Pioneer Pieces: The Shadows Fall

Many believe  the Comstock mines finally gave out as the 1800s came to a close, but the facts say that's just not true.  The vast ore deposits remained deep inside Mount Davidson, but the problem was the cost for mining this remaining ore was not economically justified - and it was extremely dangerous to do so.  So the mines didn't give out - they just became unworkable.

As the shadows descend over the Nevada desert, old-timers (aka "hot water plugs") moved to California to escape the severe winters of Nevada.  Businesses closed, railroads were torn up, houses were dismantled and moved to new towns in California.  New discoveries offered new wealth opportunities to die-hard miners, something known in history as "Greater than the Comstock"...next time.

Pioneer Pieces: The Wealth of the Comstock Reaches Far

The wealth produced in the Comstock mines had an enormous affect on the nation's economy.

Nevada's role in the Civil War was also huge - the Union wanted one more state with northern sympathies for Lincoln's Emancipation Proclamation.  Nevada's annual production, even in that time, was nearly 35 million in silver bullion! What a great aid to the Union troops!  At the time it became the 36th state in 1864, Nevada had less than 1/6th of the population required for statehood - but hey - Nevada had something the US needed.

The Comstock's wealth was also significant in San Francisco prior to and after the great fire of 1906.  Lavish financing for expansion was made possible by the Comstock wealth of Con-Virginia, Gould and Curry, Hale and Norcross and other celebrated mines of Virginia City.

After the 1906 fire, these wealthy businesses helped to rebuild San Francisco's Palace Hotel (see Luxury at Its Finest post), the Flood and Sharon Buildings, the Fairmont Hotel, the Pacific Union Club, and the San Francisco Examiner.

John MacKay, the richest and most farsighted of all the "silver kings", acquired a monopoly of the world's cable services (telegraph, not TV).  His wife reportedly spent huge sums entertaining in London and Paris.  MacKay, however, is remembered for his great generousity upon his death to many charitable institutions.

How long did this frenzy of Virginia City last?  Next time...

Pioneer Pieces: The Virginia City Territorial Enterprise

Of all the frontier newspapers, Virginia City's The Territorial Enterprise, was the best known and most colorful.  The newspaper began in Mormon Station (the staging station), then moved to Carson City, and finally to Virginia City with the first pioneers.  For years, The Territorial Enterprise was a strong voice of authority in the mining world.

What made the newspaper so colorful was those on its staff - like Mark Twain (note: Samuel Langhorne Clemens was actually a very humble, quiet man).

Working with Mark Twain was Joe Goodman, Fred Hart, Wells Drury, Rollin Dagget and William Wright.  Wright wrote under the pen name of Dan De Quille.  His Big Bonanza, was recognized as an authoritative history of Nevada in his time.

For More on Frontier Newspapers, see the post on The San Francisco Chronicle
Next time...the effect of the Comstock on the nation

Pioneer Pieces: That's Quite a Guest List!

Virginia City was "the place to be" in the later decades of the 1800s.  The names of national significance were many from the Pullman's who arrived by train of course, to Civil War General Sherman,  They came in private palace train cars and stately carriages and became so common place that no one seemed to notice them anymore.

President Grant, Baron Rothschild, and Artemas Ward arrived, dined and attended Piper's Opera House without anyone bothering to note it in the newspapers.  After all the help Nevada provided the Union during the Civil War, they were old friends :)

Senators William W Stewart and John Perceival Jones were the first "silver senators" whose flamboyant natures stirred up the social scene in Washington.

The first two women to live on the Comstock were Julia Bulette, a courtesan,  whose later murder was quite the topic throughout the West, and Elley Orrum, a washwoman AND Nevada's first millionaire.

Marcus Daly, the copper king of Montana and George Hearst, of the newspaper dynasty, made their first strike on the Comstock.

Adolph Sutro, cigar maker, and the most popular of San Francisco's later mayors, first found his fortunes when, against all odds and popular opinion, he built his mine tunnel into the lower mines.

Senator William Sharon whose wealthy ways even shocked San Franciscans who were used to such displays, had his beginnings in Virginia City where he was the manager of Darius Ogden Mill's Bank of California.

Along with many great performers, these "old time celebrities" made up a good percentage of the culture in Virginia City.

Next time we look at frontier newspapers...

Pioneer Pieces: 1875 was a Good Year After All

By the mid 1870s, Virginia City, Nevada,  had grown to be a major center in the Old West.  With a population of 25,000, the city was bursting at the seems.  Then disaster struck...

In 1875, the city was almost completely destroyed by fire.  Fire was always a common threat to mining towns because the buildings went up so quickly, and built of wood, they made easy targets for a fast wind to spread a single spark throughout a city.  This era is known by the fires of San Francisco and Chicago.  Virginia City was no different.

But Virginia City had something in its favor though - wealth.  Within several months of the fire, the Comstock fortunes had rebuilt the town with bricks and stones to replace those earlier shacks and boardinghouses.
Like pre-fire Virginia City, culture became a major portion of the town.

Fine new theaters rose against Mt Davidson. The International Hotel, with the first elevator west of the Chicago's Palmer House, rose six splendid stories against the Nevada skies to become the pride of Nevada.

On the other side, back again were the saloons and bordellos - 100 guady saloons like the Sazarac, the Smokey Mountain, the Delta and the Bloody Bucket became legendary in the Old West.  To mine ore, you needed to be able to find a saloon, it seems...

The city now had four wards - each ward had its own police, fire department and school.  Millionaire Row on B Street was the home of silk top hats and fine carriages - the mine superintendents and stock speculators.  Their wives wore gowns from Worth in Paris by special delivery to Virginia City.

Virginia City's telephone exchange was only the second one west of the Mississippi River (San Francisco was the first), and served the city's many business houses and stately residents.

So, Post-Fire Virginia City was much more than the normal mining town, and it attracted many important and wealthy people to its streets.  Next time we'll look at some of those characters...