Hercules: Vulture & Jack Pot Mines, Nevada

Prospectors from Fairview discovered rich veins of gold north of Chalk Mountain on May 31, 1906. The town of Wonder was established in 1906 and soon a variety of businesses flourished including stores, restaurants, boarding houses and hotels, an assay office, stage service and saloons.

In the early 1900s travel was by foot, or for the lucky few, horseback. As new veins were discovered towns popped up close to the claims. Within eight months of the discovery at Chalk Mountain, five towns were plotted near Wonder: Hercules, Kingston, La Plata, Red Top and Victor. The sites were all recorded with Churchill County Recorder in Fallon.

Hercules townsite was recorded on July 24, 1906 by D’Arcy and Frey of the Hercules Townsite Company. The location was two miles north of Wonder on the west slope of the Clan Alpine Range. The townsite sat at an elevation of 6270′ at the mouth of a narrow canyon adjacent to the Jack Pot Claim. Originally 300′ wide and 3,300′ long, later the Vulture additions extended an additional 1300′ north. The canyon was named Hercules. It is unknown if the canyon or town was named first.

As with many mining towns, Hercules was mostly a tent city. Miners had their priorities: Hercules’s first structure was a saloon, contracted by A. J. Vance on July 19, 1906. On October 27th, grocery store owner Herzog began construction of a two story, 30′ by 60′ boarding house and hotel on the corner of Silver Avenue and Main Street. The largest structure in town was the reportedly beautiful St. Francis Hotel. Unfortunately, it burned down in 1907. Hercules grew to a population of nearly 500, with many not living within town limits. A Post Office was opened on December 18, 1906 and the weekly newspaper Hercules Miner began in 1907.

A road linking Stillwater to Wonder via Hercules and La Plata was planned in 1906. Fourteen men and eighteen horses worked on construction of the road, which was to be completed before December 1.

Four of the five townsites around Wonder were located next to rich ore strikes. Only one, Kingston, was located to take advantage of stage traffic from Stillwater. Many of the veins dried up and except for Wonder and Hercules, the towns were deserted within a year of their founding.

Hercules clung to life one more year. The Hercules Miner published their last issue in 1908 and postal service was transferred to Wonder on October 31, 1908.

Ruins

Hercules and the mines have extensive remains. At the mouth of the canyon sits a cabin, a collapsed building and a chute.

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A second cabin is situated in the narrow canyon.

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A mine entrance is half way up Hercules Canyon. A chute connected the mine with the road below.

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Overlooking the canyon is the remains of a cabin or mine office.

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Friends and I spent the day visiting the area including Hercules, Wonder, Victor and Westgate. After a chilly Nevada day we warmed ourselves with burgers at Middlegate, a former Pony Express Station.

Visited 1-10-2021

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References

• Carlson, Helen S. Nevada Place Names: A Geographical Dictionary. University of Nevada Press, 1974. Page133.
• Diggins: Vulture Gold Mine
• Forgotten Nevada: Hercules
• Lincoln, Francis Church. Mining Districts and Mineral Resources of Nevada. Stanley Paher, 1982. Pages 14-16.
• Nevada Expeditions: Hercules
• Paher, Stanley. Nevada Ghost Towns and Desert Atlas. Nevada Publications, 2009. Page 24-25.
• Paher, Stanley. Nevada Ghost Towns and Mining Camps. Nevada Publications, 1970. Page 108.
• Paranormal Ghost Society: Hercules, Nevada
• Shamberger, Hugh A. Wonder: Early History, Development, Water Supply. Nevada Historical Press, Carson City, 1974. Pages 1, 3, 8, 9, 11, 12, 13, 24, 25, 26, 40, 58.
• Western Mining History: Hercules Mine

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