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The History of Northern Nevada
The region now occupied by the State of Nevada was held by the Goshute, Mojave, Paiute, Shoshone and Washoe Indians and claimed by the Spanish Empire until the early 1800s. The northern extent of the Spanish claim was defined as the 42nd parallel in the Adams-Onis Treaty of 1819 between the United States and Spain. This north latitude line serves currently as Nevada's northern boundary with Oregon and Idaho.
Nevada did not have a large enough population to become a state during the Civil War (1861-1865). Partly to impose order on the lawless, wide-open mining towns, Congress made Nevada into a territory in 1861 as migrant prospectors and settlers poured in. The territory was then enlarged by increasing its eastern boundary by one degree of longitude in 1862. It was rushed into statehood in 1864, with Carson City as its capital. President Lincoln (in order to get more votes to pass the Thirteenth Amendment) had signed the proclamation even though the territory did not actually meet the population requirement for statehood. On Oct. 31, 1864, Nevada became the 36th state of the Union with Carson City as its capital.
In 1866 Nevada acquired its present-day boundaries when the southern tip was added and more eastern land was gained from Utah.
The state continued to be dependent on its precious ores. During the late 1860s, several miners settled the northwestern counties of Nevada such as Carson, Lyon and Storey. The following decade, mines closed as the value of silver dropped. Thousands of miners left Nevada looking for work, others turned to ranching. The 1880s brought even harder years on the economy. Unusually cold winters killed much of the livestock and mines near Virginia City stopped producing gold and silver.
During the early 1900s, new mines near Tonopah discovered silver. Gold was found in Goldfield and copper near Ruth and Mountain City. These discoveries provided new jobs and strengthened Nevada's economy. Railroad expansion opened new markets and the Newlands Irrigation Project made farming possible through irrigation.
During the late 1900s, tourism remained the largest industry in Nevada. Las Vegas alone attracted more than 15 million tourists a year. Reno also built large casinos and ski resorts were built at Lake Tahoe. Nevada's population grew immensely. Northern Nevada still receives over 1.6 million tourisits per year that come to explore the 'ol Gold country by visiting places like Historic Virginia City where the down town area is preserved in it's antique splendor.
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