Wonder, Nevada facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Wonder, Nevada
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 Wonder, Nevada
Location in Nevada
Wonder, Nevada
Location in the United States
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| Country | United States |
| State | Nevada |
| County |  Churchill County |
| Elevation | 5,853 ft (1,784 m) |
Wonder, Nevada is a ghost town located in Churchill County, Nevada. It's about 39 miles (63 km) east of Fallon. A ghost town is a place where most people have left, often because the main reason for the town's existence, like a mine, stopped being active.
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How Wonder Began
Wonder was started in May 1906. This happened when people looking for valuable minerals, called prospectors, found rich veins of quartz. They found these veins in a dry riverbed north of Chalk Mountain. These prospectors had come from a nearby town called Fairview.
During this time, Nevada was experiencing a "second silver rush." Because of this, hundreds of people quickly moved to the new discovery site. This is how the town of Wonder was born.
Life in Wonder's Early Days
Life in Wonder quickly became busy. A local newspaper, the Wonder Mining News, started printing by August 1906. By September 1909, the town even had its own post office.
By the fall of 1906, Wonder was a very active place. It had a stagecoach line that connected it to Fairview and Fallon. The town also had many different businesses. These included stores, offices for testing minerals, a freight depot, restaurants, hotels, and boarding houses. Of course, there were also many saloons.
The Nevada Wonder Mining Company
Several mining companies were started in Wonder. But the most successful one was the Nevada Wonder Mining Company. This company had money from investors in the eastern United States. Their mining operations brought in the most silver and gold.
In 1913, a large mill was built on the hillside just east of the town. This mill was used to process the ore (rock containing valuable minerals) that came from the mines.
For about 11 years, Wonder was a busy mining town. However, the valuable minerals in the mines did not last forever. By 1919, the mines had run out of ore. This caused the town to slowly become less important.
Wonder Becomes a Ghost Town
In August 1920, the post office in Wonder closed. Many of the buildings were taken apart and moved to other mining camps. The buildings that were left slowly fell apart over the years. This was due to the harsh Nevada winters and hot summers.
There was a short period of mining activity again in the 1930s. But it was not nearly as much as before, and it did not last long.
Finding Wonder Today
Today, you can reach the site of Wonder by taking a dirt road. This road turns off the Dixie Valley road, which is off US 50 East from Fallon. You can recognize the site by the remains of the large mill. This mill can still be found on the hillside east of where the town was.
You might also find some scattered pieces of wood and depressions in the ground. These are where the foundations of old buildings used to be.
Safety When Visiting
It is very important to be careful if you explore the area. There are open pits that lead down into old mine shafts. These pits are dangerous and you could fall into them. Some pits might have fences around them to warn people. However, many of these fences have fallen down or are no longer there. This means there is a risk of injury.
What Minerals Were Found?
The gold and silver found in Wonder were mostly in veins. These veins were made up of quartz, adularia (a type of feldspar), and broken-up volcanic rock. The valuable minerals were tiny pieces spread throughout these veins. They included acanthite (which is silver sulfide), gold, and different types of silver halides.
Wonder's mineral deposits are known as a low-sulfidation epithermal deposit. This means they formed from hot water deep underground. The veins were also deeply oxidized, which made them easier and more profitable to mine.
