SILVER CITY

town, seat (1874) of Grant County, southwestern New Mexico, U.S. It lies just east of the Continental Divide, at an altitude of 5,931 ft (1,808 m) in the foothills of the Pinos Altos Range on the edge of the Gila National Forest (of which it is headquarters). It was founded in 1870 as a Spanish settlement called San Vincente de la Cinaga (St. Vincent of the Marsh). Located in a mining area noted for silver, gold, copper, lead, and zinc, it was incorporated (1876) as Silver City and was a boomtown during the 1880s. The Santa Rita open-pit copper mine has been in operation since Indian days. The nearby ghost town of Tyrone has been revitalized as a copper-mining centre by the Phelps Dodge Corporation. Silver City serves an irrigated farm and ranch area, with some lumbering and tourism. It is the seat of Western New Mexico University (1893). Fort Bayard State Hospital and Gila Cliff Dwellings National Monument are nearby. Pop. (1990) 10,683. ghost town, Owyhee County, southwestern Idaho, U.S., 37 mi (60 km) southwest of Boise. Founded March 10, 1863, it quickly displaced Ruby City as the centre of the Owyhee mines and was county seat (18661935). Rich silver lodes in the nearby War Eagle and Florida mountains were the subject of great excitement and bitter rivalry for control. A 500-lb (225-kg) silver crystal from the Poorman Mine won a gold medal at the Paris Exposition (1867). Silver City survived the collapse of the silver market accompanying the failure of the Bank of California in 1875 because of its mines' advanced technology, extensive British investments, and improved railway transportation. Mining activity, however, gradually declined, leading to a complete loss of population, which had reached a peak of 5,000.