Nevada Southern Railway

Nevada Southern Railway. . In January of 1893 construction of Isaac C. Blake's Nevada Southern Railway commenced northward from Goffs toward Manvel (later known as Barnwell) for the purpose of hauling ore from the mining districts of southeastern California and southern Nevada. It soon went bankrupt and was reorganized in 1895 as the California Eastern Railway. Six years later the line was extended north into Ivanpah Valley and in July of 1902 was acquired by the Santa Fe Railroad. Four years later the Barnwell and Searchlight Railway was built from Barnwell to the mines at Searchlight, Nevada. After 1918 the Santa Fe abandoned part of its line in the Ivanpah Valley and only ran trains beyond Barnwell when warranted by demand. Several substantial washouts and continuing unprofitability caused the Santa Fe to abandon their rails north of Goffs in 1923. Lanfair and Ivanpah Road parallel the former Nevada Southern Railway grade as it proceeds northward from Goffs, then runs directly upon it for part of the distance through the New York Mountains. Sections of the roadbed, washed out in several places, can be seen from Ivanpah and Lanfair Road. This monument has been erected on a portion of the original grade used by the NS and CE Railroads.