We are so glad you are here! Eureka! You’ve Found Us!

Touring Eureka

History you can see, experience and enjoy! There are several tours you can take while visiting our historic town. First, you can procure a walking tour map and explore the amazing downtown. Next, you can stop in and visit the 1879 Eureka Opera House and arrange a tour of the 1879 Eureka County Courthouse or The 1879 Eureka Sentinel Museum.

Stroll the historic downtown, enjoy our restaurants, stay in our comfy motels, go shopping, bike, hike, or ride our many trails, and have fun at our many events.

Eureka was discovered in September of 1864 by silver prospectors, WR Tannehill, GT Tannehill, JW Smith and Moses Wilson from nearby Austin. ey were not disappointed as they found rock containing a silver-lead ore in New York Canyon, near the present site of Eureka.

In 1869 Major William M. McCoy and Alonzo Monroe selected a site for a town in what was known as Horse ief Canyon. e town was surveyed on January 27, 1870.

A Post Office was established, then it was officially named “Eureka.”

In 1873, Eureka became the county seat and was carved out of Lander, Elko and White Pine Counties.

Eureka became a fast growing boomtown, coming in second only to the Comstock Lode of Virginia City. Life sprung up to support this growing community with ranchers, shops, three newspapers, doctors, lawyers, surveyors, a railroad, churches and several schools. All working to build a life in Nevada. A large amount of growth was spurred in 1875, due to the completion of the Eureka Palisade Railroad allowing the ore and resources to be shipped out and brought in.

In the 1880s Eureka held one of the most eclectic international populations with folks coming from all over seeking their fame and fortune in the gold and silver mines of the Eureka Mining District. Most notable were the Italian, Cornish, and Chinese immigrant populations contributing tremendously to the construction, mining,wood cutting and charcoal burning needed to keep the numerous mines and smelters running.

50 mines produced gold, silver, lead and zinc for the 17 smelters that had processed up to 700 tons per day. In 1879, and in the 1880s, devastating fires and floods nearly destroyed all of the buildings in Eureka.

e immigrant pioneers rebuilt the town, better and stronger each time. Today, Eureka is vibrant and alive with the blood of these immigrants flowing through her people.

Two very prominent bloodlines in Eureka are the Italian and Basque descendants. e Italians, also known as the Carbonari, arrived in the 1870s and 1880s to chop and transport wood to fuel the charcoal ovens. e Basques were enterprising sheepherders that came in the 1890s and early 1900s. Ranching and farming are still very much a part of Eureka’s local farm to table experience and economy with alfalfa, Timothy hay, beef, bison, pork and lamb being major agricultural exports.

From 1864 to the present day, Eureka County still has active and successful mining operations contributing to it’s vibrant economy.

Stroll the historic downtown, enjoy our restaurants, stay in our motels and go shopping. Bike, hike, ride our many trails or join us at one of our many events. We are so glad that you are here.