Rhyolite ghost town

Rhyolite is a gold-rush ghost town near Beatty in southwestern Nevada. The story began in 1904, when prospectors Shorty Harris and E. L. Cross found gold-bearing quartz; a town sprang up around the Montgomery Shoshone mine, and electricity arrived in 1907. The financial panic of 1907 was the beginning of the end: banks and newspapers closed, mine and mill shut down in 1911, and power was cut in 1916.

Among the ruins today are the well-preserved train depot, the empty shell of the three-story bank, remains of the school built for 250 children, and the Bottle House, which Tom T. Kelly built in 1906 from about 50,000 beer and liquor bottles. Right next door, the Goldwell Open Air Museum has shown outdoor sculptures since 1984, including twelve fiberglass disciples by Belgian artist Albert Szukalski that recall the Last Supper.

For road trippers: from Beatty, drive about 4 miles west on Highway 374, turn right onto the paved Rhyolite Road and follow the BLM sign 1.8 miles to the ruins. There are no facilities apart from a basic toilet, and summers are extremely hot. Bring plenty of water and stay out of crumbling walls.