Storey

Everything changed in 1859. Silver was found in an immense vein on the foot of Sun Mountain just east of Eagle Valley. Men discovered that the vein was rather a massive payload containing gold and silver - deeper and richer beyond anyone's imagining. 
 

Virginia City became the first (and largest) community of size in this unpopulated territory. Amidst the prosperity there was a problem. The Comstock's mines required an enormous amount of timber to shore up its shafts and to quench a growing population. It didn't take long for an imbalance to form among the newcomers, the environment, and the largely impacted native peoples and their delicate niches with the land. Lumber mills were constructed in the Tahoe Basin to feed the hungry mines and in twenty short years, over eighty percent of the forest was cleared to nothing. "The Lode" became both a blessing and a curse for Nevada.

 

The markers. Storey might be the greatest jip of them all. Despite its huge importance, the SHPO went in the way of the tourist and bypassed Gold Hill completely, locating all eight markers within the limits of VC. Gold Hill is a post card for Nevada's mining heritage - adorned with plaques, A-frames, mill workings, and original buildings that still stand as they are. Nevada's oldest hotel was established in 1859 and still pours drinks, serves delicious meals, and books nights its haunted rooms. The Virginia & Truckee Depot stands as a nifty nostalgia for any railroad buff. The mountaineous terrain of Storey County locks many secrets that are far from the main highway that you must discover on your own or through word of mouth. The vibrant wildflower stands on Geiger Grade, ghostly ruins, and quite possibly one of the greatest stands of petroglyph art in the west. Lock all this in before your call to conquer Storey County.