"I can see where Devil's Gate could intimidate. This tiny bottleneck, once plied by the horse-drawn wagon, forces drivers to slow down after barreling down Gold Canyon from the hill. As much as I watch my speed limit, I still find it difficult not to coast at least 40mph. The gate though shouldn't be the only reason to slow your speed. The fine folks here in Silver City much appreciate it." -- November 2007

Along SR 342 at Devil's Gate (Lyon-Storey county line) -- Silver City

Original Date Visited: 11/21/07
Revisited: 11/14/22
Signed: Southbound lane of SR 342

Street View

Here's what you'll see!

Exact Description:
It gives... "a forcible impression of the unhollowed character of the place." J.Ross Browne -1860.

This rugged reef of metamorphic rock was once one of the famous landmarks of the Nevada Territory. In June of 1850, John Orr and Nicholas Kelly unearthed a gold nugget nearby, the first ever found in Gold Canyon. For the next ten years, the canyon was the scene of placer mining and one of the first stamp mills in the Territory was erected just to the south of Devil's Gate during the summer of 1860.

During the brief Paiute War of May, 1860, the people of Silver City built a stone battlement atop the eastern summit and constructed a wooden cannon for protection.

Devil's Gate marks the boundary line between Storey and Lyon Counties. Through this narrow gorge paraded thousands of the most adventurous souls of the mining West as they made their way to the gold and silver mines of the Comstock Lode.

Next Marker

KYLE (KIEL) RANCH

Related Links & Markers:

- 13 - The Comstock Lode - 148 - The Two Battles of Pyramid Lake Devil's Gate Tollhouse (Western Mining History)

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