Huntington Valley
Though the Hastings Cutoff traversed the valley as early as 1846, Huntington Valley wasn't settled until the 1860s. The origin of the name has been the subject of dispute; one possibility is that explorer J.S. Simpson named the valley for Lott Huntington, an overland mail agent who discovered a spring nearby in 1859. Another is that it was named for Oliver & Clark Huntington, guides for the E.J. Steptoe party that crossed the valley in 1854.
In response to mining at Eureka and Hamilton during the late 1860s and early 1870s, stage routes were established by Hill Beachey and George Shepherd through the valley to Elko, and a number of stations sprang up; these included Robinson Station and Taft, or Hardy, Station. Meanwhile, ranching continued and by 1873 enough homesteads existed in Huntington Valley to warrant a post office, first established on the ranch of George Taft.
By 1880, 101 people were recorded as living in the valley, and in 1884 a small log school was built. It was soon joined by the Liberty School, which only operated until around the turn of the century. In 1925, Charlie Mitchell built the new Huntington School near the Brown Ranch. It later moved to the Sestanovich Ranch before closing in 1932.
Though the post office closed in 1931, Huntington Valley has remained continually inhabited. Several ranches are still in operation, and a number of historic homes and buildings from the early days remain.
