Perched precariously atop Treasure Hill at elevations exceeding 9,000 feet in the rugged White Pine Range of western White Pine County, Nevada, Treasure City (originally known briefly as Tesora) emerged as one of the most dramatic symbols of the late-1860s silver frenzy that swept the American West. Born from the “White Pine Rush” — a stampede rivaling the Comstock in intensity but far shorter in duration — this high-altitude mining camp briefly glittered with promise before succumbing to the familiar Nevada pattern of boom and bust. At its 1869 zenith, Treasure City boasted a population estimated between 6,000 and 7,000 souls, complete with saloons, stores, a stock exchange, fraternal lodges, and the state’s first newspaper outside the Comstock region. Yet within a mere decade, it lay abandoned, its windswept ruins a silent monument to over-hyped riches and the unforgiving geology of surface-only deposits.
Discovery and the White Pine Fever (1865–1868)
The story of Treasure City begins not with a lone prospector but with seasoned miners from the Reese River district who, in late 1865, organized the White Pine Mining District after finding modest silver showings on the western slopes of the White Pine Range. Initial development remained quiet until late 1867 or early 1868, when legend credits a Shoshone man known as “Napias Jim” (or “Indian Jim”) with revealing extraordinarily rich chloride silver ore to local blacksmith A.J. Leathers. Samples assayed at staggering values — some reportedly reaching $15,000–$20,000 per ton — ignited what newspapers dubbed “White Pine Fever.”
By spring 1868, thousands poured into the remote mountains east of Eureka. Claims such as the Eberhardt, Hidden Treasure, North Aurora, and Mammoth were staked across Treasure Hill’s summit. The ore, primarily cerargyrite (horn silver) in brecciated limestone, occurred in massive surface pockets rather than true veins, allowing easy extraction but dooming long-term prospects. Miners initially lived in caves (earning the base camp the temporary name Cave City), but as the rush intensified, settlements sprawled across the hill.
Boom Years and High-Altitude Frenzy (1868–1870)
Treasure City coalesced directly among the mines near the hill’s crest, earning its name from the apparent boundless wealth. Briefly called Tesora in early 1869, it was formally incorporated on March 5, 1869, and its post office opened under that name before switching to Treasure City in June. By late 1869, the town pulsed with life: over 40 stores, a dozen saloons, Masonic and Odd Fellows halls, a stock exchange, and the White Pine News — Nevada’s easternmost newspaper, printed on a press hauled from Belmont.
The air reeked of woodsmoke from countless stoves struggling against brutal winters, where blizzards buried tents and temperatures plunged far below zero. Water had to be piped or hauled uphill, fuel was scarce, and avalanches claimed lives. Yet money flowed: the Eberhardt Mine alone yielded massive boulders of nearly pure silver, and district production soared. Supporting towns sprang up below — Hamilton (the commercial hub and new county seat of freshly created White Pine County), Shermantown (a mill town), Eberhardt, Swansea, and others — swelling the greater district to perhaps 25,000–40,000 people in 1869–1870.
Rapid Decline and Desertion (1870–1880s)
The bonanza proved illusory. By 1870, the rich surface pockets were exhausted; deeper workings encountered only low-grade ore. Population plummeted — Treasure City’s census recorded just 500 residents that year. Businesses shuttered, and many structures were dismantled for lumber or relocated downhill to Hamilton. A devastating fire in 1874 consumed much of the remaining business district. The town was disincorporated in 1879, its post office closed on December 9, 1880, and by the early 1880s Treasure City was effectively deserted. Sporadic attempts at revival in the 1890s and 1920s yielded little, and the district’s total output from 1867–1880 is estimated at $20–$40 million (over half a billion dollars today) — impressive, but far short of initial hype.
Current Status
Today, Treasure City exists only as scattered stone foundations, crumbling walls, and hazardous mine shafts strewn across the windswept summit of Treasure Hill, within the Humboldt-Toiyabe National Forest. No intact buildings remain; the high elevation and harsh weather have reduced most traces to low rock outlines and debris fields littered with rusted cans, broken glass, and the occasional shard of fine china or champagne bottle — remnants of a brief era of ostentatious wealth.
The site is accessible via a rough, high-clearance dirt road branching south from U.S. Highway 50 near Illipah Reservoir (about 37 miles west of Ely), then climbing approximately 11 miles to the Hamilton area and onward to the hilltop. The road is often impassable in winter or after rain, and visitors must contend with extreme weather even in summer. Combined with nearby Hamilton (which retains a few more substantial ruins including the shell of the 1870 courthouse), Treasure City forms part of one of Nevada’s most evocative ghost town complexes.
Though remote and barren, the location draws history enthusiasts, photographers, and off-road adventurers seeking the stark beauty of a place where fortunes were made and lost in the span of a single winter. Artifacts are protected on public land — take only photographs — and open mine shafts pose serious fall hazards. As with all Nevada backcountry sites, go prepared with water, fuel, and a reliable vehicle; cell service is nonexistent. Treasure City stands not as a preserved museum but as raw testimony to the fleeting nature of mining glory in the Silver State.