Please remember to exercise caution when exploring Nevada's Ghost Towns & Mining Camps. Open shafts, drifts going into mountainsides, and old buildings, are all DANGEROUS. Be aware of your surroundings, and let someone know where you are, especially if your plans change.

 

Eberhardt

DIRECTIONS: From Hamilton, head east, then south, on poor road for 5 miles to Eberhardt.

"Eberhardt was one of the more important satellite towns near Hamilton. The camp was located on the southeast side of famed Treasure Hill. Initial discoveries were made in December 1867 when T. E. Eberhardt located the Eberhardt Mine. The mine had a fabulously rich ore chamber, which the federal mining commissioner reported as having walls and ceiling of silver. Work was begun on the California, or Stanford, Mill in early 1869. In June construction was started on another 30-stamp mill, the International. During construction of the mills, Eberhardt's population grew to more than 200. Businesses opened, and mail was brought from Hamilton three times a week by Tom Starr. As mill construction progressed, Eberhardt continued to boom. The California Mill, designed by W. H. Patton and built by the Stanford brothers, cost $75,000 and was started on October 20, 1869. The mill had 30 stamps, four retort and two melting furnaces, sixteen amalgamating pans, eight settlers, four agitators, and a 50-ton kiln. The Stanford brothers used the mill to treat ore from the California, Aurora South, Jim Stewart, Evening Star, Mahogany, and Poorman mines.

The International Mill took longer to build and was more expensive. The mill cost $257,000, and a tramway, at that time the largest in the nation, cost another $137,000. After a long delay while the tramway was completed, the mill finally began operations in May 1871. To solve the problem of occasional water shortages, the owners of the mill, the British-controlled Eberhardt and Aurora Company, bought Applegarth Springs, just north of town, for $150,000. Pipelines were laid and the mill thereafter had a full supply of water. The pipeline also supplied the populace of Eberhardt. A post office (Adam Johnston, postmaster) opened on June 19, 1871, and was in operation until July 11, 1893. The milling camp had a consistent population of 150. Saloons, mercantile stores, and other businesses thrived here. Disaster struck on August 31, 1872, when the International Mill was destroyed by a suspicious fire. Ore was shipped to the Big Smoky Mill in Hamilton while the International was being rebuilt. Master millright Perlia Rowe and chief engineer J. H. Montgomery supervised the reconstruction. More than 120,000 bricks and 189,000 feet of lumber were used. The mill was started in November 1873 and had six batteries of 5 stamps each, sixteen pans, eight settlers, four retort furnaces, and a 56-by-16-foot dry kiln.

The Eberhardt and Aurora Mining Company expanded its holdings in 1873 when the White Pine Water Works and the Aurora Consolidated Silver Mining Company were purchased. While the California Mill closed and was dismantled in 1876, the International continued to operate. Eberhardt's population stood at 170 in 1880, but soon after, the town began a rapid decline. Mining became sporadic, and in 1885 the company closed down the mill and sold its property to the Eberhardt and Monitor Mining Company. During the next ten years, four other companies leased the property, but production was quite small. By 1897 only four homes and two inhabitants were left in Eberhardt, William Miles Read, the last leaseholder, worked the mines until 1904. Today the massive foundations of the California and International mills dominate Eberhardt. Building ruins are scattered throughout the site. The old tramway is visible in some spots on the side of Treasure Hill. The short-lived camp of Sunnyside was located near the large mine dump visible from Eberhardt, on the southeast side of Treasure Hill just above Eberhardt's ruins. Eberhardt is worth the trip because of the extensive remains of mills, which clearly show how these huge mills operated. The site presents unlimited exploration possibilities for photographers and ghost town enthusiasts."

 

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