Dixie Valley, Nevada

For the broader physiographic area and military range, see Dixie Valley.
Dixie Valley, Nevada
Ghost town
Dixie Valley
Coordinates: 39°43′23″N 118°4′49″W / 39.72306°N 118.08028°W
Country United States
State Nevada
County Churchill
GNIS feature ID 864479 (1800s post office)[1]

Dixie Valley, Nevada, was a small ranching town in Churchill County, Nevada until the area was acquired in 1995 by the US Navy for the Fallon Range Training Complex (FRTC).[2] The town had no retail businesses, most residents were more than a mile from their nearest neighbor, and a 1-room school (grades 1-8) was the teacher's residence and served as a meeting, dance, & election hall (grades 9-12 were bussed 75 miles to Fallon, Nevada).

The abandon town of Dixie was established at the head of Dixie Valley in 1861 and named by Southern sympathizers.[3]

The medium-sized Dixie Valley geothermal power plant (1988, 66 megawatts)[4] employs ~30 people and has 12 production steam wells and ~24 injection wells.

Detail from 1910 map showing the location of the former town of Dixie

1954 earthquakes

In 1954, the Dixie Valley/Fairview earthquakes (7.1 & 6.6 ML) resulted in the appearance of large visible faults.[5]

References

  1. ↑ U.S. Geological Survey Geographic Names Information System: Dixie Valley, Nevada
  2. ↑ Mackedon, Michon. "Dixie Land". WNC.edu. Retrieved 2010-06-20.
  3. ↑ Carlson, Helen S. (1985). Nevada place names : a geographical dictionary. Reno: University of Nevada Press. p. 99. ISBN 087417094X.
  4. ↑ Shevenell, Lisa et al. (2000). "Geothermal Resources in Nevada". Nevada Bureau of Mines and Geology. Retrieved 2010-07-20.
  5. ↑ "Dixie Valley - Fairview Peak area, Nevada". Retrieved 2010-07-20.