Ah, Goodsprings. A place where dust motes dance in sunbeams and the past clings to the peeling paint like a stubborn shadow. You want to know about it? Fine. But don't expect me to wax poetic.
Goodsprings, Nevada
Goodsprings, Nevada. It’s an unincorporated community, which, if you must know, means it’s a place that’s decided it doesn’t need the bureaucracy of being a formal town. It resides in the sprawling expanse of Clark County, Nevada. The town itself, or what’s left of it, carries the weight of history in its very bones. The Pioneer Saloon and the Goodsprings Schoolhouse, both stoic survivors from 1913, still stand, a testament to a time when this place actually mattered. Once a bustling mining town, it’s now a whisper of its former self, a place where the population count barely nudges past the double digits. As of the 2020 census, it held a mere 162 souls. This attrition has, quite rightly, earned it the grim moniker of a ghost town.
History
The very name, Goodsprings, is a nod to Joseph Good, a cattle rancher whose livestock found solace and sustenance at a particular spring tucked away in the southeastern folds of the Spring Mountains. But the real story of this place, like so many in the West, is etched in rock and ore. Back in 1856, Mormon miners, ever on the hunt for fortune, stumbled upon lead at Potosi Mountain. Then, in 1893, the glint of gold caught someone's eye, sparking the initial fever. Goodsprings became the beating heart of the most bountiful mining districts in Clark County, a place where lead, silver, copper, zinc, and gold were coaxed from the earth.
Before the turn of the 20th century, a rudimentary settlement had taken root: a cluster of tent cabins, a mill, and a post office. The powers that be, in Lincoln County, deemed it worthy of its own township. By 1904, ambitious souls from Salt Lake City laid out the official plat for Goodsprings Township. The real construction, the boom years, kicked off with the arrival of the railroad, a lifeline of commerce and connection, in 1910–1911.
The current Goodsprings Schoolhouse, a survivor that has seen its share of relocations, was erected in 1913. It’s a remarkable piece of history, the oldest school in Clark County that was built specifically for education and still serves that purpose. It’s even graced the National Register of Historic Places. Yet, even this bastion of learning has faced the grim reality of dwindling numbers. In 2009, the specter of closure loomed, a casualty of escalating costs. By 2016, the schoolhouse was educating a mere handful, around 10 students.
The town’s zenith, in terms of population, was around 1918, boasting a respectable 800 residents. Lead mining surged during World War I, a grim necessity for ammunition production. But as the war’s demand waned, so did the town’s fortunes. Families packed up and moved on. A second, albeit brief, boom arrived with World War II, only to recede once more when peace was declared. The population, once a robust 800, had shrunk to roughly 200.
The 1950s brought a new, unsettling kind of activity to the region: atomic testing. A chilling reminder of a nation’s Cold War anxieties played out on the Nevada landscape.
The physical fabric of Goodsprings has also been tested by time and disaster. Fires have claimed many of the original structures, including the Fayle Hotel in 1966. The Goodsprings Historical Society, bless their determined hearts, has been working to preserve what remains, shoring up roofs and patching up the scars of neglect.
Pioneer Saloon
The Pioneer Saloon. A relic. It opened its doors in 1913, making it one of Nevada’s oldest saloons. Its walls are clad in pressed tin, a detail that whispers of a bygone era. The walls, you see, hold more than just the scent of stale beer and desperation. They hold a story of violence. On June 27, 1915, a dispute over a card game escalated. Paul Coski found himself on the wrong end of a miner named Joe Armstrong’s gun. Coski died. Armstrong, initially cleared by a coroner's jury on grounds of self-defense, was later tried. The Reno Gazette-Journal reported his acquittal, citing his reputation as a non-quarrelsome man with a clean record. The saloon, with a touch of morbid flair, still points out two bullet holes in the wall, purportedly from that very shooting, accompanied by a newspaper clipping detailing the sordid affair.
Prohibition, that grand experiment in societal control, didn’t stop the flow of illicit spirits entirely. In 1924, regulatory officers raided the Pioneer Saloon, along with other establishments in the Las Vegas area, for violating the alcohol ban.
The saloon also serves as a somber memorial to Carole Lombard and her husband, Clark Gable. Lombard’s plane, TWA Flight 3, met its tragic end on Potosi Mountain on January 16, 1942. All 22 souls aboard perished, including Lombard’s mother and press agent. The Pioneer Saloon and its adjacent hotel became the chaotic hub for the search and recovery efforts in the devastating aftermath.
In more recent times, the saloon has seen a significant financial injection. A new owner in 2006 poured around 1.5 million, after its previous steward had held it for 15 years.
The Pioneer Saloon has also found a second life on screen, serving as a filming location for productions like Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas and Miss Congeniality. It’s also made appearances on the reality television series Ghost Adventures. Its eerie ambiance has been captured in episodes of The Twilight Zone, The Misfits, and Cherry 2000. But perhaps its most surprising cultural impact comes from the 2010 video game Fallout: New Vegas. The game faithfully recreated the saloon, and in a peculiar twist of fate, the real saloon now features a small corner dedicated to the game. Since 2022, Goodsprings has hosted an annual festival, drawing thousands of Fallout fans from across the globe, turning this forgotten outpost into a pilgrimage site for gamers.
Energy Production
In a rather unexpected turn for a town steeped in mining history, Goodsprings also plays a role in modern energy. The Goodsprings Waste Heat Recovery Station, which began operations in 2010, harnesses waste heat from a Kern River Pipeline compressor station to generate 7.5MW of energy. It’s NV Energy’s first renewable energy plant, a $22 million project constructed by Ormat Technologies. Construction commenced in March 2010, and the plant hummed to life by November of that same year.
Geography
Goodsprings is situated in the aptly named Goodsprings Valley in southern Nevada. To its northeast lies the Bird Spring Range, with the sprawling metropolis of Las Vegas beyond. The community itself is located along Nevada State Route 161, a mere five miles northeast of Jean and the major artery of Interstate 15.
According to the United States Census Bureau, the census-designated place of Goodsprings encompasses a total area of 1.5 square miles, all of which is land. Not a drop of water to be found.
Climate
Goodsprings endures an arid climate, characterized by long, scorching summers and blessedly mild winters.
| Climate Data for Goodsprings, Nevada (elevation 3,707 ft) | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
| Record high °F (°C) | 73 (23) | 75 (24) | 86 (30) | 95 (35) | 108 (42) | 112 (44) | 115 (46) | 113 (45) | 105 (41) | 95 (35) | 81 (27) | 68 (20) | 115 (46) |
| Mean daily maximum °F (°C) | 55.2 (12.9) | 58.1 (14.5) | 67.0 (19.4) | 74.9 (23.8) | 88.8 (31.6) | 98.0 (36.7) | 101.8 (38.8) | 99.4 (37.4) | 91.9 (33.3) | 77.3 (25.2) | 63.7 (17.6) | 53.4 (11.9) | 77.4 (25.2) |
| Mean daily minimum °F (°C) | 31.8 (-0.1) | 34.3 (1.3) | 39.0 (3.9) | 44.1 (6.7) | 54.0 (12.2) | 61.5 (16.4) | 68.8 (20.4) | 66.6 (19.2) | 60.5 (15.8) | 49.9 (9.9) | 38.1 (3.4) | 31.7 (-0.2) | 48.4 (9.1) |
| Record low °F (°C) | 9 (-13) | 14 (-10) | 21 (-6) | 25 (-4) | 36 (2) | 41 (5) | 55 (13) | 48 (9) | 42 (6) | 31 (-1) | 16 (-9) | 13 (-11) | 9 (-13) |
| Average precipitation inches (mm) | 0.90 (23) | 1.63 (41) | 0.47 (12) | 0.45 (11) | 0.04 (1.0) | 0.02 (0.51) | 0.55 (14) | 0.54 (14) | 0.30 (7.6) | 0.67 (17) | 0.33 (8.4) | 0.91 (23) | 6.82 (173) |
| Average snowfall inches (cm) | 0.4 (1.0) | 0.8 (2.0) | 0.2 (0.51) | 0 (0) | 0 (0) | 0 (0) | 0 (0) | 0 (0) | 0 (0) | 0 (0) | 0 (0) | 2.3 (5.8) | 3.7 (9.4) |
Source: The Western Regional Climate Center [32]
Demographics
As of the census of 2000, Goodsprings was home to 232 people. These were distributed across 107 households, with 63 of those being family units. The population density hovered around 155.7 inhabitants per square mile. There were 122 housing units, averaging about 81.9 per square mile. The racial makeup was predominantly White at 89.66%, with smaller percentages of African American (1.72%), Native American (0.43%), those identifying with other races (1.72%), and a notable 6.47% from mixed-race backgrounds. Hispanic or Latino individuals constituted 4.74% of the population.
Within those households, 20.6% included children under 18. Married couples accounted for 45.8% of households, while 11.2% had a female householder with no husband present. A significant 40.2% were non-family households. Over a third, 35.5%, were single-person households, and 13.1% of those were individuals aged 65 or older living alone. The average household size was 2.17, and family sizes averaged 2.83.
The age distribution showed 22.8% under 18, 3.0% between 18 and 24, 22.8% from 25 to 44, a substantial 28.9% between 45 and 64, and 22.4% aged 65 and over. The median age was 46. For every 100 females, there were 90.2 males, and for those 18 and older, the ratio was 105.7 males per 100 females.
The median household income in 2000 was 58,125. Men pulled in a median of 28,594. The per capita income for the CDP was $22,282. Worryingly, 9.2% of the population lived below the poverty line, with no children under 18 in poverty, but 19.6% of those over 64 falling into that category.
Note: The 2020 census recorded a population of 162, a significant decrease from 2000. [33]
Education
Goodsprings is served by a public library, a branch of the Las Vegas-Clark County Library District, offering a sliver of modern amenity in this historic locale.