9 Eclectic Small Towns In Nevada
Nevada is nothing if not eclectic. A short walk down the Vegas Strip will prove that. But what if we told you that many of Nevada's most eclectic attractions are not in Vegas but in some of the smallest communities in some of the most far-flung locations? From a Western Nevadan town with Western European sheepherders to a pottery hub at the bottom of a mountain to a remote desert settlement right out of a video game (literally), behold the weird and wonderful Nevada way off the Strip.
Gardnerville
Of all places to find sheep and shepherds that derive from the minority Basque culture of Spain/France, Western/Northern Nevada is probably most unexpected. This region attracted bunches of Basques during and after the Gold Rush. Using traditional sheep herding methods, Basque shepherds provided fantastic food and wool and carved out a needed niche in the New Country. One Basque-Nevadan sheep company, Borda, still operates around Gardnerville, a 6,200ish-person town in the foothills of the Sierra Nevada. It is not uncommon to see Borda sheep in the hills or to eat Borda sheep at the JT Basque Bar and Dining Room. Wash it down with another Basque staple: picon punch.
Beatty
Sequestered in the desert near the California border, Beatty is nicknamed the "Gateway to Death Valley." Fittingly, it is also the gateway to a ghost town. Go a few miles west of Beatty to see the ghosts of mining past in Rhyolite. Once a booming community with thousands of residents, Rhyolite went bust but its ruins ironically brought new life as a tourist attraction. It helps that the Goldwell Open Air Museum, which contains a dozen unique art installations, is nearby. After seeing ruins and sculptures evoking ancient times, beat back—or forward—to Beatty proper for bites at the Death Valley Nut & Candy Co.
Tuscarora
Another mining town that went broke, Tuscarora narrowly escaped oblivion with, of all things, pottery. In 1966, potter Dennis Parks picked this decaying Northern Nevada settlement to open the Tuscarora Pottery School. He reclaimed abandoned buildings, built a kiln and pottery wheel, welcomed adventurous students, and, a few years later, moved to Tuscarora permanently. Parks has passed but the school still runs. One of its studios is a geodesic dome dubbed the "first structure to be built since the local mines dried up." In addition to visiting that potters' paradise, temporary Tuscarorans can tour boomtown relics and climb Mount Blitzen, on whose slope the town rests.
Genoa
Genoa is eclectic in name, history, and appearance. As you may already know, Genoa is also a major Italian city and the birthplace of Christopher Columbus. Legend has it that a settler admired Columbus so much he named the nascent Nevada town after Chris's home city. That settler was Orson Hyde, a leader of the Mormon Church. Yes, Mormons helped colonize Nevada, and Genoa is full of proof, especially Mormon Station State Park. Contrasting the park's primitive homesteads are colorful Victorian abodes like the Genoa Courthouse and The Pink House. Both can be toured before knocking back tall beers and taller tales at the Genoa Bar and Saloon, which is billed as the oldest bar in Nevada's oldest surviving non-Native settlement.
Goodsprings
What pottery did for Tuscarora, video games did for Goodsprings. Sure, Goodsprings does have a separate economy via the Pioneer Saloon and Goodsprings General Store, but after Fallout put the town in its fourth installment, Goodsprings sprung to life with a new cast of characters. Each November, thousands of costumed Fallout fans descend on Goodsprings to play apocalypse in the real world. The event is called the Fallout New Vegas Celebration and, just like in the game, the Pioneer Saloon and Goodsprings General Store are important locations. If not into Fallout or video games, do not fret. Those businesses have their own lore, especially of the ghost variety.
Eureka
Eureka was supposedly named by a prospector after he exclaimed while discovering silver in the area. That metal attracted many more prospectors and built the town into a legitimate metropolis. As you can probably guess, Eureka is not like that anymore. In fact, per the 2020 Census, it has only 414 residents. Shimmers of its silver-rich past remain, however, including the Eureka Opera House, which was built in the 1880s for grand events and has nearly as many seats as modern Eureka has residents, and the Eureka Sentinel Museum, which was built around the same time as an office for The Eureka Sentinel and now houses printing artifacts.
Virginia City
If Eureka shimmers with past prospecting prosperity, Virginia City shines so bright you might need sunglasses. Among its flashy attractions, which were built around the "richest silver deposit in American history," are The Mackay Mansion and the Gold Hill Hotel & Saloon. You can visit both, touring the former and learning about its distinguished owners who struck big at the mines, and sleeping, dining, and even paranormal investigating at the latter, which also has a rich, distinguished history. You can get down to the source of Virginia City's glory at the Chollar Mine, an authentic underground relic open for tours.
Winnemucca
Though Gardnerville is certainly a hub of Nevadan Basque Country, Winnemucca is the unofficial capital. Many of its 8,500ish residents have Basque heritage and many of its tourists visit Basque-centric sites. They include the Humboldt Museum, which has a Basque exhibit; Ormachea's Basque Dinner House, which serves everything from pintxos to itsaski to oilasko; and The Martin Hotel, which has been feeding Basques and Basque appreciators for over 100 years. Winnemucca even hosts an annual Basque festival, where you can "eat, drink, and be Basque" each June.
Goldfield
Aptly titled Goldfield was once one of the largest gold producers and communities in Nevada. But like so many mining towns, most residents vanished when the minerals vanished. Goldfield's 2020 population: 225. Thankfully, not all that glitters is gold. Goldfield attracts countless tourists with colorful buildings and businesses dating back to boomtown days, plus more modern but just as colorful art installations. After a tour of the Goldfield Hotel and a meal at the Santa Fe Saloon, get unusual and ironically spiritual at the International Car Forest of the Last Church, which is a sprawling outdoor gallery of irregularly placed and painted vehicles with religion-eschewing overtones.
Forget Vegas, Nevada, and visit Non-Vegas Nevada for an eclectic vacation. In the aforementioned small, rural towns are mini-strips lined with unique attractions, ranging from the JT Basque Bar and Dining Room in Gardnerville to the Eureka Opera House in Eureka to the Gold Hill Hotel & Saloon in Virginia City to the Goldfield Hotel in Goldfield. Those are the true gems of the Silver State. Start mining.
