Borax, Nevada, is a ghost town and former railroad siding in Clark County, in the southern part of the state along the Union Pacific Railroad east of Interstate 15. It was settled in 1905 and explicitly named for borax (sodium borate) deposits discovered in the surrounding desert region. At its small peak around 1940, the settlement had a population of about 10 residents. Today, it has a recorded population of zero, with no remaining buildings—existing only as a functional railroad siding (elevation approximately 2,707 feet). While Borax itself left a minimal physical legacy, its name and location tie directly into Nevada’s broader and historically significant borax mining industry, which played a foundational role in the development of the U.S. borax trade in the late 19th and early 20th centuries.
This report provides context on Nevada’s borax mining history, as the town of Borax cannot be fully understood in isolation from the mineral that inspired its name and the industry that shaped the state’s desert economy.
Early Discoveries and the Birth of Nevada’s Borax Industry (1870s)
Nevada’s involvement with borax began in earnest in 1872 when Francis Marion “Borax” Smith (often called the “Borax King”) discovered high-quality borate deposits at Teel’s Marsh in Mineral County, western Nevada. Smith, originally from Wisconsin, had been supplying firewood to a small borax operation at nearby Columbus Marsh when he spotted the potential at Teel’s Marsh from a distance. He and his partners staked claims, and operations commenced under names such as Smith and Storey Brothers Borax Co. (later Teels Marsh Borax Co.). This discovery is widely credited with launching the commercial borax rush in the American West and forming the roots of what became the Pacific Coast Borax Company.
The Teel’s Marsh area quickly spurred the growth of Marietta, a mining camp established around 1877. Unlike typical Nevada silver or gold boomtowns, Marietta thrived on borax and salt extraction from the evaporated alkali flat of Teel’s Marsh. By the late 1870s and early 1880s, it featured a post office, newspaper, company store (operated in part by Borax Smith and his brother), and over 150 residents. Workers scraped borax and salt from the marsh surface under harsh desert conditions. Salt was particularly valuable for processing silver and gold ore elsewhere in the state (e.g., Virginia City and Bodie). However, the isolated location made the town vulnerable—stagecoaches were robbed frequently, including multiple times in a single day in 1880.
The stone ruins visible today at Marietta (including remnants of Borax Smith’s company store) stand as quiet reminders of this short-lived boom.
Nearby Columbus (established 1865 as a silver milling center) also became a borax hub in the early 1870s. Four companies, including the prominent Pacific Borax Company (which built facilities about five miles south of town in September 1872), extracted borax from the Columbus Salt Marsh. At its height in the mid-1870s, Columbus supported several hundred residents with stores, an adobe school, post office, iron foundry, and its own newspaper, the Borax Miner. Borax production briefly revitalized the declining silver town before larger deposits elsewhere shifted focus.
Expansion, Competition, and Shift to California (1880s–1890s)
Borax Smith consolidated operations and, by 1890, had acquired rival holdings (including those of William T. Coleman) to form the Pacific Coast Borax Company. Nevada’s early borax works supplied domestic needs and helped pioneer refining techniques. However, richer and more accessible colemanite (a borate ore) deposits were discovered in Death Valley, California, beginning in 1881 (e.g., the Harmony Borax Works). These California sites, famously served by the iconic 20-mule teams hauling borax 165 miles across the Mojave Desert, proved more economically viable. Nevada operations at Teel’s Marsh, Columbus, and similar sites (including Rhodes Marsh and Fish Lake Valley) largely declined or closed by the 1890s as production shifted southward.
20th-Century Activity and the Settlement of Borax (1900s–1940s)
Borax prospecting continued into the 20th century, particularly in southern Nevada’s Clark County. Significant colemanite deposits were identified in areas such as White Basin and Callville Wash (near present-day Lake Mead). A major find—the Anniversary Mine—was located in 1921 by prospectors F.M. Lovell and George Hartman and later operated by companies including the West End Chemical Company until around 1928.
The town of Borax itself was established in 1905, directly tied to these regional borax deposits. Its location along the railroad made it a logical siding for potential shipping or support activities related to mining. While never a large settlement, it persisted modestly into the mid-20th century before being fully abandoned. No major long-term mining infrastructure developed at the exact site of Borax, and by the 1940s it was already fading. Today it serves only as a minor railroad marker with ZIP code 89026.
Decline and Legacy
By the early 1900s, Nevada’s borax industry had largely been eclipsed by massive California operations (such as the eventual U.S. Borax mine at Boron, CA). Improved rail transport, cheaper extraction methods, and richer ore bodies in Death Valley and elsewhere ended most Nevada borax production. The state’s early contributions, however, were pivotal: Smith’s 1872 discovery at Teel’s Marsh helped establish the domestic borax market and the Pacific Coast Borax Company, which evolved into a global leader (now part of U.S. Borax / Rio Tinto).
The ghost towns and ruins—such as Marietta’s stone walls and Columbus’s abandoned works—along with place names like Borax, Nevada, preserve this chapter of Western mining history. Borax mining brought infrastructure, labor, and economic activity to Nevada’s remote deserts but also exemplified the boom-and-bust cycle typical of mineral extraction in the American West.