Lockes
The flowing springs on the west side of Railroad Valley were first known as Keyser Springs after a prospector who resided there in the 1860s. During that time and into the 1870s, it was a routine stop for freight wagons between Hamilton and Reveille. W.H. Reynolds homesteaded the springs in 1875 and began selling hay to freighters. He also built a stone house before selling to brothers Eugene and Elisha Locke in 1883. Though Elisha moved on to Eureka, Eugene stayed, marrying Sara Ernst in 1893, starting a family, and developing the ranch into the twentieth century.
In 1923, the transcontinental Midland Trail was rerouted across Railroad Valley, passing closely by the Locke Ranch. Following Eugene's death in 1926, his son Madison took over the ranch and, seeing an opportunity, opened a gas station and began selling sandwiches and refreshments. After the highway was paved and numbered US-6 in the 1930s, business increased and when oil drilling began in the 1950s the Lockes allowed for workers to park trailers on the property. The business was expanded with the addition of a new cafe and second gas pump, but soon as additional highways shortened travel across Nevada business began to decline. In 1963, the Locke family sold the ranch and the cafe was closed. The ranch was sold several more times, with a new store (Black Rock Station) opened by Al & Carol Drayton around 1997. It closed after 15 years, and Lockes has since become a part of the Railroad Valley Wildlife Management Area.
