Robert Horton (1926-), the son of Frank Horton, a prominent miner in Nevada, spent many of his early days in mining camps and learned about mining processes at a young age. After his enlistment in the Navy, Horton entered the Mackay School of Mines in 1946. He started his career in mining at the U.S. Geological Survey, and over his long career in mining would work for the Nevada Bureau of Mines, for the Bendix Corporation, and for himself as an independent contractor. Horton was interviewed by Victoria Ford in 1999. Various people had looked at the mining claims at Weepah. It’s out in the middle of nowhere. There’s a postcard that used to be common in Nevada that said, “Fifty miles from water, forty miles from wood, ten feet from hell. God bless our home.” That was Weepah, Nevada. [laughter] It would sometimes be more than a year, and it would not rain there. More often than not, it was a year or a year and a half. The storms simply split before they got to Weepah. Very, very dry area. Weepah is northeast of Silver Peak—as the crow flies—probably ten miles, fifteen miles. Almost due west of Tonopah. The family lived in Tonopah, but there were houses in Weepah, a boardinghouse for the miners. |