C-SPAN Cities Tour - Carson City: Nevada Mining and the Comstock Lode
Visit the discovery site that sparked Nevada's gold and silver rush, known as the Comstock Lode. See the area around Virginia City and Gold Hill, where mining boomed after 1859 -- including the site where prospectors first found gold in the area and later mined for silver. View the remnants of one of the mines involved in one of the state's deadliest mining disasters, a fire which killed at least 35 miners.
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Virginia City
As the first truly industrialized city in the West, Virginia City has a special place in American history. The story begins in 1859 when two miners discovered gold in Six-Mile Canyon. Henry Comstock came across their find and claimed it was on his property. The naïve miners believed him and promised to name the giant load after him, hence the Comstock Lode.
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Silver Rush!!! The Comstock Lode And Silver City, Nevada
Comstock Lode, rich deposit of silver in Nevada, U.S., named for Henry Comstock, part-owner of the property on which it was discovered in June 1859. Virginia City, Washoe, and other mining boomtowns quickly arose in the vicinity, and in 10 years the lode's output justified establishment of a U.S. branch mint (closed in 1893) at Carson City. In the meantime, Republican leaders eager to add another loyal state to the Union used the probability that the lode would attract additional thousands to justify the admission of Nevada as a state in 1864. In the peak years of 1876--78, silver ore worth about $36,000,000 was extracted annually. Production declined sharply thereafter, and the rich lower levels of the lode were flooded in 1882. Virginia City and the other mining towns disappeared or became tourist attractions.
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Virginia City Nevada USA
Virginia City sprang up as a boomtown with the 1859 discovery of the Comstock Lode, the first major silver deposit discovery in the United States, and numerous mines were opened. At the city's peak of population in the mid-1870s, it had an estimated 25,000 residents. The mines' output declined after 1878, and the city declined. As of the 2010 Census the population of Virginia City was about 855,[3] with 4,000 living in Storey County.
History Of the Silver Rush - Nevada Mining Documentary
Nevada Mining Episode 1
Learn the history of the silver rush and how it shaped and influenced modern mining today.
Mining in Virginia City during the Comstock Era
The Combination shaft Virginia City Nevada
The Combination Shaft began in 1875 when the owners of the Chollar-Potosi, Hale & Corcross and the Savage mines combined their efforts to sink a shaft to explore the Comstock Lode at a greater depth. The Combination was the deepest shaft ever sunk on the Comstock, reaching a depth of 3,250 feet. Low grade ore was found at this level, but proved to be of little value.
Virginia City, Nevada
Recorded June 19, 1999.
Virginia City is one of the oldest established cities in Nevada. Like many cities and towns in the state, Virginia City was a mining boomtown; in fact it is one of the most famous boomtowns in the Old West as it virtually appeared overnight as a result of the Comstock Lode silver strike of 1859. During its peak, Virginia City had a population of nearly 30,000 residents. When the Comstock Lode ended in 1898, the city's population declined sharply.
The population of Virginia City is 1,000 people in the town. Virginia City was declared a National Historic Landmark in 1961. This in effect created a Virginia City Historic District. Today, Virginia City is but a shadow of its former glory, however, it still draws over 2 million visitors per year. It is one of the nation's larger National Historic Landmarks and is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. Keeping with tradition, Virginia City does not have any chain stores or fast food restaurants.
This video covers my short visit to the town in June 1999.
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Nevada: Virginia City
Virginia City sprang up as a boomtown with the 1859 discovery of the Comstock Lode, the first major silver deposit discovery in the United States, with numerous mines opening. At the city's peak of population in the mid-1870s, it had an estimated 25,000 residents. The mines' output declined after 1878, and the city itself declined as a result. As of the 2010 Census the population of Virginia City was about 855, and that of Storey County 4,000.
Peter O'Riley and Patrick McLaughlin are credited with the discovery of the Comstock Lode. Henry T. P. Comstock's name was associated with the discovery through his own machinations. According to folklore, James Fennimore, nicknamed Old Virginny Finney, christened the town when he tripped and broke a bottle of whiskey at a saloon entrance in the northern section of Gold Hill, soon to become Virginia City.
After the discovery of the Comstock Lode in 1859, the town developed seemingly overnight on the eastern slopes of Mount Davidson, perched at a 6200-foot elevation.
Virginia City's silver ore discoveries were not part of the California Gold Rush, which occurred 10 years before.
At its peak after the Big Bonanza of 1873 Virginia City had a population of over 25,000 residents and was called the richest city in America. In 1879, the mines began to play out and the population fell to just under 11,000. Dominated by San Francisco moneyed interests, Virginia City was heralded as the sophisticated interior partner of San Francisco. Mine owners who made a killing in the Comstock mines spent most of their wealth in San Francisco. Nearly all the profits of the Comstock were invested in San Francisco real estate and in the erection of fine buildings. Thus, Virginia City built San Francisco. The Comstock's success, measured in values of the time period, totaled about $400 million.
Mining and its attraction of population was the economic factor that caused the separation of Nevada territory from Utah, and later justified and supported Nevada statehood.
The mining industry dominated Virginia City, making it an industrial center similar to those of the east coast. But the city retained some of its frontier flavor. Miners largely from Cornwall, England. Some were Cornish or Irish. The Chinese filled niche markets, such as laundry workers and cooks.
When it appeared the Comstock Lode was finished, the city's population declined sharply.
Virginia City could be considered the birthplace of the pen name of Mark Twain, as it was here in February 1863 that writer Samuel Clemens, then a reporter on the local Territorial Enterprise newspaper, first used the nom de plume. Clemens lived in Virginia City and wrote for the Enterprise from late fall 1862 until May 1864.
In the 21st century, Virginia City's economy is based on tourism. Many residents own and work at the shops in town that cater to tourists. It draws more than 2 million visitors per year.
Virginia City retains an authentic historic character with board sidewalks, and numerous restored buildings dating to the 1860s and 1870s. Virginia City is home to many charming and informative museums. The Fourth Ward School Museum brings Comstock history to life in interactive displays, and a restored 1876 classroom. The four-story wooden school is the last one of this type left in the United States.
GOLD-SILVER HIGH GRADE ORE FROM NEVADA'S COMSTOCK FOR SALE
RARE SPECIMENS OF HIGH GRADE SILVER GOLD ORE FROM A COMSTOCK LODE MINE CIRCA 1869.
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COLLECTABLE ORE SAMPLES DISCOVERED IN THE COMSTOCK NEAR VIRGINIA CITY, NEVADA BY LOCAL ROCK COLLECTOR.
cat# CSTK0062..US$ 895
cat# CSTK0120..US$1795
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cat# CSTK0231..US$1626
cat# CSTK0350..US$ 439
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cat# CSTK1050..US$ 229
cat# CSTK1152..US$1449
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EMAIL CAT# & CONTACT INFO TO
-- ComstockOre@Gmail.com --
MINERAL COLLECTOR WILL CONTACT YOU FOR SHIPPING & PAYMENT ARRANGEMENTS.
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WIKIPEDIA EXCERPTS - COMSTOCK LODE MINERALS
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ARGENTITE
the mineral cubic silver sulfide (Ag2S) with a blackish lead-grey color and metallic lustre.
The mineral is perfectly sectile and has a shining streak.
It occurs in mineral veins, and when found in large masses, as in is Mexico & in the Comstock Lode in Nevada, an important ore of silver.
(from the Lat. argentum, silver)
ELECTRUM
Electrum is a naturally occurring alloy of gold &silver, with trace amounts of copper and other metals. Its color ranges from pale to bright yellow, depending on the proportions of gold and silver.
Electrum consists primarily of gold and silver, electrum is a good conductor of electricity.
The color of electrum is pale yellow or yellowish-white and the name is a Latinized form of the Greek word (elektron) mentioned in the Odyssey meaning a metallic substance consisting of gold alloyed with silver. The same word was also used for the substance amber, probably because of the pale yellow color of certain varieties, and it is from the electrostatic properties of amber that the modern English words electron and electricity derive. Electrum was often referred to as white gold in ancient times but could be more accurately described as pale gold. The modern use of the term white gold usually concerns gold alloyed with any one or a combination of nickel, silver, platinum and palladium to produce a silver-colored gold.
Electrum was much better for coinage than gold, mostly because it was harder and more durable.
STEPHANITE
Stephanite is a silver antimony sulfide mineral with formula: Ag5SbS4 It is composed of 68.8% silver, and sometimes is of importance as an ore of this metal.
Under the name Schwarzerz ..black silver ore (German Schwarzgultigerz).
crystals. they have the form of six-sided prisms or flat tables terminated by large basal planes and often modified at the edges by numerous pyramid-planes. The colour is iron-black, and the lustre metallic and brilliant.
Stephanite occurs with other ores of silver in metalliferous veins. In the Comstock lode in Nevada massive stephanite and argentite are important ores of silver.
SILVER
Silver is a chemical element with the chemical symbol Ag (Latin: argentum, from the Ancient Greek: argeentos, gen. of - argeeis, white, shining ) and atomic number 47. A soft, white, lustrous transition metal, it has the highest electrical conductivity of any element and the highest thermal conductivity of any metal. The metal occurs naturally in its pure, free form (native silver), as an alloy with gold (electrum) and other metals, and in minerals such as argentite and chlorargyrite. Most silver is produced as a by-product of copper, gold, lead, and zinc refining.
ORE
An ore is a type of rock that contains minerals such as gemstones or metals that can be extracted through mining and refined for use. Samples of ore in the form of exceptionally beautiful crystals, exotic layering visible when sectioned or polished or metallic presentations such as large nuggets or crystalline formations of metals such as gold or copper may command a value far beyond their value as mere ore or raw metal for subsequent reduction to utilitarian purposes.
The grade or concentration of an ore mineral, or metal, as well as its form of occurrence, will directly affect the costs associated with mining the ore. The cost of extraction must thus be weighted against the contained metal value of the rock to determine what ore can be profitably extracted and what ore is of too low a grade to be worth mining.
Milky Quartz
Quartz (from German Quarz (help·info)[1]) is the second most abundant mineral in the Earth's continental crust (after feldspar). It is made up of a continuous framework of SiO4 silicon-oxygen tetrahedra, with each oxygen being shared between two tetrahedra, giving an overall formula SiO2.
Rose Quartz
Virginia City and the Comstock Lode - Yesterday & Today - - Video Sampler
This is just a sampling of the best-selling 2½-hour DVD. The entire historical program is available at for just $19.95. Please CLICK on 'SHOW MORE' to see the Chapter Listings!
CHAPTERS IN THIS NEW VIDEO:
Chapter 1: The Discovery of the Comstock Lode & the Development of Hard Rock Mining
Chapter 2: Water (The amazing engineering feat of bringing water from Marlette Lake to Virginia City)
Chapter 3: ‘Virginia’ Becomes a City
Chapter 4: The Mills
Chapter 5: Danger In The Mines
Chapter 6: The Big Bonanza
Chapter 7: Underground! [Actual mine tour]
Chapter 8: From the Mines, To the Mills, To the Mint
Chapter 9: The Virginia & Truckee Railroad [40 minutes!!]
Chapter 10: Statehood
Chapter 11: Town Life
Chapter 12: The Territorial Enterprise and Mark Twain
Chapter 13: Julia C. Bulette
Chapter 14: Thirst Parlors
Chapter 15: Fire & Rebirth
Chapter 16: Borrasca to Bonanza
Chapter 17: Virginia City Today [The fun-filled events of town; Camels! Outhouse races! Parades! Christmas on the Comstock, and much more!
170419-Virginia City
A quick walking-tour of Virginia City, Nevada...before the start of the Summer Season. Historic Virginia City ( ...sprang up as a boomtown with the 1859 discovery of the Comstock Lode, the first major silver deposit discovery in the United States, with numerous mines opening. At the city's peak of population in the mid-1870's, it had an estimated 25,000 residents. The mines' output declined after 1878, and the city itself declined as a result. As of the 2010 Census the population of Virginia City was about 855... -Wikipedia ( It's always fun to visit V.C. There's plenty to see, shop, eat and drink.
Comstock Lode
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The Comstock Lode is a lode of silver ore located under the eastern slope of Mount Davidson, a peak in the Virginia Range in Nevada .It was the first major discovery of silver ore in the United States.After the discovery was made public in 1859, it sparked a silver rush of prospectors to the area, scrambling to stake their claims.The discovery caused considerable excitement in California and throughout the United States, the greatest since the California Gold Rush in 1849.
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Virginia City: Mark Twain, Haunted Hotels, and Suicide Tables!
History, Tourist Traps, Suicide Tables, Mining, Haunts!! All of it right here in Virginia City, Nevada. As a huge fan of Mark Twain and his book 'Roughing it' I've known a lot about Virginia City and the Comstock years, and always wanted to see the town for myself.
This was the place Samuel Clemens first worked as a professional writer under the name Mark Twain - and it was also the place where one of the richest mining booms in old west history took place. The comstock is legendary, and it left plenty of legendary attractions above it straddling the side of Mt Davidson in Virginia!
This video is the result of our first visit here together, but there should be many more, hopefully when I'm not completely sick! Thanks for watching!
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I really do recommend staying at the silver queen hotel - it's not 5 star luxury, but it;s definitely interesting! Please tell them we sent you. Not that they hooked us up or anything, just that it was a pretty wacky experience. Xoxo - Justin
Step back in time in Virginia City, Nevada
In Virginia City, Nevada, it feels like the wild wild West. This old mining town elevated at 6,150 ft, was established in 1859 when James Finney aka the Old Virginy discovered the Comstock Lode. It's also the birthplace of famous writer Mark Twain! It has many attractions and Museums for the visitor to enjoy, less than 40 minutes away from Reno. So step back in time and follow along!
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VIRGINIA CITY
Virginia City is a census-designated place (CDP) that is the county seat of Storey County, Nevada. It is part of the Reno–Sparks Metropolitan Statistical Area.
Virginia City sprang up as a boomtown with the 1859 discovery of the Comstock Lode, the first major silver deposit discovery in the United States, with numerous mines opening. At the city's peak of population in the mid-1870s, it had an estimated 25,000 residents. The mines' output declined after 1878, and the city itself declined as a result. As of the 2010 Census the population of Virginia City was about 855, and that of Storey County 4,000.
The Way It Was ! Virginia City, Nevada
A fascinating look at the way Nevada was can be found at the aptly-named The Way It Was Museum in historic Virginia City. This centrally located history center lies in the heart of historic C Street, which is continually rated as one of the Top 10 Historic Main Streets in America. Here, visitors can revel in an amazing window into the region’s rich Western heritage, thanks to an abundant selection of rare photographs, mining and mineral artifacts stemming from the mighty Comstock Lode, vintage maps, lithographs, and many original relics that tell the story of the richest city in the American West. Comprehensively, The Way It Was Museum proudly claims this is the most complete collection of Comstock memorabilia in the world.
The real story of How the West was won:
Carson City Mint-Coin Press 1-Nevada State Museum
Virginia City Nevada
Established in 1859
Charming Main Streets (and main streets) in each state
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Exploring Silver City and Gold Hill, NV Pt. 1
In this video, I explore the Donovan Mill site and the town of Silver City, NV. Though often left out of the history books, Silver City was a major part of the Nevada mining boom. It’s where Silver was discovered by the Grosh brothers, hence where the town got its name, and is even home to its own schoolhouse and cemetery, which I will explore in videos to come. It is also where ore was processed from the mines in two major mill sites of the Comstock days, one being the Donovan Mill. Come along with me on this journey through Silver City!
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Comstock Lode and CC Morgans
Don't scold me to bad on this one 10 dislikes I will remove it..I'm just experimenting trying new things I'm really in to history and wanted to share some info on the Comstock Lode.The Silver in the Morgan Silver Dollars minted at Carson City mint actually contain silver from the Comstock Lode Mine...
Just having fun learning as I go in the future I would like to do short documentrys sorry you guys are my critics..lol
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Dirt Cheap - Virginia City, Nevada
Cheap things to do in Virginia City, Nevada! This episode brought to you by Soma Novo in Bangor, Maine.
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Follow the escapades of filmmaker Chas Bruns as he travels the world in search of the cheapest tours, food, hotels, hostels and transportation. If you're living on a budget, Chas can show you how to travel for pennies on the dollar. Chas will show you where to go sky diving, waterfall hiking, shark diving and more!
This episode takes Chas to Virginia City, Nevada where he explores the Virginia City Cemetery and Sawdust Trails. He dines and drinks at the Kettle Corn Depot, The Washoe Club, Silver Dollar Saloon, Red Dog Saloon and Bucket of Blood Saloon. If you're considering traveling to the Virginia City, Nevada, you can't miss this!
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