Stillwater is a classic example of what happens to a town when transportation routes change slightly. Or did they revise transportation routes because of Stillwater's decline? You be the judge. Stillwater began as an overland stage station in 1862. Things began humming and it got a post office in 1865. In 1868 it became Churchill's third county seat, wrestling the honor away from the doomed La Plata. Utilizing the nearby lakes, local farmers developed one of the state's first irrigation systems to supply nearby mining camps with groceries. The community population peaked in 1880, It just happened to be far enough off the beaten track that it got sucker-punched by Fallon and was never quite able to get up from the canvas. When the county seat was removed to Fallon in 1904, barely three dozen residents remained. The National Wildlife Refuge of 22,000 acres of wetland habitat, natural breeding and feeding grounds for waterfowl, was created in 1948. (Nevada DOT - NHM216)
"It's [La Plata] courthouse was a dwelling acquired on October 15, 1864 for $700 from Anton Kaufman. By 1867 La Plata's mining boom declined and support for moving the county seat gained momentum. In a special election held on October 22, 1867, the electorate cast thirty-three votes for re-locating the county government to Stillwater, only seventeen voted for a move to Big Adobe, a small way station west
"When the Churchill Co. Seat moved to Stillwater in December 1868, officials dismantled the house-turned-courthouse in La Plata and reassembled it in the new location. Eventually, finding the one room wooden structure unsuitable, they finished construction on a more permanent two story courthouse in 1870." (James, Temples of Justice- County Court Houses of Nevada).
From the History of Nevada, an overview from 1881:
STILLWATER THE COUNTY SEAT.
The first settler at Stillwater was J. C. Scott, who located there in the fall of 1862. In the spring of 1863, W. H. Dowd and Moses Job arrived, and soon afterwards they were followed by William Page, J. G. Hughs, .M. W. Hoyt, J. W. Richards, J. M. Sanford, A. W. Doolittle, and others. Then it was surmised that Stillwater would eventually be the county seat of Churchill County, but more substantial attractions were offered by the fine grazing and agricultural lands in the vicinity. A station of the Overland Stage Company had also been established there in July, 1862. A town gradually grew up, which became the county seat in December, 1868. Stillwater was most prosperous in 1867 and 1868, having then a population of 150. The altitude of this site is 4,000 feet, and is in the valley of the Carson, on the right bank of the slough connecting Carson Lake with the Humboldt and Carson Sink. To the north and west of the town are cultivated fields; to the northeast are extensive grass and tule lands, while sage-brush lands stretch off to the southward. The streets are sparsely shaded by scattered cotton woods. Wadsworth is forty-four miles to the westward; Dayton and Sutro are about sixty-five miles distant in a southwesterly direction. Stillwater's wood supply is obtained from the Silver Hill range, ten to twenty miles to the eastward, and chiefly consists of nut pine and cedar. There are no prevailing diseases at Stillwater, and as in the case of Gilead, there is no physician there. The present population is forty-eight. A store, hotel, saloon, restaurant, post-office and blacksmith shop comprise the places of business. The buildings are constructed of wood. Public meetings are held in the Court House. Carson River affords an abundant water supply. The principal supplies of goods and merchandise are brought from the Central Pacific Railroad at Wadsworth, by team, the freight charge being twenty dollars per ton. The educational facilities consist of one school, a teacher, and thirteen pupils. The school house is 12x24 feet in size,and is capable of seating thirty pupils. The taxable property in the township is valued at $71,000. Farming and stock-raising is the principal avocation of the surrounding settlers. The basement of the Court House contains a jail. No one has ever been killed in the township, and no serious disturbances of the peace have ever occurred. The Carson River overflows annually. The most noted occurrence of the kind took place in January, 1862. Before then, the waters of the Carson emptied directly into the Upper Sink, and passed thence through Carson Slough and Stillwater Slough, into the Lower Sink. The dry river bed could be plainly seen in 1861, through which Old River now flows, carrying with it direct into the Lower Sink a great part of the waters of Carson, instead of by the Upper Sink, and thence to the sloughs. The same flood cut a channel where New River now runs, and also changed the outlet of the Upper Sink into an inlet, taking some of the water from New River and emptying it into the Upper Sink. The remainder flows by Stillwater Slough into the Lower Sink thus flowing past the west side of the town of Stillwater. The soil surrounding Stillwater is adobe, and is well adapted for grain. In 1876, Richards, Kent and Sanford constructed an irrigating ditch, taking water from Stillwater slough, and and a quarter miles south of the town. The next season they raised the first crop ever produced in the township, and thereafter successfully conducted agricultural operations. On September 2, 1862, J. T. May was interred on Mr. Magee's place. There are now eleven graves there, it being the burial place for the surrounding settlement. Back of Mr. Ferguson's place there are five graves. The first burial there took place in March of 1879.
-History of Nevada, 1881
Ned Coldren had a hotel. One of his employees was depressed, though.
A man by the name of John T. Henry, who was employed as a cook at Ned Coldren's Hotel, at Stillwater, committed suicide on the 24th. He had expressed a wish to die, saying that he was weary of life, but no one supposed he meant business until he disappeared, when a search was made and his body was found in the slough.
-Carson Daily Appeal, September 7, 1866
In 1867, Stillwater became the third County Seat of Churchill County, after Buckland's Station and La Plata. It would remain the county seat until 1902, when it was moved to Fallon.
County Seat was moved to Stillwater from LaPlata in 1867.
East of the original grammar school is the site of Stillwater' s first courthouse, which was built in 1869 at a cost of about $400. It was a wooden building about sixteen feet by twenty-four feet, consisting of one room. The building was also used as a schoolhouse. A hole was dug under the building and utilized as a jail. Whenever the river was high the jail was covered with water to a depth of two feet or more. Ira H. Kent told that on one occasion three cattle thieves had been placed in the jail for safekeeping overnight. The water began rising suddenly during the night and the sheriff went over early in the morning to see that his charges had not drowned. On his arrival he was surprised to find the prisoners had dug their way out. Sometime afterwards the sheriff received a letter from the thieves stating they would not have played such a scurvy trick, but they were afraid of being drowned. By 1880, residents realized the need for a larger official courthouse, and county voters approved a tax levy for the new building. It was constructed a block south of Main Street. Costing three thousand dollars, it was considered by many citizens to be an unwanted piece of extravagance. The most powerful argument in favor of the construction was that the upper floor could be used as a ballroom where guests could show off their finery. A huge wood stove was stoked in the wintertime to keep folks warm while they danced until midnight.
-Stillwater, Nevada, Welcomes Its Third Century, Bunny Corkill, In Focus, VOLUME #14 2000-2001 NUMBER #1
The Overland road and -- much later-- an early incarnation of the Lincoln Highway passed through Stillwater.
THE OVERLAND ROAD
Much flooded, and at times impassable, especially out in the vicinity of Stillwater and Ragtown. Passengers between here and Austin do not go through in a hurry.
-Gold Hill Daily News, January 9, 1868
In 1859 the U.S. Army’s Corp of Topographic Engineers sent Captain James H. Simpson on an expedition across central Utah and Nevada to find a more direct wagon route for crossing the Great Basin between Salt Lake City and California. The existing California Trail skirted the north end of the Great Salt Lake; however, finding a route around the southern end would save travelers time and approximately 200 miles. Simpson kept a daily journal and detailed account of the route and environs and prepared a report within a few years of completing the expedition. This expedition is credited with opening a travel corridor through northern Nevada known as the Central Overland Route. The Central Overland Route extended south from Salt Lake City to U.S. Army Camp Floyd, near Fairfield, Utah. From there the route continued generally west, through Stillwater and the Forty Mile Desert, along the Carson River into Eagle Valley, on to Carson City, Nevada, and into California. The Pony Express, a short-lived horseback mail service between St. Joseph, Missouri, and San Francisco, California, operated between April 1860 and October 1861 and followed the Central Overland Route, as did other mail and stagecoach lines. California mining had begun to decline by the time of Simpson’s expedition, but the discovery in 1859 of placer gold near present-day Dayton and a rich silver ore near Virginia City fueled a resurgence of westward traffic along the Central Overland Route as prospectors rushed to find their fortunes in the Comstock area of western Nevada. Nearly a half-century later the earliest iterations of the Lincoln Highway in Nevada and subsequent US 50 generally followed the wagon roads already in use and cleared along the Central Overland Route and the California Trail.
-National Park Service, The Lincoln Highway, statewide, 1913-1926
Contact Mr. Sanford for accommodations.
J. M. Sanford
As a landlord at Stillwater, is as kind and accommodating as ever, and you need look no further for a cleaner bed or better meal.
-Reno Evening Gazette, July 15, 1891
There are some smart kids out Stillwater way.
STILLWATER SCHOOL REPORT
Following is the report of Stillwater School for the month ending April 26th. Number of pupils enrolled 14, number of days attendance 279, number of days absence 1, percentage of attendance 99, number of visitors 5. Roll of honor, A class; Charles Kent 97, Florence Kent 97, Lena Day 96, Lucy Brannin 6, Mamie Murphy 96. B class Frank Murphy 96, Myra Sanford 95, Earl Brannin 95, George Day 95, Charley Shirley 95.
-Annie Donahue, Teacher
-Wadsworth Dispatch, May 8, 1895
While still the county seat, Stillwater was soon to be bypassed by that young upstart Fallon.
STILLWATER, COUNTY SEAT OF CHURCHILL
Stillwater is now undergoing a revival. Times are livelier at the county seat than they have been for years. The general improvement throughout the county, both in mining and agricultural pursuits is the dawning of a boom. The immediate officers of Churchill's official list who reside in Stillwater, I. H. Kent, treasurer; Robert Shirley, sheriff and C. C. Stump, deputy recorder and auditor, are accommodating and attend to the daily official business.
THE HOTEL. The Stillwater Hotel was purchased recently by George C. and Chas. P. Cirac, from J. M. Sanford, the pioneer hotel landlord of Churchill. We knew Cirac Bros. were first-class men but after our stay at their hotel we are convinced that they are first-class hotel men. They are accommodating proprietors who spare no expense to set a good table and furnish good beds and rooms. Stillwater gained good citizens when the Cirac boys took up their residence there.
STILLWATER RANCHERS. It was very natural that the county seat should be located in a district where there are many resources. So it was when Stillwater was chosen as the county seat of Churchill county. Some of the largest ranches and best resources are in this locality.
J. W. FREEMAN Has for years been one of the largest taxpayers in the county and his holdings are very extensive. Besides his well improved and well stocked ranch of several thousand acres he has larger herds of sheep and cattle on his valuable range southeast of Stillwater. Mr. Freeman thoroughly understands the stock business and enjoys the advantage of being, a large producer.
HON. I. H. KENT. One of the most capable business men of Churchill county is I. H. Kent. He is fast becoming a large property owner and a wealthy man. His ranch of over 2000 acres is located near Stillwater and is all farming and grazing land. He has large herds of cattle and horses. His son, Chas. Kent, is manager of the ranch. Mr. Kent holds the offices of county treasurer and postmaster and is the merchant of Stillwater. His store is neat and well stocked.
W. W. SANFORD Has a good ranch and a delightful home. He is industrious and will win out as a successful rancher.
W. H. SIFFORD. Stillwater has gained another good citizen in W. H. Sifford, until recently of California, who has purchased the Brannin ranch of John Schneider. He has the right ideas and methods to make ranching a thorough success. Mr. Sifford is master of the carpenter's trade and is up-to-date and well posted generally.
GEO. M. DYER Lives about a mile west of Stillwater and has a good ranch under cultivation. The soil he tills produces hay and grain. George is a good citizen and the bachelor rancher of the Stillwater section.
ROBERTS & VIETH. Two enterprising young men. Jess Roberts and John Vieth, have leased the E. A. Harriman Stillwater ranch. They are thorough ranchers and have secured the lease of this producing ranch to make a start in life for themselves.
-Wadsworth Semi-Weekly Dispatch, May 3, 1901
People and businesses began to move to Fallon.
Like La Plata, Stillwater failed to live up to expectations. Throughout the later part of the nineteenth century, the county suffered a steady decline in population. In 1890s, the town's importance to the future of the region was overshadowed by the federal government's plan under the Newland's Project to reclaim two hundred thousand acres of desert in the Lahontan Valley for agricultural use. In response to this, the Churchill County seat was moved in 1903 from Stillwater to Fallon. The Stillwater courthouse, as will all previous Churchill County courthouses, was demolished.
-National Park Service, Historic Places Registration Form, Churchill County Courthouse.
Stillwater lost the county seat, which moved to Fallon January 1, 1904.
To Change the County Seat.
A petition will be presented to the Legislature in a few days asking that body to pass a law authorizing the County Commissioners of Churchill county to call a special election to vote on the question of moving the county .seat from Stillwater to Fallon. The location of the country seat at Fallon would be much better and more convenient to the great majority of people living in the county. The question will undoubtedly carry when submitted and the county seat of Churchill will unquestionably be moved from Stillwater to Fallon
-Reno Evening Gazette, February 17, 1903
There was some excitement about the possibility of oil being found in the area, and a new era of importance for Stillwater, which didn't pan out, unfortunately.
STILLWATER TO TAKE ON NEW LIFE AND IMPORTANCE
Stillwater Townsite, Consisting of 60 Acres, Sold to Vallejo, Calif., Party
Charles P. Cirac, formerly county commissioner and one of the most consistent of the advocates of promised greatness for Stillwater, and Albert Lebeau, his partner in the ownership of the Stillwater townsite holding, comprising 60 acres, sold the land included within the town-site segregation to T. W. Mufich, of Vallejo, Calif., the deal being completed Monday of this week. Mr. Mufich plans to start improvements at once that will help to make Stillwater further famous, and included will be public baths and a resort where weekends may be spent by project residents and others. Mr. Mufich also plans to install a big hot water system from which he proposes to serve all residences to be erected with both heat and cooking facilities. There is a demonstrated thermal belt in the Stillwater vicinity and this is depended upon to furnish the hot water supply for the projected enterprise. Mr. Munch left yesterday for his home and he expects to interest a large amount of California capital in his development plans. Among these is one having to do with an oil development project on townsite lands which he will except from sale In the immediate future. Behind Stillwater are vast resources. Including agriculture, oil and metal mining and as time passes and this project's potentialities are converted into actualities, It is asseverated that Fallon cannot always hope to occupy a position of municipal exclusiveness, but that certain advantages must be shared with other towns. In this connection partisans of Stillwater assert that proximity to the oil fields, and its advantageous location insofar as a fine farming district is concerned assures it of a preeminence that is shortly to be admitted.
-Fallon Standard, June 10, 1920
NEW STILLWATER HOTEL TO BE OPENED TOMORROW
Park Wheeler will be master of ceremonies at Stillwater tomorrow evening when the new hotel there will be opened by a ball in which all Churchill county is expected to attend. Mr. Wheeler left Reno where he has been on business for the past week, today to be at home for the event. He declares the attractions of Stillwater are second to none in the West and he expects that city to become one of the noted watering places of the country within the next few years. In addition to the natural hot water flowing at Stillwater Mr. Wheeler has been drilling for oil and he believes the flow of petroleum will equal that of the water some day.
-Reno Evening Gazette, December 3, 1920
In fact, the post office hung on for another 39 years.
Stillwater's Post Not Dead
The report, previously published, that the Stillwater post office, one of the oldest in the state, is to be discontinued, has proven erroneous and the department at Washington, always loath to abandon post offices, has allowed additional time to till the vacancy occasioned by the resignation of Mrs. A. M. Greenwood. J. M. Vogel, new proprietor of the Stillwater hotel, has petitioned for appointment as Stillwater postmaster and the mail service between this point and the old county seat town will undoubtedly be maintained regularly throughout the future.
-Fallon Standard, December 23, 1920
Nevada is no stranger to quakes, and Stillwater isn't either.
CHURCHILL COUNTY HIT SPRINGS ENLIVENED BY QUAKE
The Stillwater Hotel, owned and occupied by Mr. & Mrs. A. M. LeBeau, a two story brick structure, is practically wrecked, Mrs. Le Beau said yesterday. While it has not fallen down, the walls promise to collapse following the shakeup they endured Monday night, and the LeBeaus were today abandoning the building.
--Reno Evening Gazette, December 23, 1932
Stillwater was no stranger to fires, either. This one was a real hit on the community.
FIRE DESTROYS STILLWATER STORE
Fire destroyed the old Stillwater community store, a relic of Nevada's bygone mining era, Sunday night. Exploding bottles and cans of merchandise and gasoline, and lack of water, hampered firemen. The fire, which started about 9 P.M. could be seen four miles away. It burned through the night. Most of the Stillwater community-- about twenty persons00 turned out to watch the blaze and help fight it. The old building,, a one story frame structure, was taken from Fairview, an old mining camp about 40 miles east of Fallon in 1920 to Stillwater. The building was used as a store by different owners. It was owned by Mr. and Mrs. John Savage of Carson City. Only a shell of the building remained today. It was the only general store in Stillwater.
-Reno Evening Gazette, December 9, 1963
Forgotten Nevada Field Agent Nathan Bailey writes us about his childhood in Stillwater:
Hi Bob: In 1956 my parents moved from southern California to Stillwater, Nevada. I was only 7 years old and must admit this was a culture shock to anyone! However, once my brother and I realized we had a swimming pool and shotguns to go hunting pheasants and ducks we were in 7th heaven. I am now 57 years young and still have fond memories of Stillwater, Nevada. The surrounding landscape was more than simple desert- there were farmers and ranchers all over the valley. The swimming pool was made of concrete and raised above ground with a tin building structured over it, the water used in the pool was unfiltered mineral “Hot-Springs” pumped right into the pool from it’s own natural source on the property. There were two parts to the swimming pool…a shallow end with a barrier wall-much like a spa and then the deeper end to the balance of the pool, which over flowed and ran off the back to the irrigation ditch. Nonetheless, it was a great pool in it’s day as people from all over the county would come to take advantage of the therapeutic values the water had to offer. The water was always “HOT” and my father would charge .50 cents per visit. The old house adjacent to the property was at least 100 years old at the time we purchased it, yet my father “Nathan Bailey” has plans to renovate the house…then build a duck hunters lodge on the remaining 2-acres with a grocery store and gas station…unfortunately his plans did not come together. During the 50’s across the street was Greenwood’s Groceries and Post Office including a glass dome gas pump (very vintage) and gas if I remember was 14 cents a gallon- a high price as it was out of town (at least 2 cents more per gallon). Leslie Greenwood who had operated the store for many years after his mothers (retirement in 1940 as postmistress) then Mr. Greenwood was appointed Postmaster-offered can goods, Levi jeans (at under $5.00 per pair) shot gun shells and firearms for sale. Greenwood’s Groceries was later purchased in 1960 by: John Savage who least the store to Mel & Bernice Nelson May 1960 and they operated the store for several years catering to the “Duck-Hunters” “Fishermen” and Locals of Stillwater. A mysterious fire gutted the store December 9 th 1963. John Bells who purchased my parents property directly across the road from Greenwood’s Groceries turned in the fire alarm. Bell built the Red Store shortly after the fire. Actually, the Red Store was more a “Bar” and gas station. It was brought to my attention during my recent visit to Stillwater by: Karen (nicknamed) “Crazy Karen” Which by the way I didn’t find her to be Crazy at all…although she lives in a tin shanty that was once used as a movie prop in a “John Wayne” movie…was moved to it’s present location by her father as a home steader and purchased for a mere $200.00 years ago. Karen said she pays $38.00 a year in property tax and that’s the total of her annual rent-she gathers pieces of wood from the surrounding landscape for firewood to burn in her pot belly stove. Anyway, Karen mentioned that the old Greenwood store property had been recently purchased and the current owner has plans to reconstruct the Old Greenwood’s groceries as a replica landmark where locals will have a place to gather. Locals are currently gathering at the “Old School House” down the road. Many have moved to Stillwater with big plans…and as many have left in failure! I don’t know if Stillwater will ever be on the map again. My father’s plans were to cater to the “Duck Hunters” still today that seems to be the drive of some…There are several families who came to Stillwater many years ago as “Cattle Ranchers” and still today remain.
-Nathan Bailey,
Formally from Stillwater Nevada,
1950’s 1960’s era,Publisher, ACCENT Magazine,Albuquerque, New Mexico USA
Stillwater is a shadow of its former self. Lots of abandoned cars (or cars that should be abandoned) and dwellings and outbuildings in various states of decay- many of them in the last stages. There are some weird looking birds flying around out there at Stillwater- even if you don't consider yourself a bird watcher- you should drive out there just to take a gander at some of the unusual creatures that use Stillwater as a pit stop.