Shantytown

(Cave City) (Cave Creek)

"A group of soldiers from Fort Ruby named Cave Creek, when they discovered a cave entrance at the creek head. After they made their discovery, the soldiers rowed into the cave to explore, but the effort turned disastrous when the boat capsized , and all but one of them drowned.

Further exploration took place at Cave Creek a few years later, and the "Great Organ" formation was discovered.

Because of it proximity to Fort Ruby, a small camp had formed at Cave Creek by 1867. Samuel Woodward and Michael Flynn operated a distillery that produced whiskey called Old Commissary. This made Cave Creek popular with soldiers. Woodward and Chester Griswold built a sawmill and ran a restaurant and saloon, but these enterprises continued to exist only while Fort Ruby was active.

Patronizing Cave Creek's saloon was not the soldiers' only pastime. They combed the mountains above Cave Creek and discovered silver ore. As a result of this activity Cave City was formed, but the mines produced little before they were abandoned in the 1870s.

Once Fort Ruby closed, ranching was the only business venture being pursued at Cave Creek. The Cave Creek Ranch and nearby marshlands was sold to the government for the purpose of establishing the Ruby Lake Migratory Water Foul and Game Refuge. In addition, forty acres were set aside for the fish hatchery to replace the closed facility on Trout Creek. Elko County ran the Ruby Valley Fish Hatchery until 1947, when it became a state and county entity, stocking fingerlings in creeks and lakes throughout Nevada. The state officially purchased the facility in 1963. On August 26, 1967, its name was changed to the Dr. Harry M. Gallagher Fish Hatchery. At is peak, the hatchery produced over 200,000 pounds of fingerlings a year. The facility continues to operate today and is one of the most productive hatcheries in the state.

Remaining buildings from the Cave Creek Ranch are now the base for the Ruby Lake National Wildlife Refuge, one of the most popular recreation sites in Elko County. The Cave Creek school, which served Southern Ruby Valley for years until 1970s, still stands. A private cemetery at Cave Creek contains a number of graves.

A campground is nearby."

Our thanks to ghost town & mining camp author Shawn Hall for this bit of history on Shanty Town.

Be sure to bring your fishing pole. The bass that come from the marshes are some of the best around.

 

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