Newhouse, Utah
Encyclopedia
Newhouse is a ghost town
located on the eastern edge of the Wah Wah Valley
in Beaver County
, Utah
, United States
. A silver mining
town based on the Cactus Mine on the western slopes of the San Francisco Mountains, Newhouse was smaller and quieter than Frisco
, 5 miles (8 km) to the southeast.
was built here in 1892, but was never successful. Everything changed in 1900, when Samuel Newhouse
bought the property. A wealthy Salt Lake City
entrepreneur, Newhouse had successfully financed the development of copper mining at the Bingham Canyon Mine
two years before. Finally, enough capital was available to make the Cactus Mine workable. The mining camp that formed on his land was initially known as Tent Town, for the temporary nature of its dwellings.
Under Newhouse's management, the silver mining business began to boom. By 1905, the town, now named Newhouse, had many permanent structures, including a restaurant, library, livery stable, hospital, stores, hotel, opera house, and dance hall. Samuel Newhouse was an experienced developer and promoter, and he kept tight control over his company town
. He built over seventy stucco
company houses for miners to rent. The company piped water 5 miles (8 km) from the Wah Wah Springs and installed an electrical generation system. A town park
was irrigated
with excess water left over from mining and culinary use. As owner, Newhouse named the town's businesses, such as the Cactus Trading Company, the Cactus Club, the Cactus Dancehall, and the Cactus Cafe, after the mine. Public drunkenness was strictly forbidden, and the only saloon permitted was built a mile from town, off of Newhouse's property. Newhouse offered a $50 prize to the first parents to have a baby in Newhouse, and he gave all the town's children Christmas presents.
Newhouse's success was short-lived. By 1910, the Cactus Mine was worked out, and other area mines never amounted to much. Most of the miners took their families elsewhere. Many buildings, including the well-built dance hall, were moved 30 miles (48.3 km) away to Milford
. The cafe kept operating, serving those few miners who stayed on, until it burned down in 1921.
In 1922, filmmakers came to Newhouse to make the silent film
The Covered Wagon
.
Dozens of ruined buildings, foundations, and rubble remain at the town site.
Ghost town
A ghost town is an abandoned town or city. A town often becomes a ghost town because the economic activity that supported it has failed, or due to natural or human-caused disasters such as floods, government actions, uncontrolled lawlessness, war, or nuclear disasters...
located on the eastern edge of the Wah Wah Valley
Wah Wah Valley
Wah Wah Valley is an endorheic valley within the Basin and Range of west-central Utah. It is bound by the Wah Wah Mountains to the west and south and the San Francisco Mountains to the east...
in Beaver County
Beaver County, Utah
As of the census of 2010, there were 6,629 people, 2,265 households, and 1,697 families residing in the county. The population density was 2.56 people per square mile . There were 2,908 housing units at an average density of 1.12 per square mile...
, Utah
Utah
Utah is a state in the Western United States. It was the 45th state to join the Union, on January 4, 1896. Approximately 80% of Utah's 2,763,885 people live along the Wasatch Front, centering on Salt Lake City. This leaves vast expanses of the state nearly uninhabited, making the population the...
, United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. A silver mining
Silver mining
Silver mining refers to the resource extraction of the precious metal element silver by mining.-History:Silver has been known since ancient times. It is mentioned in the Book of Genesis, and slag heaps found in Asia Minor and on the islands of the Aegean Sea indicate that silver was being separated...
town based on the Cactus Mine on the western slopes of the San Francisco Mountains, Newhouse was smaller and quieter than Frisco
Frisco, Utah
Frisco is a ghost town in Beaver County, Utah, USA. It was an active mining camp from 1879 to 1929.-History:Frisco developed as the post office and commercial center for the San Francisco Mining District, and was the terminus of the Utah Southern Railroad extension from Milford. The Horn Silver...
, 5 miles (8 km) to the southeast.
History
The Cactus Mine was first identified as a silver mine in 1870, one of the earliest in the San Francisco Mining District. A succession of companies over the next thirty years failed to profit from the mine. A small smelterSmelting
Smelting is a form of extractive metallurgy; its main use is to produce a metal from its ore. This includes iron extraction from iron ore, and copper extraction and other base metals from their ores...
was built here in 1892, but was never successful. Everything changed in 1900, when Samuel Newhouse
Samuel Newhouse
Samuel Newhouse was a Utah entrepreneur and mining magnate.He was born in New York City of European Jewish immigrant parents and grew up in Pennsylvania. He studied law there before going to Colorado in 1879...
bought the property. A wealthy Salt Lake City
Salt Lake City, Utah
Salt Lake City is the capital and the most populous city of the U.S. state of Utah. The name of the city is often shortened to Salt Lake or SLC. With a population of 186,440 as of the 2010 Census, the city lies in the Salt Lake City metropolitan area, which has a total population of 1,124,197...
entrepreneur, Newhouse had successfully financed the development of copper mining at the Bingham Canyon Mine
Bingham Canyon Mine
The Bingham Canyon Mine, also known as the Kennecott Copper Mine, is an open-pit mining operation extracting a large porphyry copper deposit southwest of Salt Lake City, Utah, USA, in the Oquirrh Mountains. It is the deepest open-pit mine in the world. The mine is owned by Rio Tinto Group, an...
two years before. Finally, enough capital was available to make the Cactus Mine workable. The mining camp that formed on his land was initially known as Tent Town, for the temporary nature of its dwellings.
Under Newhouse's management, the silver mining business began to boom. By 1905, the town, now named Newhouse, had many permanent structures, including a restaurant, library, livery stable, hospital, stores, hotel, opera house, and dance hall. Samuel Newhouse was an experienced developer and promoter, and he kept tight control over his company town
Company town
A company town is a town or city in which much or all real estate, buildings , utilities, hospitals, small businesses such as grocery stores and gas stations, and other necessities or luxuries of life within its borders are owned by a single company...
. He built over seventy stucco
Stucco
Stucco or render is a material made of an aggregate, a binder, and water. Stucco is applied wet and hardens to a very dense solid. It is used as decorative coating for walls and ceilings and as a sculptural and artistic material in architecture...
company houses for miners to rent. The company piped water 5 miles (8 km) from the Wah Wah Springs and installed an electrical generation system. A town park
Urban park
An urban park, is also known as a municipal park or a public park, public open space or municipal gardens , is a park in cities and other incorporated places to offer recreation and green space to residents of, and visitors to, the municipality...
was irrigated
Irrigation
Irrigation may be defined as the science of artificial application of water to the land or soil. It is used to assist in the growing of agricultural crops, maintenance of landscapes, and revegetation of disturbed soils in dry areas and during periods of inadequate rainfall...
with excess water left over from mining and culinary use. As owner, Newhouse named the town's businesses, such as the Cactus Trading Company, the Cactus Club, the Cactus Dancehall, and the Cactus Cafe, after the mine. Public drunkenness was strictly forbidden, and the only saloon permitted was built a mile from town, off of Newhouse's property. Newhouse offered a $50 prize to the first parents to have a baby in Newhouse, and he gave all the town's children Christmas presents.
Newhouse's success was short-lived. By 1910, the Cactus Mine was worked out, and other area mines never amounted to much. Most of the miners took their families elsewhere. Many buildings, including the well-built dance hall, were moved 30 miles (48.3 km) away to Milford
Milford, Utah
Milford is a city in Beaver County, Utah, United States. The population was 1,420 at the 2010 census.-History:Although there were ranches in the area in the 1870s, Milford did not come into being until the arrival of the San Pedro, Los Angeles and Salt Lake Railroad in 1880.-Milford Flat...
. The cafe kept operating, serving those few miners who stayed on, until it burned down in 1921.
In 1922, filmmakers came to Newhouse to make the silent film
Silent film
A silent film is a film with no synchronized recorded sound, especially with no spoken dialogue. In silent films for entertainment the dialogue is transmitted through muted gestures, pantomime and title cards...
The Covered Wagon
The Covered Wagon
The Covered Wagon is an American silent Western film released by Paramount Pictures. The film was directed by James Cruze based on a novel by Emerson Hough about a group of pioneers traveling through the old West from Kansas to Oregon. J...
.
Dozens of ruined buildings, foundations, and rubble remain at the town site.
External links
- Newhouse at GhostTowns.com