Austin, Nevada
| Austin, Nevada | |
|---|---|
| Census-designated place | |
|
|
 Austin
|
|
| Coordinates: 39°29′31″N 117°4′13″W / 39.49194°N 117.07028°WCoordinates: 39°29′31″N 117°4′13″W / 39.49194°N 117.07028°W | |
| Country | United States |
| State | Nevada |
| County | Lander |
| Area | |
| • Total | 1.1 sq mi (2.9 km2) |
| • Land | 1.1 sq mi (2.9 km2) |
| • Water | 0 sq mi (0 km2) |
| Elevation | 6,605 ft (2,013 m) |
| Population (2010) | |
| • Total | 192 |
| • Density | 170/sq mi (66/km2) |
| Time zone | Pacific (PST) (UTC-8) |
| • Summer (DST) | PDT (UTC-7) |
| ZIP codes | 89310 |
| FIPS code | 32-03700 |
| Reference no. | 8 |
Austin is a small, unincorporated community and census-designated place in Lander County, Nevada, United States. In 2010, its population was 192. It is located on the western slopes of the Toiyabe Range at an elevation of 6,605 feet (2,013 m). U.S. Route 50 passes through the town.
This area was long occupied by bands of the Western Shoshone people. The city of Austin was mapped out in 1862 by David Buell. This was during the American Civil War, and the Union was eager to find new sources of precious metals, especially gold, to support the war effort. The city was named after Buell's partner, Alvah Austin, during a silver rush. The valued metal was reputedly found when a Pony Express horse kicked over a rock and observers noticed the silver. By summer 1863, Austin and the surrounding Reese River Mining District had a population of more than 10,000, mostly European Americans attracted to the silver boom. It was designated as the county seat of Lander County. (In 1979, after the center of population had shifted, the county seat was shifted to Battle Mountain.) In 1864, the town launched Reuel Colt Gridley's impromptu fundraising drive that raised over $250,000 for wounded Civil War veterans, by repeatedly auctioning a sack of flour.
The Nevada Central Railroad was built to connect Austin with the transcontinental railroad at Battle Mountain in 1880. However, by that time the silver boom was almost over. Major silver production ended by 1887, although there was a slight revival in the 1910s. In the mid-1950s there was a great deal of interest in uranium deposits in the area, to fuel the emerging nuclear industry, but the ore proved to be of low quality.
...
Wikipedia