Editing Searchlight, Nevada

{{Short description| Unincorporated town in the State of Nevada, United States}}
{{use mdy dates|date=October 2022}}
{{Infobox settlement
<!--See the Table at Infobox settlement for all fields and descriptions of usage-->
<!--This infobox has been cut down to include fields relevant to unincorporated areas of the United States-->| official_name      = Searchlight, Nevada
| settlement_type    = [[Unincorporated towns in Nevada|Unincorporated town]]
| image_skyline      = Searchlight NV view.jpg
| image_caption      = View of Searchlight, from the southwest
| image_map          = Clark County Nevada Incorporated Areas Searchlight highlighted.svg
| mapsize            = 250px
| map_caption        = Location of Searchlight in [[Clark County, Nevada|Clark County]], [[Nevada]]
<!-- Location ------------------>| coordinates        = {{Coord|35|27|55|N|114|55|11|W|region:US-NV|display=inline,title}}<ref name=gnis/>
| subdivision_type   = [[List of sovereign states|Country]]
| subdivision_name   = {{USA}}
| subdivision_type1  = [[U.S. state|State]]
| subdivision_name1  = {{flag|Nevada}}
| subdivision_type2  = [[List of counties in Nevada|County]]
| subdivision_name2  = [[Clark County, Nevada|Clark]]
| pushpin_map        = USA
| pushpin_map_caption = Location within the [[United States]]
| pushpin_relief     = yes
| established_title  = Founded
| established_date   = {{Start date and age|1897|5|6}}
| named_for          = [[Searchlight]]
| government_type    = 
| leader_title       = 
| leader_name        = 
| unit_pref          = Imperial
| area_footnotes     = <ref>{{cite web|title=ArcGIS REST Services Directory|url=https://tigerweb.geo.census.gov/arcgis/rest/services/TIGERweb/Places_CouSub_ConCity_SubMCD/MapServer|publisher=United States Census Bureau|accessdate=September 19, 2022}}</ref>
| area_total_km2     = 10.03
| area_total_sq_mi   = 3.87
| area_land_km2      = 10.03
| area_land_sq_mi    = 3.87
| area_water_km2     = 0.00
| area_water_sq_mi   = 0.00
| area_water_percent = 
| elevation_footnotes = <ref name=gnis/>
| elevation_m        = 
| elevation_ft       = 3547
<!-- Population   ----------------------->| population_footnotes = 
| population_total   = 445
| population_as_of   = [[2020 United States census|2020]]
| population_density_km2 = 44.35
| population_note    = <!-- General information  --------------->
| timezone           = PST
| utc_offset         = -8
| timezone_DST       = PDT
| utc_offset_DST     = -7
<!-- Area/postal codes & others -------->| postal_code_type   = [[ZIP code]]s
| postal_code        = 89039, 89046
| area_code          = [[Area codes 702 and 775|702 and 775]]
| blank_name         = [[Federal Information Processing Standard|FIPS code]]
| blank_info         = 32-65600
| blank1_name        = [[Geographic Names Information System|GNIS]] feature ID
| blank1_info        = 0845654<ref name=gnis>{{GNIS|845654}}</ref>
| website            = {{Official website|https://www.clarkcountynv.gov/government/departments/administrative_services/town___liaison_services/searchlight_tab.php}}
| footnotes          = {{Designation list|embed=yes|designation1=Nevada Historical Marker|designation1_number=116}}
| pop_est_as_of      = 
| pop_est_footnotes  = 
| population_est     = 
| population_density_sq_mi = 114.87
}}
'''Searchlight''' is an [[Unincorporated towns in Nevada|unincorporated town]]<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.clarkcountynv.gov/administrative-services/town-liaison/Pages/Searchlight%20Town%20Advisory%20Board.aspx |title=Searchlight Town Board |access-date=January 27, 2016 |archive-date=January 12, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180112160545/http://www.clarkcountynv.gov/administrative-services/town-liaison/Pages/Searchlight%20Town%20Advisory%20Board.aspx |url-status=dead }}</ref> and [[census-designated place]] (CDP) in [[Clark County, Nevada]], United States, at the topographic saddle between two mountain ranges. At the [[2020 United States census|2020 census]] it had a population of 445.<ref>{{Cite web| url=https://www.census.gov| title=Profile of General Population and Housing Characteristics: 2010 Demographic Profile Data (DP-1): Searchlight CDP, Nevada| publisher=[[United States Census Bureau]]| access-date=March 13, 2012}}</ref>

==History==
[[File:Nevada - Searchlight - NARA - 23942395 (cropped).jpg|thumb|left|Searchlight in 1923]]

According to [[United States Senate|U.S. Senator]] [[Harry Reid]] (1939–2021), who wrote extensively about his hometown, the most likely story as to how the town received its name was that when George Frederick Colton was looking for [[gold]] in the area on May 6, 1897, he supposedly said that it would take a [[searchlight]] to find gold ore there.{{Citation needed|date=October 2010}} Shortly thereafter, he found gold, leading to a boom era when Searchlight had a larger population than Las Vegas. At the time, it was in [[Lincoln County, Nevada]]. As talk surfaced for carving [[Clark County, Nevada]] out of Lincoln County, Searchlight was initially considered to be the county seat.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Bartlett Pesek |first=Margo |date=April 29, 2012 |title=Former boomtown Searchlight rich with history |work=[[Las Vegas Review-Journal]] |url=https://www.reviewjournal.com/entertainment/entertainment-columns/trip-of-the-week/former-boomtown-searchlight-rich-with-history/}}</ref> Between 1907 and 1910, the gold mines produced $7 million in gold and other precious minerals, and the town had a population of about 1,500. The ore was shipped to [[Barnwell, California|Barnwell]] via the [[Barnwell and Searchlight Railway]].

Other stories on the origin of the name include a story that Colton was lighting a Searchlight brand [[match]] when he discovered the gold ore. Reid dismissed this story, saying that the Searchlight matches were not available in 1898. Yet another story says that Colton thought the area would be a good place because it was on a hill. His mine was called the [[Duplex (building)|Duplex]], because the gold ore was found on two levels.<ref>[http://www.1st100.com/part1/colton.html "Harry Colton"], ''1st100''<br>- {{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=P0_MfeTTpVUC&dq=Searchlight+matches&pg=PA17 |title=Searchlight: The Camp That Didn't Fail|author=Harry Rei|publisher=University of Nevada Press |date=January 1998|isbn=0-87417-310-8 |via=Google Books}}</ref>

Searchlight declined after 1917 but remained as a stop on the [[Arrowhead Trail (auto trail)|Arrowhead Highway]]. In 1927, [[U.S. Route 91]] bypassed the town and its population dropped to 50.

The town had a resurgence in the 1930s and 1940s with the construction of the nearby [[Hoover Dam]] and was the site of the El Rey Bordello in the 1940s and early 1950s until the bordello burned down. The last gold mine ceased operating around 1953.{{citation needed|date=October 2022}}

==Geography==
===Climate===
The city experiences a [[desert climate]] ([[Köppen climate classification|Köppen]]: ''BWh'') with hot summers and cool winters, but it is not uncommon to see temperatures below freezing.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.weatherbase.com/weather/weather-summary.php3?s=25137&cityname=Searchlight,+Nevada,+United+States+of+America&units=|title=Searchlight, Nevada Köppen Climate Classification (Weatherbase)|website=Weatherbase|access-date=2019-02-20}}</ref> Searchlight's elevation makes temperatures somewhat cooler than lower-elevation areas in the Mojave Desert, such as [[Baker, California#Climate|Baker, California]]; [[Needles, California#Climate|Needles, California]]; and [[Fort Mohave, Arizona]]. However, summers can still be extremely hot. Due to Searchlight's altitude and aridity, temperatures [[Diurnal temperature variation|drop quickly]] after sunset, especially in the summer.  Daytime highs in the winter are usually well above freezing, and nighttime lows drop below freezing only a few nights a year.{{Citation needed|date=February 2019}}

{{Weather box|width=auto
| location    = Searchlight, elevation 3,550 ft
| single line = Y
| Jan record high F = 77
| Feb record high F = 81
| Mar record high F = 90
| Apr record high F = 94
| May record high F = 102
| Jun record high F = 110
| Jul record high F = 111
| Aug record high F = 110
| Sep record high F = 107
| Oct record high F = 98
| Nov record high F = 86
| Dec record high F = 75
| year record high F = 111
| Jan high F = 53.7
| Feb high F = 58.4
| Mar high F = 65.0
| Apr high F = 73.1
| May high F = 82.5
| Jun high F = 92.7
| Jul high F = 97.6
| Aug high F = 95.4
| Sep high F = 89.0
| Oct high F = 77.0
| Nov high F = 63.6
| Dec high F = 54.4
| year high F = 75.2
| Jan low F = 35.6
| Feb low F = 38.3
| Mar low F = 41.8
| Apr low F = 48.0
| May low F = 55.9
| Jun low F = 64.8
| Jul low F = 71.4
| Aug low F = 69.6
| Sep low F = 63.9
| Oct low F = 53.9
| Nov low F = 43.0
| Dec low F = 36.4
| year low F = 51.9
| Jan record low F = 7
| Feb record low F = 11
| Mar record low F = 20
| Apr record low F = 27
| May record low F = 30
| Jun record low F = 40
| Jul record low F = 52
| Aug record low F = 51
| Sep record low F = 41
| Oct record low F = 23
| Nov record low F = 15
| Dec record low F = 8
| year record low F = 7
| Jan precipitation inch = 0.92
| Feb precipitation inch = 0.96
| Mar precipitation inch = 0.77
| Apr precipitation inch = 0.40
| May precipitation inch = 0.20
| Jun precipitation inch = 0.11
| Jul precipitation inch = 0.91
| Aug precipitation inch = 1.08
| Sep precipitation inch = 0.61
| Oct precipitation inch = 0.52
| Nov precipitation inch = 0.43
| Dec precipitation inch = 0.79
| year precipitation inch = 7.70
| source 1 = [[Western Regional Climate Center|WRCC]]<ref>{{cite web| url =http://www.wrcc.dri.edu/cgi-bin/cliMAIN.pl?nv7369| title =Seasonal Temperature and Precipitation Information | access-date =March 24, 2013 | publisher =Western Regional Climate Center }}</ref>
| date     = March 2013
}}

==Demographics==

=== 2020 census ===
As of the [[census]]<ref>{{Cite web |publisher=United States Census Bureau |title=Census.gov |url=https://www.census.gov/en.html |access-date=2023-04-27 |website=Census.gov |language=EN-US}}</ref> of 2020, there were 445 people, 229 households, and 99 families residing in the CDP.{{US Census population
|2000= 576
|2020= 445
|footnote=U.S. Decennial Census<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.census.gov/prod/www/decennial.html|title=Census of Population and Housing|publisher=Census.gov|accessdate=June 4, 2016}}</ref>
}}

=== 2000 census ===
[[File:Searchlight NV minehead.jpg|thumb|Old mine headframe south of Searchlight]]

At the 2000 census of 2000, there were 576 people, 315 households and 136 families residing in the CDP. The population density was {{convert|44.1|/sqmi|/km2|sp=us|adj=off}}. There were 444 housing units at an average density of {{convert|34.0|/sqmi|/km2|sp=us|adj=off}}. The racial make-up of the CDP was 95.0% [[White (U.S. Census)|White]], 0.7% [[African American (U.S. Census)|African American]], 0.7% [[Native American (U.S. Census)|Native American]], 0.2% [[Asian (U.S. Census)|Asian]], 0.2% [[Pacific Islander (U.S. Census)|Pacific Islander]], 1.7% from [[Race (United States Census)|other races]] and 1.6% from two or more races. [[Hispanic (U.S. Census)|Hispanic]] or [[Latino (U.S. Census)|Latino]] of any race were 3.7% of the population.

There are 315 households, of which 8.6% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 34.9% were [[Marriage|married couples]] living together, 5.1% had a female householder with no husband present and 56.8% were non-families. 48.3% of all households were made up of individuals, and 23.5% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 1.76 and the average family size was 2.46.

10.1% of the population were under the age of 18, 3.1% from 18 to 24, 20.0% from 25 to 44, 35.8% from 45 to 64 and 31.1% were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 55 years. For every 100 females, there were 125.9 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 131.3 males.

The [[median household income]] was $24,407 and the median family income was $29,323. Males had a median income of $26,563 and females $27,868. The [[per capita income]] was $19,606. None of the household families were living below the [[poverty line]], with just 14.6% of the population comprising that, including no one under age 18 and none of those over 64.

==Education==
Public education in Searchlight is administered by [[Clark County School District]]. The district operates Reid Elementary School (K–5) in Searchlight.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://ccsd.net/schools/zoning/maps/esSE.pdf |title=Elementary School - Southeastern Attendance Boundaries|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20110930225330/http://ccsd.net/schools/zoning/maps/esSE.pdf |archivedate=2011-09-30|publisher=[[Clark County School District]]|accessdate=September 28, 2008}}</ref>

Searchlight has a [[public library]], a branch of the Las Vegas-Clark County Library District.<ref>{{cite web | url=https://publiclibraries.com/state/nevada/ | title=Nevada Public Libraries | website=Public Libraries | access-date=14 June 2019}}</ref>

==Transportation==
===Public transport===
The [[Silver Rider Transit]] operates express buses between [[Laughlin, Nevada|Laughlin]], Searchlight and [[Las Vegas]].<ref>{{Cite web| title = Schedule| publisher = South Nevada Transit Coalition| accessdate = 2021-02-06| url = http://www.sntc.net/schedule/}}</ref> Private shuttle companies connect Searchlight with [[Harry Reid International Airport]] in Las Vegas.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.tristateairportshuttle.com/|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090513033150/http://www.tristateairportshuttle.com/|url-status=usurped|archive-date=May 13, 2009|title=Tri State Shuttle|website=www.tristateairportshuttle.com|access-date=1 April 2018}}<br>- {{Cite web| title = Pickup & Drop-off Locations |publisher= VegasAirporter| accessdate = 2021-02-06| url = https://vegasairporter.com/locations/}}</ref>

===Highways===
Searchlight is located at the junction of two highways; [[U.S. Route 95 in Nevada|U.S. Route 95]] which connects towards [[Boulder City, Nevada|Boulder City]] and the [[Las Vegas Valley]] in the north and [[Needles, California]], in the south, and [[Nevada State Route 164]] which has its eastern terminus in Searchlight and heads west towards the California border from where it becomes Nipton Road and eventually connects to [[Interstate 15]].

==Notable people==
* [[Rex Bell]], westerns actor and politician. Owned the [[Walking Box Ranch]] with his wife [[Clara Bow]]. The ranch was a popular destination for Hollywood actors.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Scavone |first=Jason |date=November 23, 2021 |title=Artifacts From the Past: Walking Box Ranch |url=https://www.unlv.edu/news/article/artifacts-past-walking-box-ranch |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230602185816/https://www.unlv.edu/news/article/artifacts-past-walking-box-ranch |archive-date=June 2, 2023 |access-date=July 30, 2023 |website=[[University of Nevada, Las Vegas]]}}</ref>
* [[Edith Head]], costume designer who won more Oscars than any other woman.<ref>{{cite news |author=Duka |first=John |date=October 27, 1981 |title=Edith Head, Fashion Designer for the Movies, Dies |page=D07 |work=[[The New York Times]] |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1981/10/27/obituaries/edith-head-fashion-designer-for-the-movies-dies.html |quote=Miss Head, was born in San Bernardino, Calif., and was raised in the mining town of Searchlight, Nev. She began her professional career not as a designer but as a teacher. |via=}}</ref>
* [[William Harrell Nellis]], aviator for whom [[Nellis Air Force Base]] is named<ref>{{cite web |title=Lieutenant William Harrell Nellis |url=https://www.nellis.af.mil/About/Fact-Sheets/Display/Article/284158/lieutenant-william-harrell-nellis/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220626105629/https://www.nellis.af.mil/About/Fact-Sheets/Display/Article/284158/lieutenant-william-harrell-nellis/ |archive-date=2022-06-26 |access-date=2010-07-26 |website=[[Nellis Air Force Base]] |publisher=[[United States Air Force]]}}</ref>
* [[Harry Reid]], United States senator, 1987–2017, senate majority leader, 2007–2015<ref>{{Cite news |last=Kane |first=Paul |date=December 29, 2021 |title=Searchlight, Las Vegas and the two identities of Harry Reid |work=[[The Washington Post]] |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/powerpost/searchlight-las-vegas-and-the-two-identities-of-harry-reid/2021/12/29/46a7887e-6855-11ec-96f3-b8d3be309b6e_story.html |access-date=July 30, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221127013402/https://www.washingtonpost.com/powerpost/searchlight-las-vegas-and-the-two-identities-of-harry-reid/2021/12/29/46a7887e-6855-11ec-96f3-b8d3be309b6e_story.html |archive-date=November 27, 2022 |quote="Born in Searchlight, living in a shack without indoor plumbing or a high school anywhere nearby, Reid grew up with a father who worked the mines, only to fall into depression and kill himself at the age of 58. His mother worked as a laundress at the brothels in town. As a teen he hitchhiked 40 miles each Monday to get to high school and stayed with relatives."}}</ref>

==In popular culture==
In 1907, the "[[Searchlight Rag]]" by [[Scott Joplin]] was published. In the early 1890s, Joplin's friends, the brothers Tom and Charles Turpin, had been prospecting in the Searchlight area. Their frequent stories of this experience, recounted to the patrons of their bar, inspired the title of the rag.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.perfessorbill.com/pbmidi15a.shtml |title=Perfessor Bill Edwards - Scott Joplin Compositions (1906-1917) |access-date=2009-10-26 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091026144447/http://www.perfessorbill.com/pbmidi15a.shtml |archive-date=2009-10-26 }}</ref>

==See also==
* [[Barnwell and Searchlight Railway]]
* [[LORAN-C transmitter Searchlight]]
* [[Searchlight Airport]]

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==External links==
{{Commons category|Searchlight, Nevada}}
{{Wikivoyage|Searchlight}}
* [http://www.clarkcountynv.gov/administrative-services/town-liaison/Pages/Searchlight%20Town%20Advisory%20Board.aspx Searchlight Town Advisory Board] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180112160545/http://www.clarkcountynv.gov/administrative-services/town-liaison/Pages/Searchlight%20Town%20Advisory%20Board.aspx |date=January 12, 2018 }}

{{Clark County, Nevada}}
{{Authority control}}

[[Category:1897 establishments in Nevada]]
[[Category:Census-designated places in Clark County, Nevada]]
[[Category:Piute Valley]]
[[Category:Populated places established in 1897]]
[[Category:Populated places in the Mojave Desert]]
[[Category:Unincorporated towns in Nevada]]
[[Category:Harry Reid]]