This spot was supposed to replace the more famous Nevada Test Site when the Test Site's nearby Las Vegas neighbors began complaining that underground atomic explosions were jiggling their casinos (which was bad for the roulette wheels and craps tables).
The U.S. government, ever accommodating, opened this site with much fanfare and detonated a one-megaton nuke here, less than a mile underground, on January 19, 1968. Unfortunately for the government, it created a shallow crater of about 4,000 square feet. This upset the local population even more than the Las Vegas casino owners, and all further tests were canceled. The shaft was plugged, creating an unintentional "monument" on which a memorial plaque was later affixed. It also warns against any digging, or taking away any dirt or rocks for souvenirs.
