Tonopah leans on mining history, hotels, and tourism to drive local economy

Overview and who should care

What to see and why each place matters

#### The Belvada Hotel The Belvada is a practical example of how private investment converts heritage into overnight economic activity. Built in 1906 as the Nevada State Bank & Trust, the building was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1982 and stood vacant for decades until Fred and Nancy Cline purchased it from the Town of Tonopah in 2017 for a reported $1. The Clines invested more than $2 million in a multi-year renovation and reopened the Belvada as a roughly 40-room hotel on December 28, 2020. That hotel now functions as both a lodging anchor for downtown and a demonstration project: a single historic renovation producing year-round room inventory that helps stabilize revenue for nearby restaurants and retailers.

#### Main Street and historical storytelling Tonopah Main Street, the operational arm of the Tonopah Development Corporation, has been managing preservation-led economic development since 2001. The organization used a mid-2023 American Rescue Plan Act allocation of $52,400 to fund a Historical Storytelling project that cataloged dozens of buildings, murals and cemetery burials and posted the material for visitors. Executive Director Kat Galli called the project "a huge deal for historic preservation" and publicly thanked county commissioners for the support. Main Street achieved national Main Street accreditation in 2025, a credential the Nevada Governor's Office of Economic Development highlighted as evidence the town can manage preservation projects that translate into visitor traffic and storefront investment. Time your visit for calendar events such as the Shamrock Walk or holiday downtown walks to experience guided history programming and concentrated retail activity.

#### The Clown Motel and the Old Tonopah Cemetery The Clown Motel, a nationally notable roadside attraction, trades on novelty and proximity to history: the motel was founded in 1985 by Leroy and Leona David from their father Clarence David’s clown collection and later operated by Bob Perchetti from 1995 until it was listed for sale in 2017. Las Vegas hotelier Vijay Mehar purchased the property in April 2019 with Hame Anand in operational leadership, renovated guest rooms and expanded the museum collection. Current listings indicate roughly 31 unique rooms and thousands of clown items. The motel sits adjacent to the Old Tonopah Cemetery, founded May 7, 1901, where several victims of the Belmont Mine fire of February 23, 1911, including miners memorialized locally, are buried. Visitors should respect cemetery boundaries: the motel is a private business and the cemetery is protected historic property with its own interpretive significance.

#### Tonopah Historic Mining Park and interpretive museums The Tonopah Historic Mining Park Foundation maintains what is often described as one of the West’s most-extensive outdoor mining museums. Established around 1992, the park preserves roughly 100–113 acres of headframes, stamp mills, mine buildings and mining equipment from the district’s largest operations. The Park offers self-guided and guided options and is the key place to convert abstract mining statistics into tangible experiences: original machinery, interpretive plaques, and physical layouts that explain why the Tonopah Mining Company (incorporated July 12, 1901) produced heavily in the early 20th century.

Practical travel logistics

Amenities and booking: Room inventory remains limited compared with larger markets: the Belvada contributes roughly 40 rooms, the Mizpah Hotel offers historic lodging across Main Street, and the Clown Motel lists about 31 rooms. Local event weekends often sell out, so book early and call ahead for hours. Gas and cell coverage can be sparse outside town limits; bring spare water and vehicle supplies.

Respect and preservation: Historic properties and cemeteries are protected. Do not remove artifacts, climb on fragile structures, or stray into marked archaeological areas. Tonopah Main Street and the mining park post interpretive signage; follow those directions to preserve the assets that generate tourist dollars.

• Quick practical tips:
• Call hotels ahead for availability during Main Street events.
• Bring at least two liters of water per person for outdoor exhibits.
• Plan fuel stops: nearest major services are in Tonopah or en route cities.

One-day and weekend itineraries

#### One-day (efficient loop) 1. Start downtown with a walking tour of the Belvada façade and Main Street storefronts, using Tonopah Main Street’s online storytelling catalog. 2. Visit the Tonopah Historic Mining Park (110 Burro Street) for 60 to 90 minutes of outdoor exhibits and original headframes. 3. Return to Main Street for a late lunch at a local café, then walk past the Clown Motel and Old Tonopah Cemetery for out-of-the-ordinary photo ops.

This loop packs the town’s most marketable assets into a day and maximizes spending in lodging, food and small retail.

#### Weekend (deeper engagement) 1. Overnight at the Belvada or the Mizpah to support higher-end room nights created by preservation investment. 2. Attend a Main Street event if one is scheduled: Shamrock Walk or quarterly tasting walks concentrate visitors and retail activity into short, high-revenue windows. 3. Spend a morning with a guided mining-park tour, then an afternoon visiting small museums and local galleries cataloged by the historical storytelling project. 4. Use the second evening for niche tourism: book a themed room at the Clown Motel if you seek the oddball draw that headlines national features.

Weekend visits capture both predictable spending (lodging and meals) and discretionary purchases (tours, museum donations, souvenirs), which are the transactional mechanics behind the county’s $181.3 million accommodation and food-service sales metric.

Economic stakes and community strategy

Community connections and next steps for movers

Tonopah’s economic argument is simple: historic fabric plus focused programming equals predictable visitor spend. With landmark restorations already producing room nights and national accreditation opening additional grant windows, the town’s strategy is shifting from preservation as nostalgia to preservation as a tested economic development tool.