On October 31, 1961, Nevada Sagebrush Chapter presented and dedicated a marker at the site of Ophir in observance of the centennial of the founding of Ophir. Then Governor Grant Sawyer gave the dedicatory address at the 1961 marker dedication. See photo below.
In 1859, the discovery of silver in the Comstock Lode of Virginia City brought thousands of miners, loggers, and traders to the Washoe Valley. The town of Ophir was situated on the pine clad banks of Washoe Lake at the base of the Sierra Nevadas.
In 1861 the Ophir Mining Company erected a mill for the reduction of ore from the famed Comstock Ophir mine. The Ophir Mill was built on Washoe Lake's west shore and was reached by an elevated causeway across what was then Washoe Marsh.
In 1872, the Virginia and Truckee Railroad began service through Washoe Valley, connecting Reno to Carson City. By the late 1870's the mining boom was over and the towns around Washoe Lake were all but abandoned.
