Metropolis, Nevada
Encyclopedia
Metropolis, Nevada is a ghost town in Elko County
, Nevada
, 12 mi (19.3 km) north of Wells
.
During the early twentieth century, many homesteaders attempted to farm in the Great Basin
, especially in western Utah but also in northeastern Nevada. Creating the town of Metropolis was the project of an eastern businessman, Harry L. Pierce of Leominster, Massachusetts
, and investors from both Massachusetts and Salt Lake City. During the second decade of the twentieth century, Pierce's Pacific Reclamation Company intended to make the optimistically named Metropolis the center of a huge farming district.
The Company purchased 40000 acre (16,187.4 ha) of desert land in 1910 and hired a respected Salt Lake City contractor, P. J. “Pat” Moran, to build a dam on Bishop Creek, 15 mi (24.1 km) east of the planned city, hoping to use the reservoir for irrigation. Once the dam was complete, the Company stepped up its promotional campaign, and the LDS Church encouraged members to move there. The town became predominately Mormon, and no church was ever built in Metropolis because the Mormons used the town amusement hall as a meetinghouse.
In an attempt to demonstrate permanence, the Company built the amusement hall, a post office, a school, a train depot, and a magnificent modern hotel, complete with an electric generator, central heating, and hot and cold running water in every room. A railroad spur was extended to the town site, and regular passenger service began in 1912. The population grew to nearly 700.
Superficially the town seemed a success, but it faced serious problems. Pierce had failed to obtain water right
s to Bishop Creek, and the downstream town of Lovelock
sued to prevent the impoundment of water behind Bishop Creek Dam. Because residents could not irrigate, many tried dry-farming
wheat, successfully at first.
After settlers killed marauding coyote
s, the jackrabbit population rose dramatically. Rabbits systematically ate the wheat, and farmers retaliated with guns, poison, and organized drives. They killed thousands of jackrabbits and sold them in San Francisco.
Dry-farming had been possible for a few years only because of unusually high precipitation. Lower rainfall and Mormon crickets ended the experiment. Pacific Reclamation declared bankruptcy in 1920. In 1922 the railroad discontinued service. By 1924, only 200 people remained. The amusement hall and hotel burned, and the last store closed in 1925, the post office in 1942. The few remaining residents turned to ranching. By 1950 Metropolis was a ghost town. Today ranches surround the town site. The ruins of the hotel and school and a cemetery are all that remain.
Elko County, Nevada
-Demographics:As of the census of 2000, there were 45,291 people, 15,638 households, and 11,493 families residing in the county. The population density was 3/sq mi . There were 18,456 housing units at an average density of 1/sq mi...
, Nevada
Nevada
Nevada is a state in the western, mountain west, and southwestern regions of the United States. With an area of and a population of about 2.7 million, it is the 7th-largest and 35th-most populous state. Over two-thirds of Nevada's people live in the Las Vegas metropolitan area, which contains its...
, 12 mi (19.3 km) north of Wells
Wells, Nevada
Wells is a city in Elko County, in northeast Nevada in the western United States. The population was 1,346 at the 2000 census. Wells is located at the junction of U.S. Route 93 and Interstate 80, approximately east of Elko and is part of the Elko Micropolitan Statistical Area.-History:The site...
.
During the early twentieth century, many homesteaders attempted to farm in the Great Basin
Great Basin
The Great Basin is the largest area of contiguous endorheic watersheds in North America and is noted for its arid conditions and Basin and Range topography that varies from the North American low point at Badwater Basin to the highest point of the contiguous United States, less than away at the...
, especially in western Utah but also in northeastern Nevada. Creating the town of Metropolis was the project of an eastern businessman, Harry L. Pierce of Leominster, Massachusetts
Leominster, Massachusetts
Leominster is a city in Worcester County, Massachusetts, United States. It is the second-largest city in Worcester County, with a population of 40,759 at the 2010 census. Leominster is located north of Worcester and west of Boston. Both Route 2 and Route 12 pass through Leominster. Interstate 190,...
, and investors from both Massachusetts and Salt Lake City. During the second decade of the twentieth century, Pierce's Pacific Reclamation Company intended to make the optimistically named Metropolis the center of a huge farming district.
The Company purchased 40000 acre (16,187.4 ha) of desert land in 1910 and hired a respected Salt Lake City contractor, P. J. “Pat” Moran, to build a dam on Bishop Creek, 15 mi (24.1 km) east of the planned city, hoping to use the reservoir for irrigation. Once the dam was complete, the Company stepped up its promotional campaign, and the LDS Church encouraged members to move there. The town became predominately Mormon, and no church was ever built in Metropolis because the Mormons used the town amusement hall as a meetinghouse.
In an attempt to demonstrate permanence, the Company built the amusement hall, a post office, a school, a train depot, and a magnificent modern hotel, complete with an electric generator, central heating, and hot and cold running water in every room. A railroad spur was extended to the town site, and regular passenger service began in 1912. The population grew to nearly 700.
Superficially the town seemed a success, but it faced serious problems. Pierce had failed to obtain water right
Water right
Water right in water law refers to the right of a user to use water from a water source, e.g., a river, stream, pond or source of groundwater. In areas with plentiful water and few users, such systems are generally not complicated or contentious...
s to Bishop Creek, and the downstream town of Lovelock
Lovelock, Nevada
Lovelock is a city in western Nevada that is the county seat of Pershing County, the location of a prison, and the namesake of the area's Cold War gunnery range...
sued to prevent the impoundment of water behind Bishop Creek Dam. Because residents could not irrigate, many tried dry-farming
Dryland farming
Dryland farming is an agricultural technique for non-irrigated cultivation of drylands.-Locations:Dryland farming is used in the Great Plains, the Palouse plateau of Eastern Washington, and other arid regions of North America, the Middle East and in other grain growing regions such as the steppes...
wheat, successfully at first.
After settlers killed marauding coyote
Coyote
The coyote , also known as the American jackal or the prairie wolf, is a species of canine found throughout North and Central America, ranging from Panama in the south, north through Mexico, the United States and Canada...
s, the jackrabbit population rose dramatically. Rabbits systematically ate the wheat, and farmers retaliated with guns, poison, and organized drives. They killed thousands of jackrabbits and sold them in San Francisco.
Dry-farming had been possible for a few years only because of unusually high precipitation. Lower rainfall and Mormon crickets ended the experiment. Pacific Reclamation declared bankruptcy in 1920. In 1922 the railroad discontinued service. By 1924, only 200 people remained. The amusement hall and hotel burned, and the last store closed in 1925, the post office in 1942. The few remaining residents turned to ranching. By 1950 Metropolis was a ghost town. Today ranches surround the town site. The ruins of the hotel and school and a cemetery are all that remain.
Further reading
- Shawn Hall, Old Heart of Nevada: Ghost Towns and Mining Camps of Elko County (University of Nevada Press, 1998), 118-123.
- Heidi Knapp Rinella, Nevada: Off the Beaten Path (Globe Pequot, 2007), 109-11.
- Claudia Wines, "Metropolis: The Glory Days," Northeastern Nevada Historical Society Quarterly (2008), 70-80.
- John P. Young, Journalism in California (San Francisco: Chronicle Publishing Company, 1915), 301. Biographical sketch of P. J. Moran.
External links
- Metropolis, historic and contemporary photos.
- Bishop Creek Dam, description and photos.