History of Lovelock - In the years between 1912 and 1914

Between 1912 and 1914, Rochester, Nevada, thrived as a silver mining town tucked into a tight canyon in Pershing County, about 110 miles east of Reno. More than 1,500 people lived there, divided among three camps: Rochester Heights, Upper Rochester, and Lower Rochester, all stretched along a narrow three mile corridor shaped by the terrain itself. Upper Rochester served as the town’s commercial center, while Lower Rochester focused on the mill and the work that kept the mines running. With steep canyon walls pressing in on both sides, everything followed the line of the canyon floor. Hotels, saloons, and businesses stood shoulder to shoulder along the single route through town.

Today, the scene is very different. Rochester is now a ghost town. Lower Rochester can still be reached, though much of it was lost to wildfire in 2012. Upper Rochester has disappeared beneath tailings from modern open pit mining, leaving little trace of where the town once stood.