The four-story Goldfield Hotel was built in 1908 at the peak of the boom, with marble lobby floors, mahogany finishes, electric lights, and one of the first elevators between Reno and Salt Lake City. It cost about $400,000 — a staggering sum for a town that only existed because someone had recently dug gold out of the ground a few blocks away. The building dominates the southeast corner of US-95 and Columbia Avenue, and from a distance still looks like the centrepiece of a much larger city.
The hotel closed in 1945 and has been empty almost ever since. Several owners have announced restoration plans, raised money, and walked away; the rooms inside remain frozen mid-renovation, with peeling wallpaper and stained-glass windows still in place. Tours are not officially offered, but the exterior is right on the highway and worth the stop — the contrast between the grand façade and the empty windows is the most photographed thing in Goldfield.