u/DesertBlooms

NEVADA STATE HISTORICAL MARKER No. 98: Osceola 1872-1940

Location: Corner of the highway & White Pine County Rd 39 📍39.07132, -114.44952

Osceola, most famous of the White Pine County gold producers, was one of the longest-lived placer camps in Nevada.

The gold-bearing quartz belt found in 1872 was 12 miles long by 7 miles wide. Placer gold was found in 1877 in a deep ravine indenting the area. Miners first used the simple process of the common 49” rocker. Hydraulic monitors later were used to mine the gold from the 10’ to 200’ thick gravel beds. One gold nugget found was valued at $6,000.

Osceola was a good business town because of its location near the cattle and grain ranches and gardens in the Spring and Snake Valleys.

Famous district mines were the Cumberland, Osceola, Crescent and Eagle, Verde, Stem-Winder, Guilded Age, Grandfather Snide, Red Monster, and the Saturday Night.

The camp produced nearly $5 million, primarily in gold, with some silver, lead, and tungsten.

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I started collecting pictures of these historical markers in February 2021. I enjoy planning trips with the purpose of seeing these signs. It’s been a great hobby that has taken me to see many places of the state I wouldn’t have otherwise thought about. The trip to Ely netted me 8 more for the collection, bringing the total to 55 out of the 270 or so around Nevada.

Hey friends :) I want to hear what you think about the Spring Valley Wind Farm. Clearly I am an ignorant Las Vegan because I hadn’t heard of this before. I was driving to the historical marker that is across from this when I saw the windmills out my window. They reminded me of the windmills in Southern California and made me feel a little nostalgic for the road trips I took as a child.

Then I googled to find out what I was looking at and I found out it was this massive wind farm that isn’t that old. I saw a lot of people complaining about it.

Is it good because it delivers power to people? Is it bad because it’s taking up our beautiful land and destroying the view from Wheeler? Is it killing the Golden Eagle and other birds? Is the bad outweighing the good? Is there a good alternative to the solar and wind farms that keep popping up? Every time I leave SNV I feel like the solar farms have expanded more and more.

I’ll spend more time reading about it myself, too. Please don’t be mean to me, I am just trying to start a discussion and learn from it. I know I am an annoying Las Vegan who doesn’t understand the rest of the state 🥲

special thank you to the family behind Ferg’s Firewood in Baker! Your stand is really cute. My husband and i were staying out in Gandy and drove into Baker every day to pick up ice for our cooler. The Border Inn casino & Stargazer were all out due to the astronomy festival (busy weekend!) We were worried that we werent going to be able to find this place because no one lists the address online but the signs were easy to spot. The firewood they sold burned nicely and we preferred to it to the wood we found around the campsite. Because of your stand, I had a great weekend and I came home feeling more confident in my ability to do trips like this.

Saw this over the weekend and my comment with it on TikTok keeps getting likes so I thought I’d post it here.

I might be a horrible person bc I did laugh at it 😈

Driving home from Ely this week and I decided to stop and take some pictures at the Extraterrestrial Highway junction. Great place to stargaze, even with the occasional trucker light. Felt spookier than when I’m out shooting near Beatty in the middle of the night.

📍 Crystal Springs Rest Area, Alien Research Center & ET Fresh Jerky
Hiko, NV

I have not been able to stop thinking about this place since I came across this Flickr album a few days ago while looking for things near Ely. Did any of you ever stop here when it was still operating as the Stage Stop?

Location: https://maps.app.goo.gl/qansFyhMbsAQPGb9A

link to photo album: https://www.flickr.com/photos/christinaweber/albums/72157603662412738/

Nuka Cola Cranberry, Nuka Cola Quartz (Vanilla Cream) and Nuka Cola Quantum (Sour Berry Lemonade)

“The Last Supper” by Albert Szukalski, installed in 1984.

I’ve posted the a lot of the Last Supper at night but here is how beautiful it looks at sunrise. There is a documentary on YouTube called “Death Valley Project” which shows how artist Albert Szukalski created the ghosts by draping volunteers of Beatty with burlap sacks and wet plaster. Originally meant to last just 2 years, these works have stood the test of time. I think I read they’ve only been repainted twice or something. The little yellow sign looks like it was added between my June and July visits.

In the back right, you can see Portone by Amanda Phingbodhipakkiya. This work of art is usually hidden from my view in the dark of night but I want to take some pictures of it amongst the stars as well. I think the negative space would be fun to play with.

📍Goldwell Open Air Museum
Rhyolite, Nevada
July 18th 2026

📸 Canon G7X Mark II

I just had to stop and see this old photo shop sign. It is out in St. George, Utah. This building was erected in the 1920's and the photo shop moved into this address in 1964. Dixie Photo was ran by Thomas Porter "Jack" Durrant until his death in 1999. The shop has been closed for a long time but the sign remains at 34 East Tabernacle.

📍 St George, Utah
September 21st 2025

📍 Cedar City, UT
September 21st 2025

Sunrise shot of the Medicine Wheel in Goldwell Open Air Museum. I was too overheated and overstimulated after a long stuffy night of shooting the stars to notice at the time but there’s quite a few of the art pieces in this shot.

In the very back left, behind the gift shop building, you can see a tiny bit of Dip Town by by Irina & Stanislav Schminke*.* This was from 2022’s Burning Man festival.

You can see Ghost Rider by Albert Szukalski. I’m a big fan of this guy.

To the far right along the fence line you can see a giant sculpture of a penguin and a miner. This is called Tribute to Shorty Harris by Fred Bervoets. The penguin represents feeling like an alien in the Nevada desert.

On the top of a pole is Icara by Dre Peeters, a female form of Icarus flying high beneath the desert sun.

There’s a lot more art than what I’ve shown off, too. Highly recommend a visit, day or night, you’re sure to enjoy yourself.

📍Goldwell Open Air Museum
Rhyolite, Nevada
July 18th 2026

📸 Canon G7X Mark II