 2006

Unionville is a census-designated place in Pershing County, Nevada, located south of I-80 and just west of State Route 400 on Unionville Road, with the population as of the 2020 census being 27. The town's best years were during the 1870s, when it was an active mining and prospecting town serving the surrounding hilly region. For a brief time, Samuel Langhorne Clemens lived there and prospected, but left without having had much success. Currently, the hamlet consists of a single business – a tourist inn – and a few small houses clustered along or near the gravel roadway which permits vehicular ingress and egress. The nearest paved road, an extension of this gravel road, is about 7 miles to the east. The nearest services of any sort, other than those available at the inn, are approximately one hour's drive away.

Contents

History

Now in Pershing County, Unionville was the original county seat for Humboldt County, serving in that capacity from its founding in July 1861 until the seat was relocated to Winnemucca in 1873. [2] The big mining boom at Unionville occurred between 1863 and 1870. During that time, the population was reported to be as high as 1,500 persons. Mark Twain arrived in Unionville with the intention of prospecting for silver in 1862, describing the town as consisting of "eleven cabins and a liberty-pole". As is common in most mining communities, after the boom, the town experienced a decline soon afterwards. By 1870, it was discovered that there was little rich ore in the district. The decline was speeded by the completion of the Central Pacific Railroad through the Humboldt valley, and the establishment of Winnemucca as a major trading and shipping center. [3]

There is now no formal government as such in the hamlet of Unionville, which is unincorporated. Some abandoned buildings such as Twain's cabin and a one-room schoolhouse remain standing in various stages of disrepair, but there is no ongoing, active effort to preserve any of these. Unionville is frequently referred to as a ghost town. Just north of the town's limits is a cemetery, which may still be used for occasional burials. A few hundred yards farther into the county, there is a fork in the main road. Aerial photographs reveal a large cemented foundation upon which stand two large structures, along with two or three smaller structures of relatively recent vintage. These structures are Unionville's local garbage dumping grounds.

Demographics

Historical population
CensusPop.Note
2020 27
U.S. Decennial Census [4]

Ethnic diversity

Paul Laveaga, one of Unionville's more prominent citizens, was born in Mexico in 1841. He was the only member of his family to leave Mexico for Nevada. When he came to the state in 1866, he worked for wages and mined in Unionville. In 1868, Laveaga opened up a lodging house and restaurant which he ran until 1884 when he left for Winnemucca. In addition, he served as post master in Unionville for many years. Laveaga was a successful businessman and well-respected by his fellow citizens. In 1874, he was elected to the state assembly where he served four terms. Laveaga also served as the Humboldt county treasurer for eight years. Although he would eventually leave Unionville for the more prominent town of Winnemucca, Laveaga's success in the state of Nevada stemmed from his initial settlement in Unionville. [5]

Like other mining towns in the American West, Chinese laborers resided in Unionville and mined in the American Canyon. The town's white inhabitants were quick to exhibit virulent anti-Chinese racism. The Democratic party newspaper in town, the Humboldt Register, equated the Chinese to "baboons or trained monkeys." In addition to anti-Chinese racism, a segment of Unionville's population, organized as the Anti-Chinese League, was responsible for forcibly expelling the Chinese population in the middle of January 1869. The Chinese, outnumbered and outgunned, did nothing to resist expulsion, nor did any of the town's religious or fraternal organizations attempt to stop it. The 35 Chinese males that resided in town were put on a wagon and taken twenty-five miles to Mill City, the nearest station on the Central Pacific Railway.

Eighteen men were indicted for this crime in federal court: W S Bonnifield, William Woolcock, Peter Woolcock, Samuel Fiefield, Samuel J Bonnifield, John Cavanaugh, John McCanney, William Bush, Lewis Moore, George Holden, Jerry Job, O. Jewett, Robert Henderson, John J. Hill, “John Doe” Waitz, Lewis Dunn, “John Doe” Harrison, and James Hamblyn. Of these, only two were arrested, Lewis Dunn and John J Hill. Lewis Dunn was released under a writ of habeas corpus by District Judge George G. Berry. John J. Hill was similarly released by the judge of the U. S. District Court, Alex W. Baldwin. The indictment noted that a number of other men were involved, but that their names were unknown. [6]

This was a significant event which provides an early example of the attitudes of white Nevadans toward the Chinese. Anti-Chinese agitation and forced expulsion emerged in other communities throughout Nevada and the Far West.

The events of 1869 did not permanently dissuade some Chinese from remaining in the county. After Unionville declined as a white mining center, scattered Chinese returned to mine the surrounding environs. Because water was at premium in the area, Chinese miners used rockers rather than sluices at their sites. As late as 1905 there were still Chinese miners that continued to work in the American Canyon, but by that time they were quite elderly and numbered fewer than ten. [7]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pershing County, Nevada</span> County in Nevada, United States

Pershing County is a county in the U.S. state of Nevada. As of the 2020 census, the population was 6,650. Its county seat is Lovelock. The county was named after army general John J. Pershing (1860–1948). It was formed from Humboldt County in 1919, and the last county to be established in Nevada. The Black Rock Desert, location for the annual Burning Man event, is partially in the county. The county is listed as Nevada Historical Marker 17. The marker is at the courthouse in Lovelock.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Humboldt County, Nevada</span> County in Nevada, United States

Humboldt County is a county in the U.S. state of Nevada. As of the 2020 Census, the population was 17,285. It is a largely rural county that is sparsely populated with the only major city being Winnemucca which has a population of 8,431. Humboldt County comprises the Winnemucca, NV Micropolitan Statistical Area and serves as an important crossroads in the national transportation network. Interstate 80 travels through the southeastern corner of the county, meeting US 95 in Winnemucca that serves as a primary freight corridor between Northern Nevada and Boise, Idaho and the Interstate 84 freight corridor that links much of the Pacific Northwest. The original transcontinental railway, constructed by the Central Pacific Railroad, reached Humboldt County on Sept. 16, 1868. The Western Pacific Railroad would reach Humboldt County by November 1909, providing two mainline rail links to California and the Eastern United States. Both railroads have since been acquired by the Union Pacific Railroad, who continues to serve the region today.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">McDermitt, Nevada and Oregon</span> Unincorporated community in the state of Nevada, United States

McDermitt is an unincorporated community straddling the Nevada–Oregon border, in Humboldt County, Nevada, and Malheur County, Oregon, United States. McDermitt's economy has historically been based on mining, ranching, and farming. The last mining operation closed in 1990, resulting in a steady decline in population.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Winnemucca, Nevada</span> City in Nevada, United States

Winnemucca is the only incorporated city in, and is the county seat of, Humboldt County, Nevada, United States. As of the 2020 census, the city had a total population of 8,431, up 14.0 percent from the 2010 census figure of 7,396. Interstate 80 passes through the city, where it meets U.S. Route 95.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lovelock, Nevada</span> Incorporated city in Nevada, United States

Lovelock is the county seat of Pershing County, Nevada, United States, in which it is the only incorporated city. It is the namesake of a nearby medium-security men's prison and a Cold War-era gunnery range. Formerly a stop for settlers on their way to California and later a train depot, the town's economy remains based on farming, mining and increasingly on tourism.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Humboldt River</span> River drainage system in north-central Nevada, United States

The Humboldt River is an extensive river drainage system located in north-central Nevada. It extends in a general east-to-west direction from its headwaters in the Jarbidge, Independence, and Ruby Mountains in Elko County, to its terminus in the Humboldt Sink, approximately 225 direct miles away in northwest Churchill County. Most estimates put the Humboldt River at 300 to 330 miles long however, due to the extensive meandering nature of the river, its length may be more closely estimated at 380 miles (610 km). It is located within the Great Basin Watershed and is the third longest river in the watershed behind the Bear River at 355 miles (571 km) and the Sevier River at 325 miles (523 km). The Humboldt River Basin is the largest sub-basin of the Great Basin encompassing an area of 16,840 square miles (43,600 km2). It is the only major river system wholly contained within the state of Nevada.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Golconda, Nevada</span> Census-designated place in Nevada, United States

Golconda is a census-designated place in southeastern Humboldt County, Nevada, United States. As of the 2020 census it has a population of 182. It is located along Interstate 80 on the Humboldt River in the northwestern part of the state. Golconda has a post office, which has been in operation since 1869.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Denio, Nevada</span> Unincorporated community in the state of Nevada, United States

Denio is a census-designated place (CDP) in Humboldt County, Nevada, along the Oregon state line in the United States. The Denio post office was originally north of the state line in Harney County, Oregon, but the residents moved the building into Nevada in the mid-20th century. The population of the CDP, which is entirely in Nevada, was 47 at the 2010 census; additional development considered to be Denio extends into Oregon. The CDP includes a post office, a community center, a library, and the Diamond Inn Bar, the center of the town's social life. Recreational activities in the Denio area include bird watching, photography, off road vehicle use, fishing, recreational black opal mining, rockhounding, hunting, visiting the hot springs, and camping on the Sheldon National Wildlife Refuge.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Imlay, Nevada</span> Unincorporated town in the State of Nevada, United States

Imlay is an unincorporated town in Pershing County, Nevada, United States. It has an elementary school, a general store, a post office, and a trading post. As of the 2010 census the population was 171.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mill City, Nevada</span> Unincorporated community in the state of Nevada, United States

Mill City is an unincorporated community in Pershing County, Nevada, United States. The ZIP Code of Mill City is 89418.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Clarence D. Van Duzer</span> American politician (1864–1947)

Clarence Dunn Van Duzer an American attorney and politician who served as a United States representative from Nevada. He served in the Nevada Assembly.

The Kamma Mountains are a mountain range in Pershing County and Humboldt County, Nevada. The ghost town and railroad siding at Sulphur, Nevada is on the west side of the Kamma Mountains at the eastern edge of the Black Rock Desert playa.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Humboldt County School District</span> School district in Nevada, United States

The Humboldt County School District is a public school district serving K−12 education in Humboldt County, Nevada, in the northwestern part of the state.

Red Dog was a California gold rush mining town located in the Gold Country in south-central Nevada County, California, United States, 6 mi (9.7 km) northeast of Chicago Park. Red Dog Hill, a mine and campsite, was founded by three men all under the age of 22, and was named by their youngest, a 15-year-old prospector. As mining operations grew, the campsite became a settlement, and then a town with a population of 2,000 residents, before it was eventually abandoned. Still considered important today, Red Dog Townsite is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

The Grass Valley of Pershing and Humboldt counties in northern Nevada, United States, is a 30-mile (48 km) long valley. The north section of the valley is part of the southwest portion of Winnemucca on the Humboldt River. Clear Creek flows down the valley center, north-northwesterly and joins the Humboldt at Rose Creek, Nevada, 10 miles (16 km) southwest of Winnemucca. The census-designated place of Grass Valley, with a population of 1,161, occupies the central 8 miles (13 km) of the valley.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sagebrush School</span>

The Sagebrush School was the literary movement written primarily by men of Nevada. The sagebrush shrub is prevalent in the state. It was a broad-based movement as it included various literary genres such as drama, essays, fiction, history, humor, journalism, memoirs, and poetry. The name Sagebrush School was coined by Ella Sterling Mighels, who stated:

Sagebrush school? Why not? Nothing in all our Western literature so distinctly savors of the soil as the characteristic books written by the men of Nevada and that interior part of the State where the sagebrush grows.

Humboldt River Ranch is a census-designated place (CDP) in Pershing County, Nevada, United States. As of the 2010 census the population was 119.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mark Twain in Nevada</span>

The use of the pen name of Mark Twain first occurred in Samuel Clemens's writing while in the Nevada Territory which he had journeyed to with his brother. Clemens/Twain lived in Nevada from 1861 to 1864, and visited the area twice after leaving. Historians such as Peter Messent see Clemens's time in Nevada as "the third major formative period of Mark Twain's career" due to his encounters with "writers and humorists who would both shape and put the finishing touches on his literary art." The Routledge Encyclopedia of Mark Twain states that despite the few "disagreeable experiences" he had there, Twain "thrived in Nevada." Among those things he learned was "how far he could push a joke", a lesson learned from some "disagreeable experiences" he brought upon himself.

Scossa was a small mining town, now a ghost town, located in Pershing County, Nevada.

McKaskia Stearns "Mack" Bonnifield was a justice of the Supreme Court of Nevada from 1895 to 1901.

References

  1. "ArcGIS REST Services Directory". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved September 20, 2022.
  2. Humboldt County, Nevada
  3. Russell R. Elliot and William D. Rowley, History of Nevada (Lincoln: University of Nebraska Press, 1987), 101.
  4. "Census of Population and Housing". Census.gov. Retrieved June 4, 2016.
  5. Thomas Wren, A History of the State of Nevada: Its Resources and People (New York: The Lewis Publishing Company, 1904), 683–684.
  6. Case 407: United States vs. W. S Bonnifield, et al. Criminal Case Files, 1865–1982. Records of the U.S. District Court for the District of Nevada, Reno. In the holdings of the National Archives at San Francisco.
  7. Arif Dirlik and Malcolm Yeung, eds., Chinese on the American Frontier (Lanham: Rowman & Littlefield, 2001), 98–99, 106.