A few things to remember about Virginia City. It was a mining boom town born from the Comstock Lode silver strike of 1859. It had a population of nearly 30,000 at its peak and over 110 saloons. It's considered the "birthplace" of Mark Twain (Samuel Clemens first used Mark Twain as his pen name here). It is located deep in the Nevada hills just beyond Silver City and Gold Hill on NV-341.
Views from the way in ...
 |
| NV-341 takes us into the remote hills |
 |
| We see classic "western sights" |
 |
| Old mines line the route |
Silver City and Gold Hill appear first ...
 |
| More abandoned mines |
 |
| One of many saloons along the way |
And we arrive ...
City life currently centers on the main drag (NV-341). Tourism is big for the city, but mining continues.
 |
| We walked the boardwalks |
It has schools ...
 |
| Fourth Ward School (is now an excellent museum) |
 |
| Do I really have to stay after class? |
It has an opera house ...
Just a few of its saloons ...
 |
| We saw The Silver Queen her gown is made from 3,261 real silver dollars |
And churches ...
 |
| Episcopal |
 |
| Presbyterian (They celebrate their 150th anniversary on September 30th. We got a tour.) |
 |
| Catholic |
Other tourist attractions ...
 |
| The cemetery is divided into areas for miners, firemen, Presbyterians, Episcopalians, Catholics, Jewish, and others. But, no prostitutes |
 |
| These owners had a dispute. One decided the other wouldn't see the sunrise or sunset. |
 |
| Many original structures remain |
 |
| An old miner and burro roam the street for photo donations |
 |
| The city is built into hillsides and surrounded by old mine digs |
 |
| The Virginia & Truckee Railroad still runs (It's know as one of the nation's "cookedest railroads") |
We saw this classic "bug" on the way back to Carson City. It was too good to ignore.
No comments:
Post a Comment