This set of chips was ordered in April 1993 by a fellow named “Jim Gillette.” I believe he was a club member (now deceased). I’m not sure how and if he’s related to the Mizpah hotel in any way, but at the time the chips were ordered/made (late 80s to early 90s), IGT was operating the Mizpah hotel under its subsidiary CMS International.

Jim Gillette ordered the chips from Langworthy Casino Supply in Las Vegas. The chips went straight to him and not the Mizpah. A one-time run of 2,000 chips were made in these denominations and breakdowns:
(300) $2
(200) $10
(300) $20
(300) $50
(300) $1000
(200) $5000
(400) $10,000

There was a signed agreement between Langworthy and Gillette that “Tonopah” would be misspelled, these chips will never have cash value, and that if gaming returned to Mizpah, new chips would be printed with a totally new design and logo.

This is the history, but the motivation is not known. The chips may have been made to sell to collectors, Borland-style, or something else.

Hope this helps, and here’s some history of the Mizpah.
http://www.ccgtcc-ccn.com/Mizpah.pdf