[7]       

Dayton

Lyon County
  39.2363, -119.5894

"Oh! Here's one you can read right out your car window ... as you're waiting for the light to change at the only stoplight in town. Or, you can walk right up to it from behind as you're pumping gas at the Chevron! One of Nevada's oldest communities, symbolized at an inconspicuous location." -- Journal Entry, May 2007

Corner of US 50 and Dayton Valley Rd -- Dayton
* This marker shares its site with [163] - Chinatown *

Original Date Visited: 5/30/07

Signed: Both lanes of US 50

Date dedicated: April 1994
The original alloted spot for [7] was on the northeast corner of Dayton's main intersection (US 50 and Main Street/Dayton Valley Rd.) on the grounds of the Carson & Colorado Railroad Depot building, but funds and land allotments forced the Office to choose its present spot on the southwest corner. With rapid growth in the Dayton area, this one quickly fell to the wayside. This busy intersection required a complete upgrade to a four-lane highway status through town and the fate of the marker looked uncertain. Five years later, the Nevada Department of Transportation finished the road project in a surprising way by installing the present metal plaque you see today that covers its original Stone face. In the past, the marker's location was most ideal, but today it seems a little out of place. Every now and then the thousands of commuters who travel past this intersection may notice it out of the corner of their eye, or stopped at the traffic light.

  • [7] Marker 7 is one of the oldest historic markers in Nevada
  • [7] Welcome to Dayton, home of the state first gold discovery

Exact Description:
Dayton, one of the earliest settlements in Nevada was first known as a stopping place on the river for California-bound pioneers. Coming in from the desert they rested here before continuing westward.

In 1849, gold was found at the mouth of Gold Canyon and prospecting began in the canyons to the west. This led to the discovery of the fabulous ore deposits at Gold Hill and Virginia City in 1859.

Called by several different names in its early years, the place became Dayton in 1861, named in honor of John Day who laid out the town.

For many decades Dayton prospered as a mill and trading center and remained the county seat for Lyon County until 1911.

Next Marker:

AUSTIN

Related Links & Markers

 [13] -- The Comstock Lode   [257] -- Nevada's First Gold Discover   Nevada Towns: Dayton   History of Dayton 

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