Berlin

Nye County

The Berlin mine began operation in 1887, run by the Cincinnati Mining Company. Ore was shipped to the mill at Knickerbocker. In 1889 the company folded, and the mine was abandoned.

In 1895, State Senator T.J. Bell relocated the mine and began mining silver here, and by 1897 the Berlin townsite was born. In 1898 the Nevada Company, owned by J.G. Stokes, purchased the Berlin property as well as the Knickerbocker and Pioneer mills. The equipment from these mills was moved to Berlin for use in a new 30-stamp mill, which was under construction. The post office opened on July 10, 1900. Berlin continued to grow, reaching a population of nearly 300 by 1905.

1907 brought a miners' strike to Berlin. Miners demanded higher wages, and the Company wouldn't budge, claiming that it couldn't afford them. It eventually folded, closing the mine and mill. A few persistent residents would remain until 1909, when a couple of leasers, Parman and Feenaman, reopened the mine and mill for about a year. Shortly thereafter, Alfred Smith constructed a 50-ton cyanide plant just below the mill, which operated on a small scale from 1910 until 1914. After the plant closed, there was no activity for a number of years at Berlin, and the post office closed December 18, 1918.

In the 1920s, Berlin saw a small ray of hope when it was purchased by the Goldfield Blue Bell Mining Company. The mill was equipped with a steam hoist and air compressor, but the operations never exceeded the exploratory scale. The mill was finally dismantled in 1947.

Today, both Berlin and its neighbor Union are a part of Berlin-Ichthyosaur State Park. In 1928, Dr. Siemon Muller discovered ancient ichthyosaur fossils just above the Union townsite. Excavations began in 1954, led by Dr. Charles Camp and Dr. Samuel Welles. In 1957, the area was officially named a state park. Excavations continued into the 1960s, and 40 individual ichthyosaur fossils were uncovered. Those are today housed where they were discovered, inside a large building above Union.