At the mouth of Dragon Canyon, ruins of a once bustling mining town still remain. The town — known as Silver City — was home to stores, hotels, restaurants, a post office and a saloon. Cowboy George Rust established the town in 1869 after discovering mines nearby.
The town’s economy centered around the mines and at its onset, some tents, a saloon and a blacksmith shop compromised the majority of the area. “A History of Juab County” authored by Pearl D. Wilson tells the story well.
The silver mines proved fruitful. Residents built permanent establishments and homes. Though the town encountered difficulties with flooded mines and a 1902 fire, Jesse Knight built the Tintic Smelter.
The town seemed to be on the up-and-up, but the smelter shut down after it couldn’t compete with Salt Lake Valley operations. Knight built a mill, but that was lost to a fire. While Knight attempted to drain the flooded mines, it didn’t pan out and the population dwindled.
Soon railroad operations in Silver City ceased and the town shuttered and became a ghost town. Today, nobody lives within Silver City’s historic limits. Just a couple miles away, the city of Eureka is still populated.
Around 700 people live in the town, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.
Though Eureka has survived to this day and its Main Street still has businesses and restaurants, other nearby towns, like Knightsville, had the same fate as Silver City. Eureka differs from Silver City and Knightsville in that it�.