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Silver discoveries at Union Canyon in the Shoshone Mountains by P. A. Havens in 1863
led to the formation of Ione. In 1864, Ione was named the first county seat for Nye
County. At that time, the town had a population of 600 and more than one hundred
buildings. The combination of low mine production and the emergence of Belmont
forced Ione to relinquish the county seat in 1867.

Ione experienced numerous swings in fortune over the years, but never reclaimed its
early prominence. Mercury mining sustained the town during the 1930s. Since that
time, little activity has occurred. Ione has never been completely abandoned, and a
handful of hardy people still live there amid the many remnants of its interesting past.


Ione Today
Ione: Silver and Mercury in the Shoshones
from Online Nevada
Nye County's mining boomtown of Ione has seen alternating periods of
prosperity and decline.

Photograph by S. Martin Shelton, courtesy of the Nevada State Historic
Preservation Office
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