Donnelly Peak

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Donnelly Peak is located in the Calico Hills.

Possible first recorded ascent of Donnelly Peak, then called Division Peak: Thomas W. Symons, 1878: "...which forms the sink for the waters which come down from High Rock and its branch canons thence across the hills to a spring under Division Peak which was next occupied."

"The view from a high mountain in this vicinity presents a wonderful picture of the grandeur and utter desolation and horror of this waterless and upheaved desert. To the east rises the Black Rock Range, a very rugged banded and spotted line of hills made up of white red and black volcanic rock. Farther on another and another range rises from the desert which is a white barren plain many miles in extent the whole looking like black islands in a sea of milk. To the south barren rugged mountains and alkaline lakes as far as the eye can reach. To the north and west lies the higher mountain country covered with the brown verdure and with bunch grass. This section is ranged over by many cattle which find excellent feed and make the finest beef in the world. Their numbers are limited by the supply of water which is very small. We continued in this country until October 20 when we again reached Surprise Valley going down Hayes Canon and across to Eagleville and down to Bare's ranch the most southerly in the valley."[1].


Division Peak appears in the Long Valley, 1894 topo map[2], though that location is known today as Donnelly Peak, see Division Peak for details.

In 1922, it was written: "Wheeler operated the Donnelly Land & Live Stock Company's ranch at Donnelly Mountain, forty miles from Gerlach, for several years."[3]

See Also

Donnelly Mining District - Contains information about a possible origin for the name "Donnelly"

References

  1. Thomas W. Symons, "Executive and Descriptive Report of Lieutenant Thomas W. Symonds Corp of Engineers on the operations of Party No 1 California Section Field Season of 1877," p. 113, 1878. In Alvin R. McLane "Silent Cordilleras, The Mountain Ranges of Nevada", p. 19, Reno: Camp Nevada Monograph Number 4, 1978, 118 pp.
  2. Long Valley, 1:250,000 Map, 1894.
  3. Don Wheeler Dies on Desert," Reno Gazette-Journal, January 10, 1922, p. 1.
  • GNIS
    • Variant: Division Peak, Citation: "U.S. Board on Geographic Names. Geographic Names Post Phase I Board/Staff Revisions. 01-Jan-2000. Board decisions referenced after Phase I data compilation or staff researched non-controversial names."