Dewey, Owyhee County, Idaho Genealogy

United States &gt; Idaho &gt; Owyhee County &gt; Dewey

Former name
Booneville, from 1863 to 1897.

Geographic location
Dewey is located at the base of Florida Mountain in the Owyhee Mining District and near Silver City.

Directories
A directory of the residents and businesses of Dewey in 1898 is included in A Historical, Descriptive and Commercial Directory of Owyhee County, Idaho. A copy of the directory is in the Idaho State Archives, the Owyhee County Museum, and other Idaho libraries. It is also through the FamilySearch Library in Salt Lake City and its many family history centers.

History
Dewey was first settled in the summer of 1863 as Booneville.

In the spring of 1896, the old Bonneville hotel and surrounding property was purchased by Colonel W.H. Dewey, who immediately began adding businesses to the town. In the spring of 1897, a post office was established and the name was changed to Dewey.

The town was intended to become the terminus of the Boise, Nampa & Owyhee Railroad Company, although the railroad was never extended beyond Murphy.