I | INTRODUCTION |
Nevada, one of the Rocky Mountain states of the United
States. A stark and arid land, Nevada is a region of rugged, snow-capped peaks,
desert valleys green with sage, and sparsely populated expanses that still
retain the vestiges of the Old West. But the state is also known for its
glittering cities, where luxurious casinos draw visitors from around the world.
Carson City is Nevada’s capital. Las Vegas is the largest city.
Nevada entered the Union on October 31, 1864,
as the 36th state. The first European settlers of the state came for its mineral
wealth, and the gold and silver labored out of Nevada’s famous mines created the
state’s first boom period. Vast ranches were developed in the north, where
rainfall was sufficient to provide grazing for cattle and sheep. Later the
state’s gambling casinos and scenic landscapes would attract millions of
tourists. Today, however, Nevada has a relatively diversified economy. Tourism,
mining, and ranching remain important, but manufacturing and construction are
growing rapidly.
The state’s name is taken from the Sierra
Nevada, a mountain range shared by Nevada and California; nevada is
Spanish for “snow covered.” Nevada is called the Silver State for its many
silver mines, the Sagebrush State for its abundant sagebrush, and the Battle
Born State because it was admitted to the Union during the American Civil War
(1861-1865).
II | PHYSICAL GEOGRAPHY |
Nevada’s area is 286,352 sq km (110,561 sq
mi), of which inland waters make up 1,904 sq km (735 sq mi). It ranks seventh in
size among the states. From north to south, at its maximum, the state measures
777 km (483 mi) and from east to west, 517 km (321 mi). The mean elevation is
about 1,700 m (5,500 ft).
A | Natural Regions |
Almost all of Nevada lies within the Great
Basin, which is part of the larger physiographic division known as the Basin and
Range province. The Great Basin is located between the Sierra Nevada of
California and the Wasatch Range of Utah. Actually, it is not a single basin,
but rather a vast realm without drainage to the sea in which there are hundreds
of north-south oriented valleys separated by mountain ranges.
A small part of Nevada lies within another
physiographic region, the Sierra-Cascade province. Here a section of the Sierra
Nevada extends across the state’s western edge. The mountain slopes reach down
from Lake Tahoe toward Reno and Carson City. Mount Rose, located in a spur of
the Sierra known as the Carson Range, rises to 3,285 m (10,778 ft).
Southern Nevada contains part of the
Mojave Desert, another section of the Basin and Range. Although the appearance
of the land is similar to that of most of the rest of the state, this region,
bordering the Colorado River, is lower than the surrounding area. Nevada’s
lowest elevation, 146 m (479 ft), is found where the Colorado River leaves the
state.
In the northeast, Nevada shares two
sections of the Columbia Plateau with Oregon and Idaho. These sections, the
Owyhee Uplift section and the Snake River Plain, contain a number of rivers that
drain north and belong to the Columbia River watershed.
The mountain ranges of Nevada are long
rugged ridges. There are about 100 such ranges, most of them from 80 to 120 km
(50 to 75 mi) long and from 10 to 24 km (6 to 15 mi) wide. They rise 900 to
1,500 m (3,000 to 5,000 ft) above the surrounding basin surface and reach
elevations of 4,000 m (13,000 ft) above sea level.
Some of these ranges were created when
huge sections of the earth’s crust were thrown up on their edges above the
surrounding land. These are called fault-block ranges. In western Nevada,
particularly, the fault scarps, or zones along the faces of the mountains where
uplift took place, are clearly visible. In other parts of the state, clear
evidence of mountain-building processes has been obscured by erosion. Small
earthquakes are common in western Nevada, indicating that the mountains are
still being uplifted gradually. The earth’s crust below the Great Basin is
believed to be thinner than at any other place in North America. At the eastern
base of the Sierra Nevada there have been eruptions of volcanic rock, and hot
springs occur at the bases of many other Nevada mountain ranges. Mineral
deposits, including gold and silver, are widespread in Nevada’s mountains. The
larger and higher ranges are the Shoshone Mountains, Toiyabe Range, Toquema
Range, Monitor Range, Ruby Mountains, Quinn Canyon Mountains, Shell Creek Range,
Snake Range, and the Spring Mountains. Near the Nevada-California boundary in
the White Mountains is the state’s highest summit, Boundary Peak, at 4,005 m
(13,140 ft). Wheeler Peak (3,982 m/13,063 ft) is at the eastern edge of
Nevada.
B | Sinks and Deserts |
The valleys between Nevada’s mountain
ranges are not drained to the sea by streams, but are instead so-called closed
basins. These basins are slowly filling up with the sand, gravel, and soil
washed down from the mountains, most often by rain. The mountain canyons are
seasonally dry, although a few have permanent streams and others have flows when
the snow melts in the spring.
The more permanent streams flow into lakes
in the closed basins. These lakes are often shallow and salty, and in dry years
become completely waterless. The low parts of the basins, where the lakes
collect, are known as playas, and the lakes themselves are called
playa lakes. In Nevada the playas are often called sinks, or
dry lakes. At those times when the sinks have water in them they are
known as salt lakes. Their water evaporates to leave barren, level expanses of
baked mud and salts.
The largest sinks, found in the
northwestern part of the state, are the Black Rock Desert and Smoke Creek
Desert. Black Rock Desert, between the Black Rock Range and the Jackson
Mountains, is about 110 km (70 mi) long and about 8 to 30 km (5 to 20 mi) wide.
Smoke Creek Desert is somewhat smaller. Other playas and playa lakes include
Humboldt Sink and Carson Sink. Yucca Flat and Frenchman Flat, with playa lakes
of the same names, are well known as the locations of nuclear weapons tests.
Numerous other sinks and lakes are known only by such general names as Alkali
Flat and Dry Lake.
C | Rivers, Lakes, and Reservoirs |
Two areas in Nevada do have drainage to
the sea. In the northeast, Salmon Falls Creek, the Bruneau River, the East and
South forks of the Owyhee River, and the Little Owyhee River drain into the
Snake River and reach the Pacific Ocean through the Columbia River. The Muddy
River, Meadow Valley Wash, and the Virgin River run into Lake Mead on the
Colorado River, which drains into the Gulf of California.
The principal rivers of Nevada are the
Humboldt, Truckee, Carson, Walker, Owyhee, and Colorado. The Humboldt River,
Nevada’s longest, is located entirely within the state. It begins in the desert
ranges of the northeast and flows west from one basin to another until it
finally ends in Humboldt Sink. The flow of this river constitutes about
one-fifth of the state’s water runoff.
The Truckee, Carson, and Walker rivers
flow out of the Sierra Nevada, thread their way around several of the desert
ranges, and also end in closed basins. The Walker flows into Walker Lake, the
Carson into Lahontan Reservoir. The major part of the Truckee’s flow is now
diverted to Lahontan Reservoir, although as required by law some of it empties
into Pyramid Lake. Because these three streams flow constantly, the lakes into
which they empty never dry up. Winnemucca Lake formerly received overflow waters
from Pyramid Lake, but it is now dry, as is Carson Lake. The Colorado River is
Nevada’s most voluminous river. However, because of its position along the
state’s southern boundary and the fact that its waters are shared by several
states, the river has not been of primary importance to Nevada until recently.
Las Vegas and nearby communities have tried to increase their intake of the
Colorado River’s water, but have so far been contractually prohibited from doing
so.
Nevada’s other permanent lakes include
Washoe Lake, a few tiny lakes in the higher mountains, and Lake Tahoe. Lake
Tahoe is located along the state boundary with California, at 1,897 m (6,225 ft)
above sea level, in the Sierra Nevada.
Nevada’s reservoirs include Rye Patch
Reservoir on the lower Humboldt; Lahontan Reservoir, into which the Carson River
is diverted; Wild Horse Reservoir on the East Fork of the Owyhee; Lake Mead,
created by Hoover Dam on the Colorado; and Lake Mohave, created by Davis Dam on
the Colorado.
Thousands of years ago a large lake called
Lake Lahontan covered a substantial area in northwestern Nevada. The level of
its waters stood as high as 160 m (530 ft) above the present level of Pyramid
Lake, as shown by wave-cut terraces on the mountainsides. Walker, Carson, and
other lakes are mere remnants of the former lake. Black Rock Desert and Smoke
Creek Desert were also once occupied by the lake.
D | Climate |
Nevada has an arid climate and receives
the least precipitation of all the states. Skies are clear, sunshine is
abundant, and relative humidity is low. There are wide ranges of temperature
between day and night. The climate pattern, however, is complicated by
differences in elevation. Mountainous areas are far damper and cooler than
low-lying areas.
D1 | Temperature |
Mean annual temperatures vary greatly
within Nevada because of the comparatively long distance from north to south
within the state. In the south, summers are extremely hot and winters are short
and mild. The average July temperature at Las Vegas is 32° C (90° F), and the
highest temperature ever recorded there was 48° C (118° F). Las Vegas’ January
average high temperature is in the lower 10°s C (lower 50°s F), and average lows
are near freezing. The growing season, the period from the last killing frost in
spring to the first in fall, in this area averages more than 230 days per
year.
In the northeast, winters are long and
cold and summers short and hot. San Jacinto’s average temperature in January is
-4° C (24° F), but it has recorded readings as low as -46° C (-50° F) in the
winter. The July average at San Jacinto is 19° C (66° F), and the average
growing season is about 80 days per year. Reno, in the west-central part of the
state, has mean temperatures that fall between the averages at San Jacinto and
Las Vegas. The growing season is about 155 days. Night-to-day temperature
changes are sharp throughout Nevada because the clear dry air permits both the
rapid gain of heat in the day and its rapid loss after dark.
D2 | Precipitation |
Most of the precipitation comes in
winter, and in the mountains much of it is snow. Summer rainfall is generally
slight. However, heavy thunderstorms occasionally occur, bringing cloudbursts
that in a few minutes drench an area with as much rain as would normally fall
over a period of several months.
Precipitation over the state as a whole
averages less than 230 mm (9 in) annually. It is lowest in west central and
southern Nevada, where the average drops to less than 100 mm (4 in) a year in
some localities. Annual precipitation at Elko, in the northeast, is 230 mm (9
in); at Reno, 190 mm (8 in); and at Las Vegas, about 100 mm (4 in). Mountain
areas above 1,800 to 2,100 m (6,000 to 7,000 ft) receive more than 380 mm (15
in) of precipitation annually. The greatest annual precipitation, 690 mm (27
in), occurs at Marlette Lake, on the lee slope of the Sierra Nevada.
The scarcity of precipitation in Nevada
is due largely to the state’s location on the eastern side of the Sierra Nevada,
which is a barrier to moisture-laden air. Nevada is said to lie in the rain
shadow of the Sierra Nevada. As eastward-moving air rises against the Sierra
Nevada, most of its moisture is condensed and falls on the western slopes. Major
storms will cross the Sierra, however, and some summer storms come from the Gulf
of California up the east side of the Sierra. They occasionally produce large
rainfalls.
E | Soils |
For the most part the soils of Nevada are
so-called gray desert soils, developed from material washed down into the
valleys from the mountains. Where the desert vegetation is thin, the ground
often has a layer of gravel and small stones, called desert pavement. However,
in the low areas of the basins and along the rivers there are narrow belts of
alluvial soils that are of finer texture. The better of these soils, such as
Fallon fine sandy loam, are farmed successfully under irrigation. Others, such
as Lahontan silty clay loam, are too salty to be used for agriculture, although
they produce brush and grass suitable for grazing. In southern Nevada the soils
are pinkish in color and are known as red desert soils. The mountains contain
much rough and stony land without soil covering. Almost all Nevada soils are low
in nitrogen and organic matter.
F | Plant Life |
The most widespread form of vegetation in
Nevada is sagebrush, especially big sagebrush. Sagebrush grows in most of the
nonsalty soils of the northern basins, especially between altitudes of 1,500 and
2,100 m (5,000 and 7,000 ft). Most of the state’s northern portion, therefore,
has a low, bushy cover of these silver-gray plants and grasses, making up what
is generally considered the typical Nevada landscape. Most of the sagebrush
plants are widely spaced, occupying only a small part of the land surface. In
some places, however, the sagebrush grows 3 m (10 ft) high.
Several other shrubs, such as winter fat,
and ephedra, commonly called Mormon tea, are often found together with
sagebrush. Rabbit brush grows where the land is too saline for sagebrush. In the
north there are also numerous kinds of grasses. Cheat grass, introduced from
Asia near the beginning of the 20th century, is becoming increasingly common in
Nevada. The grass takes moisture and nutrients from native species, causing
their decline, and has been associated with an increased occurrence of wildfires
since the 1950s.
The drier and hotter parts of the state,
in west central and southern Nevada, have a vegetation of shadscale, saltbush,
greasewood, and Nevada ephedra. These bushy plants have a maximum height of
about 30 cm (about 12 in), and are widely spaced. In the hottest parts of the
state, in the desert areas extending south from Logandale, Las Vegas, and
Beatty, the vegetation is composed largely of creosote bush and burroweed, or
white bur-sage. Also in this area are several species of cactus and yucca. One
interesting type of yucca is the Joshua tree, with oddly shaped branches and
waxy flowers.
Forests and woodlands cover 15 percent of
Nevada’s land area. Many of the lower mountain ranges, where rainfall is heavier
than in the basins, have woodlands of piñon and juniper. They are low shrublike
trees that are well adapted to semiarid conditions. The piñon pine is noted for
its sweet edible nuts. The higher mountains of Nevada, where rainfall is
heaviest, are densely forested. Ponderosa pine, also called western yellow pine,
and Douglas fir grow on the higher mountain slopes, especially on those around
Lake Tahoe. These forests also contain numerous small flowers and such shrubs as
elderberry, currant, and snowbush. Near Lake Tahoe are some stands of sugar pine
and lodgepole pine. The high peaks of some mountain ranges, such as Wheeler Peak
and Mount Moriah in the Snake Range, reach above the timberline. Here there are
a few small areas of mountain tundra. These meadowlike areas have short curled
grasses and tiny wildflowers.
G | Animal Life |
The mountain forests are the home of mule
deer, beavers, foxes, muskrats, porcupines, bobcats, lynx, cougars, and several
varieties of squirrels. The mule deer inhabits almost every part of the state.
The abundance of deer has led to an increase in the population of cougars, for
which deer are an important food. There are small numbers of elk in the
mountains of White Pine County. Bighorn sheep are found in southern Nevada. A
great variety of small animals inhabit the desert areas, many of them active at
night. These include kangaroo and pack rats, rabbits, coyotes, ground squirrels,
badgers, skunks, numerous species of lizards, desert tortoises, diamondback and
sidewinder rattlesnakes, scorpions, beetles, velvet ants, centipedes,
tarantulas, and Gila monsters. Herds of pronghorn live under government
protection on an antelope range in northwestern Nevada.
Desert birds include the cactus wren,
mockingbird, nighthawk, and roadrunner. Game birds include the quail, chukar,
sage grouse, pheasant, dove, and duck. Anaho Island, in Pyramid Lake, is a major
breeding ground for white pelicans. Nevada’s fish include trout, channel cats,
bluegills, black crappies, black bass, and Sacramento perch.
H | Conservation |
In such an arid territory as Nevada the
land must be used carefully to prevent soil erosion and to maintain forests and
range grasses. Many conservation programs are federally operated, since the
federal government owns 92 percent of the land in Nevada.
The introduction of domesticated animals
like horses, sheep, and cows in the late 19th century largely destroyed the
natural cover of vegetation. The vegetation of Nevada was not adapted to grazing
because Nevada had no large plant-eating animals such as buffalo or elk.
Therefore the arrival of large domesticated animals doomed many tiny, delicate
native plants. Without this cover the land could not hold moisture, and serious
soil erosion resulted. Since 1934 and the passage of the Taylor Grazing Act,
Nevada has, like other Western states, placed much of its land in grazing
districts. In these districts, grazing rights are leased to ranchers and are
carefully controlled. One of the by-products of this policy has been the
preservation of wildlife. The Bureau of Land Management, the Forest Service, and
the Natural Resources Conservation Service are among the agencies that manage
federal lands. Government agencies also advise farmers and ranchers about the
best use of their own private lands. The state has its own departments of
Natural Resources and Agricultural and Mining.
Water conservation in Nevada is also a
pressing problem. The relatively small amount of water available from streams is
used almost to its maximum extent. There is also available, however, some
groundwater, or water beneath the earth’s surface. To conserve this supply,
comprehensive state water laws regulate well-drilling and the pumping of
groundwater. Most irrigation works in the state are small and have been
privately built, but Lahontan Dam on the Carson River and Rye Patch Dam on the
Humboldt River supply water to medium-sized federal irrigation projects. The
Newlands Project, under which Derby Dam and later the Lahontan Dam were
constructed, were the first government irrigation-and-reclamation projects.
Hoover and Davis dams on the Colorado River benefit Nevada and the other
Southwestern states by providing water storage, hydroelectric power, irrigation,
flood control, and recreational resources for tourists.
Areas set aside for wildlife protection
include eight federal wildlife refuges and a number of state refuges. Many are
set aside to help in the recovery of aquatic wildlife, and there is also a
refuge set aside for wild horses.
In 2006 Nevada had only 1 hazardous waste
site on a national priority list for cleanup due to its severity. The state,
however, has been proposed as the only site for storage of high-level nuclear
waste. Nevada, furthermore, was one of only three states in the nation whose
discharge of toxic chemicals into the environment was increasing, growing by 39
percent in the period 1995–2000. Also, while air quality was improving in most
of the nation’s cities, the Las Vegas metropolitan region had an increasing
number of days in which the air failed to meet federal standards for carbon
monoxide.
III | ECONOMIC ACTIVITIES |
Nevada had the fastest growing population
of any state in the 1990s and one of the fastest growing economies. Boom and
bust has been a typical economic cycle for Nevada, although the boom in the
1990s was without precedent in the state.
Mining was the traditional cornerstone of
the Nevada economy. The initial mining boom began with the discovery of the
great silver and gold deposits of the Comstock Lode in 1859. Other discoveries
led to the establishment of small mining communities throughout the state.
Agriculture, especially cattle ranching and other livestock raising, developed
as the second most important aspect of the economy. The legalization of gambling
in 1931 led to growth of the tourism and entertainment industries, which today
dominate the state’s economy. Manufacturing has expanded since the 1960s. A
rapidly growing population, in part due to the increased job opportunities in
the tourism-driven service sector, has in turn made the construction industry an
important employer. The federal government employs many people in Nevada and is
a significant contributor to the state’s economy. Perhaps the most important
federal facilities in the state are Nellis Air Force Base and the U.S.
Department of Energy’s Nevada Test Site. Other sites test some of the federal
governments most secret military equipment, particularly aircraft.
Nevada had a work force of 1,295,000 in
2006. By far the largest share of them, 48 percent, worked in the service
industries, particularly jobs catering to tourists such as ski resort or casino
workers. Another 19 percent worked in wholesale or retail trade; 12 percent in
federal, state, or local government, including those in the military; 10 percent
in construction; 17 percent in finance, insurance, or real estate; 18 percent in
transportation or public utilities; 4 percent in manufacturing; 2 percent in
farming (including agricultural services), forestry, or fishing; and 1 percent
in mining. In 2005, 14 percent of Nevada’s workers belonged to unions.
A | Agriculture |
There were 3,000 farms and ranches in
Nevada in 2005, of which 45 percent had annual revenues of more than $10,000;
many of the remaining farms were secondary employment for operators who held
other jobs. Farms and ranches covered 2.5 million hectares (6.3 million acres).
Crops are grown on 15 percent of the farmland, and irrigation is required on 82
percent of all cropland. The vast majority of the state’s farmland, however, is
used to grow forage for livestock. Because of the arid conditions and sparse
vegetation, livestock need a great deal of land on which to graze. Ranches in
Nevada are correspondingly large; the average farm size in the state is 850
hectares (2,100 acres), one of the the highest averages in the country.
Sales of livestock and livestock products
account for 68 percent of Nevada’s total agricultural income, and cattle
ranching alone provides one-third of that total. Dairy farming is another
important part of the state’s agricultural economy. Much of the remaining farm
income comes from hay, alfalfa, and other crops that are fed to livestock in
winter. Most of the ranching is done in the less arid northeastern parts of the
state: near the Humboldt Valley in Elko, Eureka, and Humboldt counties, and in
White Pine County. Almost all the livestock graze on public lands at least part
of the year. In parts of southern Nevada, much of the land is too dry for
grazing.
There are a few small areas where dry
farming is practiced, but a majority of Nevada’s crops are produced on irrigated
land. The irrigated croplands are concentrated mainly in the Humboldt Valley; in
the Carson River area near Fallon; in the central part of the Walker Valley; and
in the central Truckee Valley.
Natural hay and alfalfa are valuable
fodder crops. Other fodder and field crops, including wheat, barley, and oats,
are grown. In the western part of the state, dairy farming is important. Lesser
crops include potatoes and onions. There are also a number of fruit and
vegetable farms in the southern part of the state. In all these crops, however,
Nevada ranks low in terms of total U.S. production.
B | Mining |
Mining was long the most important
industry, and the state was world-famous for its rich gold and silver output. In
the 1960s gold mining was revived, and in the 1990s Nevada was the nation’s
leading producer of gold, the state’s chief mineral, and silver. In 1997 the
state supplied 68 percent of the nation’s gold and 42 percent of its silver. In
the same year Nevada provided eight percent of the nation’s total nonfuel
mineral production value, ranking second among the states behind only
Arizona.
In 1859 the Comstock Lode was discovered
at a site near Virginia City, and this vein of ore, which yielded both gold and
silver, gave its name to the booming Comstock Era of the next 20 years. The
mineral wealth of this area was vast enough to lead to Nevada’s admission to the
Union as a state in 1864, despite its small population. So sizable was the
Comstock boom that the Lake Tahoe basin was virtually stripped of trees, which
went to make mine support timbers, charcoal, and houses. Production from the
Comstock Lode declined in the latter part of the l9th century, because of
falling silver prices and the exhaustion of the finest-grade ore. Silver, lead,
and zinc had been found at Pioche, and lead and silver were discovered at Eureka
at the time Nevada was admitted to the Union. Subsequently other mineral
discoveries were made in Nevada. Silver mines were opened at Tonopah, and gold
mines at Goldfield and Rhyolite after 1900. Some of the old mines in the
vicinity of Virginia City still produce gold and silver because of modern, more
efficient refining techniques.
In the late 1970s, important deposits of
disseminated, microscopically-fine gold were discovered near Elko. These
deposits, known as the Carlin Trend, are the largest source of gold found in the
United States since California’s Gold Rush in the late 1840s. Six Nevada
counties are heavily involved in its production, which is possible primarily
through a technological process known as heap-leaching. For most of the 20th
century copper was the most important mineral in Nevada’s economy, accounting
for as much as one-third of total national output. However, falling copper
prices forced several large mines to close in the late 1970s.
In 1975, with the opening of the
McDermitt mine in Humboldt County, Nevada became the nation’s leading producer
of mercury. In tungsten output, Nevada ranks third among the states. Tungsten is
mined near Winnemucca and Tempiute. Low-grade iron ore, found especially in the
western counties, is also mined. Lithium and magnesite are also extracted.
Nevada leads the nation in the production
of barite, which is used as a pigment, and is second in the mining of diatomite,
a chalky stone formed from the fossilized skeletons of diatoms and often used as
an abrasive or as a material for filtering water. Other nonmetals produced
include clays, sand and gravel, cement, gypsum, stone, lime, perlite, salt,
fluorspar, and gemstones. Small amounts of petroleum are also produced.
C | Manufacturing |
Manufacturing is heavily concentrated
around the Las Vegas area and in the Reno-Sparks area. The most important
industries are those engaged in printing and publishing; firms making products
for the construction industry, such as cement; food processing, particularly the
makers of candy and frozen desserts; manufacturers of plastic items; the makers
of industrial machinery, such as machines for service industries and
refrigeration units; and firms making instruments. Although manufacturing
employment grew significantly during the 1990s, the sector still provides a
relatively small portion of Nevada’s gross product.
D | Electricity |
Of the electricity generated in 2005 in
Nevada 93 percent was produced by steam-driven power plants burning fossil
fuels, mainly coal or natural gas. The rest was produced in hydroelectric power
plants. The state’s southern portion is supplied by power plants at Hoover and
Davis dams on the Colorado River, and the Reno area receives electricity chiefly
from nearby power plants and other plants in California.
E | Nuclear Research |
An important boost to Nevada’s economy
came from the research and testing operations conducted originally by the United
States Atomic Energy Commission and then by the United States Department of
Energy. On its Nevada Test Site, northwest of Las Vegas, experiments were
conducted in the detonation of nuclear weapons, detonation of conventional high
explosives, and operation of nuclear rocket-propulsion systems. These tests
ceased in the late 1980s, but the effects of accidental irradiation from escaped
gases and above-ground test detonations have developed in populations east of
the test site. Only in the 1990s did the government begin to acknowledge the
effects on the so-called “down-winders.” Yucca Mountain in Nevada is also a
candidate for a storage site for nuclear waste and spent nuclear fuel from
around the nation, although the proposal has met opposition from many Nevada
residents. The Department of Energy also operates the Tonopah Test Range, at
which smaller weapons are tested. Nellis Air Force Base and a secret Air Force
test facility sometimes known as Area 51 are also located in Nevada.
F | Tourist Industry |
Tourism is the state’s most important
economic activity, generating $20 billion each year in revenue for Nevada’s
economy. Major tourist attractions are legalized casino gambling and many
nightclubs, which are centered in the resort areas of Las Vegas, Reno, and Lake
Tahoe. The Lake Tahoe region also has a number of popular ski resorts.
G | Transportation |
Two historic routes of travel across
Nevada are still followed by modern interstate highways and railroads. One of
these routes was the old California Trail from Salt Lake City to San Francisco,
which extended down the Humboldt River and up the Truckee River into the Sierra
Nevada. The second route, the Mormon Trail, extended from Salt Lake City to Los
Angeles, crossing southern Nevada through what is now Las Vegas.
In 2005 Nevada had 55,722 km (34,624 mi)
of highways, including 904 km (562 mi) of the federal interstate highway system.
U.S. Highway 50, which follows the route of the Pony Express of the 1860s, has
been called “The Loneliest Road in America” because of its passage through some
of the state’s most unpopulated landscapes.
Nevada’s large distances make air
transportation attractive, and the state had 5 airports in 2007. McCarran
International Airport, in Las Vegas, was the ninth busiest in the nation in
1996, serving 14 million passengers. The airport in Reno was also busy by
national standards.
The state has 1,934 km (1,202 mi) of
railroads. Nonmetallic minerals accounted for 42 percent of the tonnage of
products originating in the state and shipped by rail.
H | Trade |
Reno is a trade center for northwestern
Nevada and a part of northeastern California. Las Vegas is the major southern
center. Smaller centers in the state are Ely and Elko. The commerce of all
Nevada, however, is closely tied in with the major population and trade centers
of California.
IV | THE PEOPLE OF NEVADA |
According to the national census, Nevada had
1,998,257 residents in 2000, making it the 35th most populous state. In 2006 its
population density was 9 persons per sq km (23 per sq mi).
A | Population Patterns |
Nevada has for many years been the fastest
growing state in the country. Starting with a population of only 160,083 in
1950, it increased by 78.2 percent during the 1950s, by 71.3 percent during the
1960s, by 63.8 percent during the 1970s, by 50.1 percent during the 1980s, and
66.3 percent during the 1990s.
Population distribution is very uneven.
In 2000 some 92 percent of Nevadans were classified as inhabitants of urban
areas. Most of the urban population was concentrated in the Las Vegas and Reno
areas. In 1990, three-quarters of Nevada residents were born in another state or
country, the highest proportion by far in the United States.
Whites comprised the largest share of the
population, 75.2 percent, in 2000, while blacks were 6.8 percent of the people,
Asians 4.5 percent, Native Americans 1.3 percent, Native Hawaiians and other
Pacific Islanders 0.4 percent, and those of mixed heritage or not reporting race
11.8 percent. Hispanics, who may be of any race, were 19.7 percent of the
people. Many Native Americans live on reservations, which are scattered widely
over the state. Some Native Americans own individually allotted grazing
lands.
B | Principal Cities |
Las Vegas and Reno were originally minor
stops on the historic routes to California, but both grew rapidly in the last
half of the 20th century. Gambling and resort activity, stimulated by the
growing population of southern California, by rapid transportation, and by the
development of air conditioning, have given both places a cosmopolitan
appearance. Las Vegas has a downtown gambling area and a newer development of
luxurious hotel-casinos on Las Vegas Boulevard.
The Las Vegas metropolitan area, which
includes a portion of Arizona, had a population of 1,777,539 in 2006. The city
of Las Vegas had 552,539 in 2006. Other cities in the Las Vegas metropolitan
area include Henderson (240,614), North Las Vegas (197,567), and Boulder City
(15,177).
The Reno metropolitan area had 400,560
residents in 2006. Its principal cities were Reno (210,255 in 2006) and Sparks
(83,959).
Carson City (56,062) is the state
capital. Other cities include Elko, the hub of the northeastern cattle-ranching
area, Winnemucca, a transportation crossroads, and Ely, the chief city of the
copper-mining region. Many old mining towns have lost most of their
population.
C | Religion |
The Roman Catholic church is the largest
religious group in Nevada, claiming nearly one-quarter of those attending a
church. The largest Protestant denominations are the Baptists and the
Methodists.
V | EDUCATION AND CULTURAL INSTITUTIONS |
A | Education |
Nevada has been confronted with unusual
problems in providing education for its widely scattered population. The public
school system is directed by the state department of education, which is headed
by a superintendent of public instruction. Attendance is compulsory for children
from the ages of 7 to 17. Private schools enroll 4 percent of the state’s
children.
In the 2002–2003 school year Nevada spent
$8,110 on each student’s education, compared to a national average of $9,299.
There were 19 students for every teacher (the national average was 15.9
students). Of those older than 25 years of age in 2006, 83.9 percent had a high
school diploma, while the nation as a whole averaged 84.1 percent.
A1 | Higher Education |
Nevada has 7 public and 13 private
institutions of higher education. Among these are the University of Nevada, with
campuses in Reno and Las Vegas (see Nevada, Las Vegas, University of;
Nevada, Reno, University of); Great Basin College in Elko; and Sierra Nevada
College in Incline Village. The University of Nevada is a land-grant college,
originally established at Elko. Its Mackay School of Mines is internationally
known for its programs in geological, geophysical, and hydrologic sciences. The
Desert Research Institute, with Nevada campuses in Reno and Las Vegas, is a
world-renowned research institution affiliated with the university system.
See also Nevada, University and Community College System of.
B | Libraries and Museums |
Most Nevada libraries are small, and there
are just 22 systems in the state. Each year the libraries circulate an average
of 5.5 books for every resident. The State Library and Archives in Carson City
provides reference and research services to the state government, the state
libraries, and citizens. It collects state and federal publications, historical
publications dealing with Nevada and the West, and statistical publications. The
Nevada Historical Society and the libraries of the University of Nevada,
including the Mackay School of Mines DeLaMare Library, are in Reno. Museums
operated in conjunction with these libraries display objects and materials of
historical or geological interest. The old United States Mint in Carson City has
been converted into the Nevada State Museum. The tunnels in its basement show a
mine in replica. The National Automobile Museum in Reno includes more than 200
historic vehicles. The Fleischmann Planetarium is also in Reno. Las Vegas has a
natural history museum and the Lied Discovery Children’s Museum.
C | Communications |
The first newspaper printed in Nevada was
the Territorial Enterprise, which was founded by Alfred James and W. L.
Jernegan in 1858 and began publication at Genoa. Shortly thereafter, the paper
was moved to Carson City, and later to Virginia City. American author Mark Twain
was a reporter and editor of this paper in the 1860’s, and his book Roughing
It (1872) describes his experiences in Nevada. Other literary figures who
wrote for the paper were Bret Harte and William Wright, under the pseudonym Dan
DeQuille. In 2002 Nevada had 6 daily newspapers. Influential dailies included
the Las Vegas Review-Journal, the Las Vegas Sun, and the
Reno Gazette-Journal.
The state’s first radio station, KOH in
Reno, was licensed in 1928. KOLO-TV in Reno and KLAS-TV in Las Vegas, Nevada’s
first television stations, began operation in 1953. In 2002 Nevada had 18 AM and
27 FM radio stations and 13 television stations.
VI | RECREATION AND PLACES OF INTEREST |
Bright neon lights lead the way to Nevada’s
gambling and entertainment resorts, Las Vegas and Reno. Both cities have
numerous luxury high-rise hotels and glittering gambling casinos. In addition,
Nevada has many historic and scenic attractions. Scores of ghost towns stand as
reminders of the past. Nevada’s deserts contain spectacular scenery and much of
scientific interest, such as the fossils and multicolored canyons. Recreation in
Nevada is largely associated with its mountains, rivers, and lakes, where
opportunities for seasonal sports are numerous. Deer hunting and trout fishing
are popular, as is skiing, particularly at the Slide Mountain-Mount Rose area
and Charleston Peak. Facilities for water sports and other activities have been
well developed at Lake Tahoe and Lake Mead. Lake Tahoe, perhaps Nevada’s best
known scenic attraction, is also a popular winter sport area.
A | National Parks and Forests |
The federal government administers two
national parks, two national forests, and a national recreation area, as well as
wildlife and game refuges.
Great Basin National Park, in eastern
Nevada, contains 31,234 hectares (77,180 acres) of rugged mountains, sagebrush
deserts, and limestone caves. The former Lehman Caves National Monument has been
incorporated into the park. Nevada shares Death Valley National Park with
California. Lake Mead National Recreation Area, in the southeastern part of the
state, includes Mead and Mohave lakes and Hoover Dam and covers parts of both
Nevada and Arizona. Red Rock Canyon National Conservation Area, located west of
Las Vegas, features multicolored formations of the Red Rock escarpment, the Le
Madre Mountains, and the Calico Hills.
Humboldt National Forest, the only
national forest entirely within Nevada, encompasses more than 1 million hectares
(2.5 million acres). This forest contains six wilderness areas, including the
26,000-hectare (65,000-acre) Jarbidge Wilderness, which contains rugged,
glaciated terrain. Other wilderness areas are Mount Moriah, Currant Mountains,
Quinn Canyon, Santa Rosa-Paradise Peak, East Humboldt, and Ruby Mountains. In
the forest, Native American pictographs (drawings on boulders or bedrock) and
stone tools are uncovered at archaeological sites in caves where ancient peoples
dwelled. In addition there are many caves of interest to spelunkers and
scientists. The mountainous Toiyabe National Forest, in central Nevada, is the
largest national forest outside of Alaska. Part of the forest is in
California.
B | State Parks |
The state maintains 23 parks and
recreation areas. It operates beach facilities at Sand Harbor Beach at Lake
Tahoe. Two of the monuments maintained by the state are of historical interest:
Mormon Station State Historic Park, located in Genoa, the earliest settlement in
the state, and nearby, the ruins of an Army post, Fort Churchill State
Historical Park, built in 1860. At Ward Charcoal Ovens, near Ely, the state
preserves the beehive-shaped ovens that once produced charcoal used for smelting
ores. Berlin-Ichthyosaur State Park near Gabbs has fossils of ancient fishlike
reptiles. The striking desert scenery in the southeastern part of the state is
featured at Valley of Fire, Cathedral Gorge, and Beaver Dam state parks, and at
Walker Lake State Recreation Area.
C | Other Places to Visit |
Other places of interest include Pyramid
Lake, named for the strangely shaped island within it, and the active geysers
and hot springs near Beowawe. Faults, or cracks in the earth’s surface, can be
seen near Fallon. They resulted from an earthquake in 1954. Lunar Crater, a
large basin near Lockes, was formed by the collapse of a mountain peak in
ancient times. Other well-known attractions in Nevada are its ghost towns.
Virginia City, founded when the Comstock Lode was discovered, boasted a
population of 20,000 at its peak in the 1870s but now has only about 900 people.
The nearby towns of Gold Hill and Silver City have also languished. The
Berlin-Ichthyosaur State Park also features a ghost town. There are many other
such places scattered throughout the state.
D | Annual Events |
The history of Nevada is highlighted by
many local festivals, such as the Virginia City International Camel Races, in
September, which includes a parade with camels, ostriches, and water buffalo.
Las Vegas revives the spirit of the Old West with rodeos, costumes, and pageants
during Heldorado Days and Rodeo in May. Frontier traditions are also upheld
during Basque festivals in Reno, in August, and Elko, in July; the All Indian
Rodeo in Fallon; and at many fairs and rodeos elsewhere. Reno hosts the
livestock events and popular midway of the Nevada State Fair in August. Ely also
hosts the Nevada Rally International motorcycle race in August. Sky diving and
other stunts are performed at the National Air Races in Reno in September. Among
the major cultural festivals, the Cowboy Poetry Gathering, which convenes each
January at Elko, regularly draws thousands of poets and poetry admirers.
VII | GOVERNMENT |
Nevada is governed under its original
constitution adopted in 1864, as amended. An amendment to the constitution may
be proposed by a constitutional convention, by the legislature, or by
initiative. In the latter two cases, the amendment must be approved by a
majority of the people voting on the issue in a general election in order to be
ratified.
A | Executive |
The executive branch is headed by the
governor and lieutenant governor, who are elected for four-year terms, as are
also the secretary of state, attorney general, controller, and treasurer. There
are about 20 other elected officials.
B | Legislative |
The legislature consists of an Assembly
and a Senate. There are 21 senators, elected for four years, and 42 assembly
members, elected for two years. Regular sessions of the legislature convene in
January of odd-numbered years. The governor has the power to call the
legislature into special session. The governor may not serve more than two
consecutive terms.
C | Judicial |
The judiciary is headed by a supreme
court composed of a chief justice and four associate justices, who are elected
for six years. In addition, there are district judges, elected for six-year
terms, and a number of justices of the peace, also elected for four-year terms.
There are municipal courts in some cities. All judges in Nevada are elected on a
nonpartisan basis.
D | Local Government |
In Nevada the 16 counties are important
instruments of local government. Each is administered by a small board of
commissioners. Unincorporated cities and towns are governed by the county
officials. Most of the state’s incorporated cities and towns have the
mayor-council form of municipal government.
E | National Representation |
In addition to its two U.S. Senators,
Nevada elects three members to the House of Representatives, giving the state a
total of five electoral votes.
VIII | HISTORY |
A | Original Nevadans |
The first peoples in Nevada probably
arrived about 12,000 years ago. Dart points made of stone, called Clovis points,
have been found in the state that are at least 10,000 years old. Early
inhabitants lived in rock shelters or caves, and gathered most of their food.
People who lived in Lovelock Cave near Lake Lahontan about 3,000 years ago
hunted animals with darts rather than bows and arrows. Archaeologists have even
found decoy ducks that were used to attract birds.
About 300 bc people of the Anasazi culture
appeared, living in pit houses around the Muddy and Virgin rivers. The Anasazi
built their houses with adobe and rocks, mastered pottery and basketry, and may
have mined salt. Between about ad
700 and 1100 the Anasazi began raising corn, beans, and squash, and also
developed irrigation. Before the migrating Paiutes pushed them out of Nevada,
the Anasazi had domesticated dogs and begun growing cotton.
When the first European entered what is
now Nevada, it was peopled chiefly by three native groups: the Paiute, the
Shoshone, and the Washoe. Of these, the Northern Paiute were perhaps the best
known. Their home territory included most of western Nevada, particularly the
area from Pyramid Lake to Walker Lake. The Shoshone ranged mainly along the
Humboldt River east of present-day Winnemucca. The Washoe lived in the Carson
and Washoe valleys, the Truckee Meadows, and around Lake Tahoe. The Southern
Paiute lived in the southeast.
The Great Basin environment forced all
native peoples in Nevada to live a nomadic existence as hunter-gatherers. The
continuous search for food was the dominant aspect of life in this harsh land,
and the native inhabitants of Nevada demonstrated remarkable survival skills.
While their material culture was limited, these Native Americans, particularly
the Washoe, are known for their excellent basketry. One Washoe woman, called
Datsolalee, achieved wide recognition for the intricate designs on the baskets
she wove in the late 19th and early 20th centuries.
B | Arrival of Europeans |
The Spanish founded no settlements in
Nevada as they had in other parts of what became the southwest United States. In
1776 Father Francisco Atanasio Dominguez and Father Silvestre Velez de Escalante
attempted to find a route from Santa Fe (in present-day New Mexico) to
California and may have entered eastern Nevada. They were convinced that a river
they called the San Buenaventura must flow from the Rocky Mountains across
Nevada through the Sierra Nevada mountain range to the Pacific Ocean, but they
were unable to find it. That same year Father Francisco Garces tried to find a
route from the upper Sonora settlements in Mexico to California. During his
search he may have come through the Las Vegas meadows in southern Nevada.
C | Exploration |
The territory that is now Nevada came
under Mexican control when Mexico won its freedom from Spain in 1821.
Exploration of Nevada began with two fur trappers, Peter Skene Ogden of the
Hudson’s Bay Company of Great Britain and Jedediah Smith of the Rocky Mountain
Fur Company, who were followed by others. Ogden and Smith entered at opposite
ends of Nevada, seeking new beaver ponds and the elusive river, the San
Buenaventura.
C1 | Jedediah Smith |
On his way overland to California,
Smith entered Nevada in August 1826 (near present-day Bunkerville) and his party
arrived at San Gabriel Mission in California in November. Mexican authorities
ordered Smith to leave immediately by the same route. Instead, he turned north,
and in 1827 crossed the Sierra, accompanied by two of his men, and entered the
central part of Nevada, following a route from Tonopah to Ely. Smith thereby
became the first white man to cross Nevada, the first to be aware of the extent
of what came to be called the Great Basin, and the first to trade with and
report on the native peoples of the area. He, too, failed to discover the San
Buenaventura River.
C2 | Peter Skene Ogden |
Ogden probably preceded Smith into
Nevada, going a short distance into the northeastern corner of the territory in
the spring of 1826. Ogden’s important expeditions, however, were in 1828, 1829,
and 1830. He entered Nevada in November 1828 near the present town of Denio and
proceeded south. He discovered a river, which he named the Unknown (the
present-day Humboldt) River. The party did some trapping as it proceeded west,
then it turned east along the river to buffalo country near present-day Ogden’s
Hole in Utah. In the spring of 1829, Ogden retraced his route into Nevada, this
time following the Unknown River until he reached its sink, the point where the
river, having no outlet toward the ocean, pools into swampy flats and
evaporates. He then turned north, leaving Nevada at present-day McDermitt.
Returning to Nevada in the fall of
1829, Ogden again traveled to the Humboldt Sink, but then turned southward to
Walker Lake and continued southeast into California. Ogden is generally credited
with discovering the Humboldt River, and he was the first white man to follow it
from its source to its sink. Ogden concluded that the San Buenaventura River did
not exist.
C3 | Joseph Walker |
Trapper Joseph R. Walker, attached to
an expedition headed by U.S. Army Captain Benjamin Bonneville, led about 40 men
to explore the Great Salt Lake. Whether he was ordered to proceed to the Pacific
Ocean remains uncertain, but in August 1833 Walker and his men went west to
California by way of the Unknown River. The trip included the first battle
between native Nevadans and whites along the Unknown River. On the return
journey in 1834 the Walker party left the Unknown near the site of present-day
Wells. Moving northeast from there, Walker blazed a trail that later became a
route for settlers from Fort Hall to the Unknown River.
C4 | Bidwell Trail |
In 1841 an extraordinary band of
emigrants passed through the entire Great Basin region. A young teacher, John
Bidwell, helped to organize the Western Emigration Society in 1840 to publicize
a journey overland to California. Of the 500 people who originally pledged to
leave the following spring, only 69 appeared when the time for departure
arrived. Under the leadership of Captain John Bartleson, and with Bidwell as
secretary and historian, the party left Westport (now part of Kansas City),
Missouri, in May 1841.
The group was able to travel to Soda
Springs, Idaho, with Father Pierre De Smet’s missionary party, which was guided
by the experienced Thomas (“Broken Hand”) Fitzpatrick. At Soda Springs the party
split up. Thirty-two of the original Bidwell-Bartleson party continued on to
Oregon with the De Smet party, while the others turned south to the Great Salt
Lake and then directly west to cross Nevada, including the Sierra Nevada. They
arrived at the home of John Marsh at the foot of Mount Diablo in California in
November 1842. Despite the group’s ignorance of the route they followed and
their complete lack of experience, they all arrived in California, although
without their wagons and animals.
C5 | John Charles Frémont |
The first thorough exploration of the
Great Basin was carried out by an explorer and future Republican candidate for
president of the United States, John Charles Frémont. Frémont led three
expeditions into the area, which were at least partly inspired by the growing
idea of Manifest Destiny, the belief that the United States was destined to
occupy all the lands between the Atlantic and Pacific oceans.
The first Frémont expedition into
Nevada was made in 1843 and 1844. The party entered the northwestern corner of
the state and proceeded south to the large desert lake that Frémont named
Pyramid after an island in the middle of it. It then continued south and then
west to cross the Sierra near Carson Pass. The party arrived at Sutter’s Fort
(present-day Sacramento, California) in March 1844. In his report and on his
excellent maps, Frémont called this land the Great Basin.
Frémont again explored the Great
Basin in 1845. This time he entered Nevada from the east near Pilot Peak and
proceeded southwest, splitting the party twice, first in the Ruby Mountains and
again at Walker Lake. On the way Frémont, seeing the Unknown River from a
distance, named it after the prominent German geographer and scientist Alexander
von Humboldt. The information gathered on these two journeys was widely
circulated and greatly helped settlers crossing the Great Basin on their way to
California. The information also helped the Mormons in planning their migration
to the Salt Lake Valley in 1847.
D | Emigrant Trails |
The hope of a bright future in
California lured settlers west in the 1840s. The Bidwell-Bartleson group was
followed in 1844 by the Stevens-Murphy party, which blazed a trail over Truckee
River pass. In 1846 the Donner party tried to use this route but became stranded
by heavy snows. Forty of its 87 members died of starvation and cold, and the
survivors were reduced to eating the dead bodies to remain alive. Emigrant
travel across the northern Great Basin slowed after the tragedy.
However, the end of the Mexican War and
the discovery of gold in California, both in 1848, spurred further emigration,
and by 1849 the Humboldt River had become an important link in the trail west to
California. Temporary way stations grew up along the emigrant trails to sell
supplies to the travelers. Mormon Station (present-day Genoa), a trading post
built in 1850 by Mormon traders from Salt Lake City, became Nevada’s first
permanent settlement. Although they abandoned the unfinished outpost in 1850,
John Reese purchased the site in 1851 and built a store that became the center
of Mormon Station. Other Mormons came to the region to farm and a few settlers
on their way to California decided to stay, increasing the size of the
settlement. By the end of 1851, about 100 settlers were living in Nevada’s
western river valleys.
E | Territory of Nevada |
The United States acquired Nevada, as
well as California, Arizona, Utah, and parts of New Mexico, Colorado, and
Wyoming, from Mexico under the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo in 1848. Two years
later, the Congress of the United States created the Territory of Utah, which
included much of Nevada, or Western Utah, as it was then called. The southern
region of modern Nevada was included in the New Mexico Territory. Mormon leader
Brigham Young was named governor of the territory, but his government was
located in Salt Lake City and could not assert authority in Western Utah.
Settlers there wanted to establish law and order and escape Mormon rule by
joining California. To prevent this, Young created Carson County in 1854, which
included most of Western Utah, and sent Orson Hyde to organize the county
government. Hyde arrived at Mormon Station in June 1856 and made it the county
seat. The establishment of Franktown in Washoe Valley and a Mormon mission in
Las Vegas far to the south extended Mormon control in the area. Two years later,
however, Young summoned all Mormons back to Salt Lake City to help repel a
federal army sent to punish the Mormons there for allegedly ignoring the orders
of federal judges. Mormon influence in Western Utah ended.
The settlers who remained petitioned
Congress unsuccessfully for their own territorial government in 1857 and again
in 1859. Representatives were sent to each session of Congress to plead the
cause. On March 2, 1861, outgoing President James Buchanan signed a bill
creating the Territory of Nevada. An important reason for congressional approval
was the newly discovered Comstock Lode, a rich source of gold and silver that
was first tapped in 1859.
F | Struggle for Statehood |
James W. Nye, appointed territorial
governor by Buchanan’s successor, Abraham Lincoln, arrived in Nevada early in
July 1861. He organized the new territory and called an election in which
members of the territorial legislature and a delegate to Congress were chosen. A
referendum showed overwhelming support for statehood, and a constitutional
convention met in 1863 in Carson City, although without congressional approval,
and drafted a constitution.
The contest over ratification of the
new state constitution was bitter. To vote “yes” meant the automatic approval of
a slate of candidates for state offices, as well as a property tax on mines.
Opponents denounced the proconstitution candidates as being too friendly to
large mining interests. They also argued that powerful San Francisco mining
corporations, which owned many Nevada mines, wanted an elected judiciary instead
of the appointed territory judiciary because they believed elected judges would
be easier to manipulate. A territorial judge had recently ruled against a large
mining corporation in an important claims case. A prominent mining lawyer,
William M. Stewart, who was associated with San Francisco mining interests, led
the fight for the constitution, but small mine owners and workers were largely
against it. In January 1864 voters rejected the constitution, and consequently
statehood, because they believed it would largely benefit San Francisco mine
owners. A severe depression then gripped the Comstock when the San Francisco
corporations withdrew their investments.
Congress and the Lincoln
administration, however, saw Nevada statehood as additional support for the 13th
Amendment to the United States Constitution (which outlawed slavery) and for
Lincoln’s upcoming reelection. The U.S. Congress quickly passed the Nevada
Enabling Act in March 1864 and by summer a new constitutional convention was
convened.
The second constitutional convention
met in the summer of 1864 with J. Neely Johnson as its president. The 1864
constitution was largely the same as the earlier one, with one major exception:
Mine proceeds, not property, were to be taxed. A large majority ratified this
constitution and the document was telegraphed to President Lincoln, who signed
it. Nevada became the 36th state on October 31, 1864.
Republicans dominated the first state
election, installing Henry G. Blasdel as governor. The legislature, meeting at
Carson City in December 1864, selected two other Republicans as U.S. senators,
the mining lawyer Stewart and the former territorial governor, Nye.
When Nevada joined the Union, it was
smaller than it is today. The state’s eastern boundary had been extended east in
1862. It was extended again in 1866; in 1867 Nevada obtained its southern tip
from the Arizona Territory.
G | Mining Boom |
G1 | The Comstock Lode |
The history of Nevada from 1860 to
1910 is largely a story of two mining booms separated by a 20-year depression
from 1880 to 1900. The Comstock Lode began the first boom. Peter O’Riley and
Patrick McLaughlin in 1859 discovered silver and gold on Sun Mountain (later
named Mount Davidson), starting a rush to the so-called Washoe Diggings. Within
a short time thousands of people arrived in the area. Immigrants composed a
large portion of those who came to Nevada: Chinese immigrants helped build the
Central Pacific Railroad across Nevada in the late 1860s; Italians and Swiss
worked in smelters; and Irishmen worked deep in the mines. French-Canadians also
lumbered the areas around Lake Tahoe, Germans farmed the Carson Valley, and
later Basques and Scots tended sheep. Most of those working in the mining
business were living in three new towns: Virginia City, Gold Hill, and Silver
City. People lived in all types of buildings, and their diggings littered the
landscape for miles around. Virginia City, especially, was a combination of
industrial city and frontier town, with mine and mill buildings, foundries, and
railroad yards alongside gambling houses, saloons, and dance halls.
The mineral wealth from the Comstock
Lode financed hotels, foundries, banks, the Central Pacific Railroad, the
mansions of San Francisco, and the trans-Atlantic cable; it was also responsible
for some of the great American family fortunes. By 1877 production was
decreasing, and by 1880 most of the Comstock ore had been mined. Until the next
mining boom began in 1900, Nevada’s economy rested primarily on the other
industries that had appeared. Raising livestock and maintaining the railroad
were especially important in this period.
G2 | Nevada Politics and Silver |
The economic depression that followed
the Comstock’s decline was blamed on the Coinage Act of 1873, which ended the
minting of silver dollars. Due partly to this act the price of silver dropped
dramatically. Proponents of silver money called the act the “Crime of ‘73,” and
campaigned to restore bimetallism, the coining of gold and silver dollars. Some
sought the unlimited coining of silver, called free silver. Between 1892 and
1894 free silver was the dominant issue in Nevada politics. Although the
government slowly began coining silver dollars again in 1878, the gold dollar
remained the monetary standard of value in the United States.
The decline in Nevada’s mining
industry caused the state’s population to decrease. This in turn undermined
Nevada’s cattle-raising industry in the 1880s because it reduced Nevada’s market
for beef. Many of the ranchers who had survived were ruined by the hard winters
in the late 1880s.
By 1900 the state had a population of
only 42,335. National newspapers and magazines began to ridicule the lack of
population in Nevada. One report suggested that Nevada should be deprived of
statehood because it was a “rotten borough,” an area with representation in
Congress but virtually no population.
G3 | Second Mining Boom |
The state’s economic fortunes turned
around early in the 20th century. In the spring of 1900 Jim Butler discovered
rich silver ore at Tonopah, in southwestern Nevada. Again prospectors spread out
and found silver at other places, including Goldfield in 1902 and Rhyolite in
1904. The 1900 revival also included the exploitation of the Ruth mines, an
extensive body of low-grade copper ore in eastern Nevada, in White Pine County.
In 1902 investors from New York built a mill and smelter for copper at McGill
and a railroad north to the Southern Pacific transcontinental line.
H | Native Americans in the 19th Century |
Tensions between whites and native
peoples in Nevada had begun with the early fur trading expeditions of the 1820s
and 1830s. Settlers traveling to California disrupted the nomadic habits of the
native peoples and exhausted food resources along the Humboldt River route.
Later, miners’ demands for fuel to process ore destroyed many of the piñon pines
from which native inhabitants gathered pine nuts for their winter food
supply.
Clashes between Native Americans and
whites occurred sporadically until the mining rush to Virginia City sparked the
Pyramid Lake War in 1860. The U.S. government had created the Pyramid Lake
Reservation in 1859 to provide Native Americans with land away from white
settlers. The next year local native inhabitants killed two white prospectors
after they had kidnapped two young native women. When news about the killing of
the whites reached towns around the Comstock Lode, a volunteer army formed and
set off to take revenge. Paiutes on and near the Pyramid Lake Reservation had
not been involved in the original attack, but they had determined to defend
their land against the constant encroachment of whites.
When the disorganized army of whites
reached Pyramid Lake, the Paiutes attacked, killing 76 men and wounding most of
those who escaped. United States cavalry troops from California were called and
exacted revenge in a second battle at Pyramid Lake in which perhaps 160 Paiutes
were killed; the rest was forced to return to the Pyramid Lake Reservation. Some
chose to live on the margins of white society providing ranch, farm, and
domestic labor. Others joined groups of Paiute and Shoshone that continued to
raid farms and isolated way stations into the late 1870s.
In the late 1880s Wovoka, a Northern
Paiute, began teaching the ghost dance, which some Native Americans believed
would enable them to recover their original land, to reunite them with their
ancestors, and to make it possible for them to live in eternal peace and
prosperity. The Plains peoples, especially in the Dakotas, soon performed the
ghost dance nightly. The U.S. government tried to eliminate the dance, which
they regarded as a sign of rebellion. On December 29, 1890, U.S. soldiers killed
more than 200 Lakota (Sioux) men, women, and children at Wounded Knee, South
Dakota.
I | 20th Century |
The mining booms of the first decade of
the 20th century lifted the Nevada economy as the Comstock Lode had done
earlier. Newcomers supplied most of the labor, and the population expanded
rapidly, but the boom also brought labor disputes.
I1 | Workers and Miners |
The Goldfield mines had the biggest
labor disputes. Miners often stole pieces of ore by hiding them in clothing
designed specifically for that purpose. The practice, called
high-grading, was widespread. The Goldfield Consolidated Mining Company
tried to crack down on the practice in 1907 by ordering workers to change their
clothing in front of company inspectors at the end of each day. After workers
threatened to strike, union leaders and company officials agreed to a compromise
which decreased, but did not stop, high-grading. When the company then tried to
pay workers in scrip, or promissory notes, workers refused to work, although
there was little violence. Governor John Sparks persuaded President Theodore
Roosevelt to send federal troops to the area, and the company hired
strikebreakers to force the workers back into the mines.
I2 | Early 20th Century |
The labor disputes occurred just
after Francis G. Newlands became a U.S. senator from Nevada. Newlands saw the
future of Nevada not in mining, but in reclaiming the desert for agriculture by
using irrigation. He believed agriculture could change Nevada’s boom-and-bust
mining economy. Newlands was instrumental in passing the National Reclamation
Act of 1902, which devoted the money from public land sales in 16 states to the
construction of irrigation in desert states. Early projects were scheduled for
Nevada. During this period Nevada also banned gambling (in 1910) and tried to
limit the Reno divorce business, which had gained national and international
attention after the turn of the century after it became known that under Nevada
law many grounds existed for divorce.
After World War I had ended in 1918,
attempts to suppress what others called immorality gave way to the values of a
commercially oriented, wide-open frontier society that permitted such behavior.
Illegal gambling, legalized prostitution, easy divorces, and the sale of
alcoholic beverages in violation of the 18th Amendment to the Constitution of
the United States became features of life in Reno and the small railroad town of
Las Vegas. These businesses grew after 1931 when construction work began on
Hoover Dam. In 1931, early in the Great Depression, gambling was again made
legal and state residency required to obtain a divorce was reduced to six
weeks.
Social reform did not much interest
Nevadans in the post World War I period. The death of Newlands in 1917 dealt a
severe blow to progressive reform in the state. Leaders who had begun their
careers in mining towns dominated the state for the next 40 years, when Nevada
approved businesses (gambling and prostitution) that other states called
immoral. George Wingfield, Key Pittman, and Pat McCarran all began their careers
in these mining towns. Wingfield first emerged as the economic mogul who, along
with U.S. Senator George Nixon of Nevada and New York financier Bernard Baruch,
put together the enormously profitable Goldfield Consolidated Mining Company.
Through his control of several Nevada banks, Wingfield influenced both parties
in the state from the 1910s until 1932, when the Wingfield banking chain
collapsed. McCarran was elected to the Senate in 1932 and remained influential
in Nevada until his death in 1954. Critics have identified McCarran with the
anti-Communist crusade of U.S. Senator Joseph McCarthy of Wisconsin. McCarran
sponsored the controversial Internal Security Act of 1950, which required
members of the Communist Party or Communist-front organizations to register with
the government; allowed the internment of Communists during times of national
emergency; prohibited the employment of Communists in defense plants; and
prevented anyone who had been a member of a “totalitarian” government from
entering the United States.
The federal government played an
increasingly larger role in Nevada life after the beginning of the Great
Depression in the 1930s. The recovery programs of President Franklin Delano
Roosevelt included public projects such as the construction of the Hoover Dam.
World War II (1939-1945) brought military air bases to Reno and Las Vegas. The
Bureau of Land Management and the U.S. Forest Service managed much of the 86
percent of the state still owned by the federal government. During the Cold War
rivalry between the United States and the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics
(USSR), the U.S. Atomic Energy Commission chose a Nevada site to test nuclear
weapons in the 1950s, bringing additional jobs and prosperity to southern
Nevada.
J | Recent Developments |
After World War II, the gambling and
entertainment industries in Reno and Las Vegas expanded. The opening of the huge
Flamingo Hotel in 1947 changed the character of gambling near Las Vegas. By 1951
there were five large hotel-resort casinos operating in Clark County, just
outside of Las Vegas city jurisdiction and away from higher city taxes. During
the late 1950s and 1960s low county tax rates encouraged a thriving resort
economy based on the lure of legal gambling casinos that were open 24 hours a
day, big-name entertainers, lavish food buffets, and bargain room rates.
Although organized crime had initially funded much of the gaming industry,
Congress pressured the state to tighten gaming-license regulations in the
mid-1950s.
Since the 1960s Nevada has grown faster
than any other state in the nation; most of the growth has been concentrated in
Las Vegas. By 2000 the population was 2 million, with two-thirds of the
population in and near Las Vegas. California and Nevada formed the Tahoe
Regional Planning Agency (TRPA) to regulate population growth and property use
in the Lake Tahoe area. Water resources are critical to sustain growth in both
Las Vegas and Reno. Gold mining in eastern Nevada, near Elko, has made Nevada
among the top producers of gold in the world.
The successes of the Nevada economy and
the consequent increase in population have created environmental problems. Air
pollution has appeared in Reno and Las Vegas. Gold processing techniques that
employ cyanide leaching ponds threaten underground water supplies.
The gaming economy has also caused an
increase in social problems. Crime has increased, and people who live in a
24-hour economy serviced by minimum-wage jobs have problems with high
teenage-pregnancy rates, divorce, alcoholism, drugs, gangs, and suicide.
Despite its wide-open spaces Nevada is
one of the most urban states in the nation. The population is concentrated along
the California border, particularly in Reno and Las Vegas. In the 1990s the
resort economy of Las Vegas built several huge casinos that used ancient
Egyptian, medieval, and jungle themes to attract the public. Circus Circus
Enterprises opened the Excalibur in 1990 and the Luxor in 1993. Mirage Resorts,
Incorporated, opened the Mirage and Treasure Island resorts.
Nevada’s economy includes the large
gambling cities, ranches, and the new mining boom areas in the eastern counties.
Despite their differences, all share an antipathy to federal government control.
Since the 1950s the gaming industry has feared taxation and regulation; the
ranching community is opposed to regulations controlling grazing on
environmentally sensitive federal lands; and the mining industry fought any
revisions of the Mining Act of 1872, which allows private companies to remove
precious metals from federal lands with no charge or royalty fee. In addition,
Nevada ranchers inspired what came to be called the Sagebrush Rebellion, a
movement in several Western states during the late 1970s to regain state control
over federal lands. Although the movement was defeated in court, sympathy for
the issue of states’ rights remained strong, and in December 1993 antipathy for
federal government control in Nevada made headlines again when Nye County passed
two resolutions that declared local public lands county property. The Nye County
resolutions were only two of several county resolutions in Western states that
were passed in an attempt to accomplish what the original Sagebrush Rebellion
had failed to do: regain local control over local land currently administered by
federal government agencies. In March 1996, however, a federal judge declared
the Nye County ordinance illegal and reaffirmed federal ownership of land not
specifically claimed by Nevada when it became a state.
The gaming industry, however, has
occasionally argued that the mining industry should pay more in state taxes to
lift some of its own tax burden. Nevada gaming has consistently paid over 40
percent of the cost of state government. Its revenues have enabled the state to
spend more on education and to support two major state universities and a
community college system, but experts warn that the state’s tax base is too
narrow to support major increases in education.
The history section of this article was
contributed by William D. Rowley. The remainder of the article was contributed
by Paul F. Starrs.
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