Morning appeal. [volume] (Carson City, Nev.) 1877-1906, 1904-04-02
THE COMSTOCk.
A Concise History Of the Great Silver
Producer

Virginia City, the pioneer mining
town of Nevada and the United States.
is perched on the eastern face Of
Mount Davidson, the eliminating peak
of the range of mountains in which lies
the famous ComstCck silver lode. The
altitude of the city above the level Of
the sea is about 5000 feet. It was
founded in 1859, when the silver mines
were discovered. Beginning as town
of tents and shanties, it soon became
city Of substantial structures, many
Of which were Of brick and iron, says
the Pacific Coast Miner
Gold was first discovered in Nevada
in the spring of 1850. It was found in
what is now known as Gold Canyon
by a company of Mormon emigrants
on their way to California From s.
to IS a day could be made by mining
the gravel Of the canyCn, but this
seemed small wages to men who eX-
pected to gather gold by the pound in
California, therefore all but one or two
families went on across the mountains.
Following up this gold in after years
led to the discovery, in 1859, Of tho
rich deposit of gold where now stands
the town Of Gold Hill. This gold in
vein that afterwards became famous
as the Comstocl1 silver lode, but at
Gold Hill it was gold bearing on the
surface.
At and about Silver City, below Gold
Hill, are many mines OF gold bearing
quartz Cloth and above and below the
Devils Gate) which contributed their
share to the gold dust found in Gold
Canyon
In 1857 gold in paying quantities
was found in Six Mile Canyon above
the Sugarloaf mountain, and following
up the discovery led to the string of
silver at point just above the head
Of the canyon where Virginia City now
stands. The great discovery was made
in 1859 by Peter O'Reilly and Patrick
Mclaughlin. While engaged with rock
ers in washing for gold they dug down
lode, afterward world famous.
Virginia City lies along the Com
stock lode (Which runs north and
south) for a distance of over a mile,
and is united on the south with the
town of Gold Hill, which is also sit
uated on the Comstock silver vein.
The huge hosting works erected ov-
er the milling shafts from 1000 to over
5000 feet in depth, are seen strung al
ong through the two towns for a dis
lance Of over two miles. their great
size and their tall iron smoke-stacks,
making them prominent objects. The
immense dumps of waste rock seen
below all these hosting works tell Of
the vastness of the underground work
ings, and at once arrest the attention
of al visitors. There are at present il
the city two mills for working the
ores mined, most of the reduction
works now being on the Carson river.
where is almost unlimited water pow
CIR.
The towns of the Comstock are con
nected with the Central Pacific and
the worlds great high ways of traffic
by the Virginia & Truckee railroad
This road transports ores to the river
mills and brings back to the mine
supplies of wood, lumber and mining
timbers from the pine forests of tn
Sierra Nevada mountains.
At enc time-in the bonanza days
there was claimed for Virginia Cit
population, transit and permanent
e 10000 souls, and for the siste,
town of Gold Hill of 10000.
Virginia City has fine water works.
water being piped from the Sierra.
near Lake Tahoe, thirty miles away
also has both electrical and gas ligh;s
with all modern conveniences now con
sidered to be the necessary adjunct
of the civilization of the age. Their
are several fine churches: school h0t,a-
es that cost from $4,000 to $50 ,
hospitals and asylums fine s II,
and numerous large public halls.
Virginia being "a city set On T.
(and very high hilD, offers { all
views over the interior mountain ran
ges and valleys in all directions, Iu.
to the westward, where Mount David
son rises above the town to a height
of nearly 1000 feet. Both Virginia City
and Gold Hill stand upon ground tina!
has been excavated to the depth of frou
1900 to 5000 feet. forming catacombs
surprising by far, in extent, those Of
POlne, and containing m,le pin: tin
Ter than all the buildings in the Ia z
est CRY on the Pacific coast
A great work is the SutrO drain ~
rel which, starting at The Carson :iv
err. mas length of nearly four miles
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