Cobre is a former railroad town and ghost town located in northeastern Elko County, Nevada, approximately 39 miles northeast of Wells and near the interchange of major rail lines in the early 20th century. The name “Cobre” derives from the Spanish word for “copper,” reflecting its primary purpose as a transportation hub for copper ore extracted from mines in the Ely area of White Pine County, over 140 miles to the south. Unlike a traditional mining camp, Cobre itself had no significant local mining operations; it existed solely to facilitate the transfer and shipment of copper via rail. Today, it stands as a quiet, largely abandoned site emblematic of Nevada’s boom-and-bust railroad and mining era.
Founding and Early Development (1905–1910)
Cobre emerged in 1905–1906 during the construction of the Nevada Northern Railway (NNRY), a line built specifically to connect the burgeoning copper mining district around Ely, Nevada, to the national railroad network. The Guggenheim family’s Nevada Consolidated Copper Company (formed from mergers including the White Pine Copper Company and others) financed the NNRY to transport ore from mines and smelters in the Robinson Mining District near Ely.
Rather than connecting from the closer town of Wells, the NNRY chose a junction point on the Southern Pacific Railroad (SPR) mainline at what became Cobre. Construction began southward from this point on September 11, 1905, under contract with the Utah Construction Company. Rails were laid starting in December 1905, and regular operations commenced in 1906.
The town quickly took shape as a rail interchange and service point:
- A post office opened on March 12, 1906.
- Facilities included section houses for railroad workers, a hotel, mercantile stores, saloons, and freight handling infrastructure.
- In 1906, the Western Pacific Railroad temporarily headquartered in Cobre during its construction phase, sparking a brief boom.
By 1910, Cobre reached its peak with around 60 residents, three bars, and a reputation for rowdiness and violence typical of remote railroad towns.
Peak Operations and Role in Copper Transport (1910s–1970s)
Cobre’s economy revolved entirely around the railroad. Copper ore from Ely-area mines (primarily operated by Nevada Consolidated, later acquired by Kennecott Copper Corporation in the 1930s) was shipped north via the NNRY to Cobre, where it transferred to Southern Pacific (and later Western Pacific) trains for shipment to smelters elsewhere.
The town supported:
- Railroad maintenance crews.
- Freighting operations.
- Basic amenities like stores and a hotel.
World War I and post-war demand for copper sustained activity, though fluctuations in copper prices caused periodic slowdowns. The line also briefly connected to the Western Pacific at Shafter, enhancing Cobre’s role as a key interchange.
Decline and Abandonment (1950s–1980s)
The post-World War II era brought irreversible changes:
- Diesel locomotives reduced the need for extensive maintenance facilities and crews.
- Declining copper demand and shifts in mining technology diminished ore shipments.
- The Cobre post office closed permanently on May 31, 1956, marking the town’s effective end as a community.
- The McGill smelter near Ely shut down on June 20, 1983, ending regular ore trains on the NNRY north of Ely.
- In 1987, the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power acquired the dormant line from Cobre to Ely (originally for a proposed coal plant that never materialized), preventing immediate abandonment.
By the late 1980s, Cobre had faded into obscurity, with most buildings removed or demolished.
Current Status
Cobre remains an uninhabited ghost town and siding along the former rail lines in a remote, arid section of Elko County. Very little of the original town survives:
- The dominant feature is a large cinderblock engine house constructed in the 1960s during the final years of active NNRY operations.
- Scattered foundations, rail sidings, and minor debris are all that remain of the hotels, stores, saloons, and residential structures.
- The site is accessible via dirt roads off Interstate 80 (near the Pequop exit), but it is on or near Union Pacific Railroad (successor to Southern Pacific) property, so visitors should exercise caution and respect private land/railroad rights-of-way.
The southern portion of the historic NNRY (from Ely to Ruth/McGill) has been preserved as the Nevada Northern Railway Museum, a National Historic Landmark operating heritage tourist trains. However, the northern segment through Cobre is largely inactive and overgrown, with no regular service. The area sees occasional visits from ghost town enthusiasts, railroad historians, and photographers, but it offers no services or restored buildings.
Cobre exemplifies Nevada’s many railroad-dependent settlements that vanished when mining economics and transportation technology evolved, leaving behind silent reminders of the state’s copper-fueled industrial past.