ROADTRIP: Unionville, NV

We've been spending the last couple of weekends hunting ghost towns in northern Nevada. I80 north and south of Lovelock is studded with old mining towns. Unionville is not actually a ghost town, since people still live there (about 20), but I use it as a landmark because it does still exist. Plus, it has an awesome history: The town was called Dixie by the Southern sympathizers who settled there, but was renamed Unionville by the more North-leaning citizens in the 1860s.

Most of the photos here are from Humboldt City, a deserted silver mine. From I80, head south on SR400*. There is a marker for the Unionville turnoff; continue south on 400 and turn west on the Lovelock-Unionville Road. The road makes a beautiful loop around Indian Peak to meet back up with I80. Humboldt City and other ghost towns can be found all the way around.

*Depending on what map/GPS/sign you are looking at, all the roads in this area could be called something different. Some of the names are pretty awesome.