Fourth entry! Those of you who have been reading these, the few you are, I hope you have been enjoying these as much as I have. It's been extremely informative for me and I hope for you as well.
Here is how this project of mine goes. Each and every week (or more often), using a random number generator I pick one county from the United States and give a little bit of information on that county. I am going with five pieces of information - historical, cultural, news, natural, political, etc. - to share about the county I choose. Ideally, I'll stick it out until every single county is completed.
So here we go, Round 4!
This entry is the fourth of the counties. The randomly selected celebrity county is...
Storey County, Nevada
Incorporated: 1861
Population: 4110
Total Area: 264 square miles
County Seat: Virginia City (pop: 1500)
((apologies for the map above, if somebody finds a better map I would appreciate it))
(1) The first major discovery of silver ore in the United States occurred in modern Storey County. The Comstock Lode was discovered under Virginia City on the eastern slope of Mt. Davidson of the Virginia Mountain range. The mines of the Comstock Lode generated massive amounts of wealth and helped dramatically increase the growth of Nevada, San Francisco, and mining technology. The mines hit their peak in 1874 with most fame and fortune already gained by that point and decline from there on out.
(2) Virginia City, the county seat of Storey County, is the largest National Historic landmark in Nevada. The entire town was declared a National Historic district in 1961 and thrives on the tourism that draws nearly two million visitors every year. At its peak due to the silver boom of the Comstock Lode, Virginia City had 42 saloons, 42 stores, 6 restaurants, 3 hotels, and 15,000 residents. While it is a shadow of its former self, the city thrives on its historic value and the tourists that it draws every year.
(3) Would you believe that the first American to win the Nobel Prize in physics grew up in Virginia City? Albert Abraham Michelson, born in the Kingdom of Prussia, grew up as the son of a miner in Virginia City and eventually went to high school in San Francisco. He won the Nobel Prize in physics for his work on the measurement of the speed of light and all the related experiments. In an episode of Bonanza, which took place in a miner's camp near Virginia City, an actor played a 16 year old Michelson trying to get an appointment to the U.S. navy. Fancy that!
(4) A Warner Brothers Film! Starring Errol Flynn, Miriam Hopkins, Randolph Scott, and Humphrey Bogart... Virginia City! The story of real life outlaw John Murrell finally brought to the big screen in stunning black and white. Directed by the world renowned Michael Curtiz, director of other films such as Casablanca and The Adventures of Robin Hood.
(5) Storey County is known for its vices. "What vices are those?" Well, let me tell you.
- The county was the only one in Nevada to approve Question 7 (2006), a state ballot initiative to legalize and regulate marijuana use and distribution in Nevada.
- The county operates two "Adult Resorts", the Wild Horse Ranch and the Mustang Ranch, both legal brothels in a secluded part on the northern edge of the county. Mustang ranch became the first legal brothel in Nevada in 1971.
- Satire a vice? The king of wit, Mark Twain, failed as a miner during the silver rush in 1863. He then worked for The Territorial Enterprise, the local newspaper, where he first used his pen name Mark Twain rather then Samuel Clemens.
Fascinating tidbits of history for the smallest county in Nevada!
Hope you enjoyed this week's county, I know I found it entertaining to report on it. If you want to add to this week’s county, please do. If you want me to add it in the actual diary, let me know in the comments and I will.
7:03 PM PT: Update: I haven't really been aware of the infighting occurring on the website and the calls for boycotts. I'm not informed enough about the situation here to make a decision one way or another, so I apologize in advance if I upset anyone by posting a diary during the boycott time.