Goodsprings

Clark County

Goodsprings is an area that has been heavily written about. You can spend unlimited time reading about it on the internet. Nevada authors like Patera have dedicated entire books to the Goodsprings area. Therefore, I will stick to the basics here. Like many other sites of activity, the mines around what would become Goodsprings operated in Lincoln County for many years before Clark County was founded. There is evidence that mining activity took place here by Spanish miners, prior to the U.S. gaining control of this area in 1848. The mid 1850's saw Brigham Young send miners to this area in search of lead. By early 1857, several men who had previously met in present day Las Vegas, had produced a substantial amount of lead ore from the Potosi Mine. A group of prospectors found new discoveries in 1868. The New England Mining District was formed. It would later be changed to the Yellow Pine Mining District. After the other miners left, a cattle rancher and prospector named Joe Good remained. Joe Good later found springs in the area that contained an abundant amount of clean, usable water. Hence the name Goodsprings. The 1880's saw considerable interest in the area and the Goodsprings area grew. 1893 saw an estimated population of 200 residents. Shipping any ore that wasn't high grade continued to be a problem because of the distances. In 1905, the San Pedro-Los Angeles- Salt Lake Railroad completed its rail from Goodsprings to Jean. This helped solve the problem of lower grade ores remaining profitable. The district continued to grow in 1906. Paher speaks about peak activity occurring here between 1915 and 1918. The Goodsprings mines produced well for the wartime effort. The town had several saloons, stores, a school, hospital, hotel and a publication called the Gazette. Goodsprings had a population estimate of 800 residents during this time. I have sites on here about several Goodsprings area mines that operated after this period of time. Please see those pages.

Today, the actual town of Goodsprings still has a very small population. It has become a little bit of a rural and historical attraction for those living half an hour away in the urban environment of the Las Vegas Valley. The Pioneer Saloon is opened again and has kept most of its historical decor. It is still very original, to include the tin tiles and a couple of old bullet holes I believe. Legend states that Clark Gable's cigarette burns are still present on the wooden bar top. The airplane carrying his wife Carol Lombard crashed on Potosi Mountain in 1942. The legend says that while Gable was awaiting news regarding the crash/ survivors, he would fall asleep at the bar while smoking cigarettes. Me and a couple guys that I have explored this area with, used to make day trips to the district during the spring. After checking out a couple mines, we'd get a beer and burger at the Pioneer Saloon. We'd then head back to Pahrump via the dirt roads through Sandy Valley. These were some of my favorite trips. The photos below are from two different periods of time. The first 16 are from recent years. The last 5 are from a trip there in the early 1990's. If you go to the pages for the different Goodsprings mines, I believe that I posted photos from the early 1990's for a couple of those mines as well.

Post Office: April 6, 1899 to March 5, 1909 (Lincoln County); March 5, 1909 to May 31, 1960.

Last Trip/ Road Conditions: It's been a few years since I've been there. Don't confuse the town of Goodsprings for the mines in the Goodsprings district. The road to the town is paved. The roads to the different mines all vary. Some of these mines are many miles outside of town. Most are on dirt roads. Several of these dirt roads are 4-wheel drive. Some of these mine sites can't be driven to and require hiking. The Goodsprings area is good for all different types of people. If you want a little bit of history, a rural setting and a beer at a cool saloon via the pavement, this area has something for you. If you want to lock in 4-wheel drive and hike into the hills to see a mine that hardly anybody ever gets to, this area has something for you as well.