LANDER COUNTY

Lander was one of the pre-statehood, territorial counties of Nevada. It was established in 1862. It was originally much larger than it is now. For example, Elko County was cut out of Lander County in 1869. The first county seat was Jacobsville, which was also known by other names such as Jacob's Spring. Jacobsville was a neighbor of nearby Austin. When Austin became the staple mining town of the area, Jacobsville faded. Austin took over the county seat in 1863. An interesting but little-known fact about Austin: Two separate Masonic Lodges were erected in town. Lander Lodge #8 was a pre-statehood lodge. Austin Lodge #10 was chartered in 1865. They were also built in very close proximity to each other. One of the main reasons for the two separate lodges was based on Northern and Southern sympathies. Shortly after the Civil War, Austin Lodge #10 surrendered its Charter and the two lodges condensed as one again. Lander County has always had two main economic staples. Ranching and mining. Lander County has had huge mining successes. There are many ghost towns in Lander that were built on mining. But Lander is also big Buckaroo country. Some of the largest ranches in the country still operate here. The legendary Marvel family also ran cattle here for generations on over 500,000 acres near Battle Mountain. They ranched near another large Lander County ranch and rodeo family named Filippini. The Marvel brothers were world class saddle bronc riders. They made the National Finals Rodeo year after year. Joe Marvel was the 1974 and 1978 National Finals Rodeo Champion. He was also the 1978 World Champion. He was also inducted into the Pro Rodeo Hall of Fame. Battle Mountain became the Lander County seat in 1979. The population was approximately 5,500 residents according to the 2019 U.S. Census.