Searchlight

Searchlight is a census-designated place (CDP) in Clark County, Nevada, United States. The population was 576 at the 2000 census. Searchlight is located at 35°28′6″N 114°55′1″W / 35.46833°N 114.91694°W / 35.46833; -114.91694 (35.468455, -114.916932). According to the United States Census Bureau, the CDP has a total area of 13.1 square miles (33.9 km²), all of it land. According to Nevada Senator Harry Reid, who has written extensively about hi... more

Searchlight is a census-designated place (CDP) in Clark County, Nevada, United States. The population was 576 at the 2000 census. Searchlight is located at 35°28′6″N 114°55′1″W / 35.46833°N 114.91694°W / 35.46833; -114.91694 (35.468455, -114.916932). According to the United States Census Bureau, the CDP has a total area of 13.1 square miles (33.9 km²), all of it land. According to Nevada Senator Harry Reid, who has written extensively about his hometown, the most likely story on how it got its name was when George Frederick Colton was looking for gold in the area in 1897 he supposedly said that it would take a searchlight to find gold ore there. Shortly thereafter he found gold leading to a boom era when Searchlight had more 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 planned county seat. Between 1907 and 1910 the gold mines produced ... less