In Virginia City and its Comstock Lode, miners worked one of the richest deposits of gold and silver ever found. Many places claim that title, but the precious metals retrieved between 1859 and 1880, with an equivalent value today in the billions of dollars, played an unprecedented role in industrial history. With cutting-edge technology, Comstock engineers shaped mining throughout the world for the next 50 years. Virginia City's wealth propelled several people to Congress and others into the nation's highest society. At the same time, those who settled in the mining district built a civilized, sophisticated place. Drawing on former glories, the popular television series Bonanza perpetuated the legend, capturing international audiences with 14 seasons of programs. As one of the nation's largest historic landmarks, the Comstock continues to welcome millions of visitors.

Virginia City and the Big Bonanza (Images of America)

Arts & Photography

James, Ronald M.

James, Susan A.

Photography & Video

Arcadia Publishing

Virginia City and the Big Bonanza (Postcards of America)

History

Americas

Spent cartridges. The pieces of an original Tabasco Pepper Sauce bottle. Shards of a ceramic pot, stained red. For archaeologists each of the thousands of artifacts uncovered at a site tells a story. For noted Comstock authority Ronald M. James, it is a story resulting from decades of research and excavation at one of the largest National Historic Landmarks in America, the Nevada town that, with the discovery of the Comstock Lode, became a boomtown microcosm of the American West. Drawing on the work of hundreds of volunteers, students, and professional archaeologists, Virginia City: Secrets of a Western Past shows how every detail—from unearthed artifacts to reports of local saloons to plans for the cemetery to surviving nineteenth-century buildings—adds to our view of Virginia City when it was one of the richest places on earth. James recreates this unlikely epitome of frontier industry and cosmopolitan living, the thriving hub of corporate executives, middle-class families, miners, prostitutes, and barkeepers—and more foreign-born residents per capita than anywhere else in the country—in a spot that had begun its life a few years earlier as the mining camp of several lucky guys. An excavation of the history of Virginia City, a window on the heyday of the American frontier, James’s book is also an enlightening look at how archaeology brings the story of the past to life.

Virginia City: Secrets of a Western Past (Historical Archaeology of the American West)

Bison Books

By considering the folklore of Cornwall in a Northern European context, this book casts light on a treasury of often-ignored traditions. Folklore studies internationally have long considered Celtic material, but scholars have tended to overlook Cornwall's collections. The Folklore of Cornwall fills this gap, placing neglected stories on a par with those from other regions where Celtic languages have deep roots. The Folklore of Cornwall demonstrates that Cornwall has a distinct body of oral tradition, even when examining legends and folktales that also appear elsewhere. The way in which Cornish droll tellers achieved this unique pattern is remarkable; with the publication of this book, it becomes possible for folklorists to look to the peninsula beyond the River Tamar for insight. A very readable text with popular appeal, this book serves as an introduction to folklore studies for the novice while also offering an alternative means to consider Cornish studies for advanced scholars. The comparative analysis combined with an innovative method of The Folklore of Cornwall is not to be found in other treatments of the subject.

The Folklore of Cornwall: The Oral Tradition of a Celtic Nation

Europe

University of Exeter Press

From Storey County's High Victorian Italianate-styled courthouse to Lander County's former schoolhouse, now a Neo-classical courthouse, Temples of Justice provides an architectural history of the courthouses of Nevada. Nevada has never had a published architectural history, and Temples of Justice helps fill the gap by treating the state's built environment as a series of documents from the past. By looking at the courthouses collectively, it is possible to understand the choices and influences that have affected Nevada's communities as they seek to protect an image of themselves and their aspirations through public architecture. The courthouses are important local public facilities, and they provide an excellent opportunity to understand the history of attitudes and tastes in the state. Nevada courthouse construction falls into several periods of prosperity. Early on, the mining industry created instantaneous communities that struggled to create an image of stability and prosperity by building impressive courthouses. Lacking access to professional design, however, they often resorted to homespun approaches to architecture. Later, firmly established communities built courthouses that fit into the national mainstream. Temples of Justice clearly demonstrates the value of using buildings as documents of the past. More research is needed to gain a comprehensive understanding of Nevada through its built environment, and James's examination of its important public architecture provides a cornerstone for future research.

Temples Of Justice: County Courthouses Of Nevada (Shepperson Series in Nevada History)

University of Nevada Press

Gathering information from a variety of sources, including interviews, archaeological work, and computer analysis, a history of the Comstock Lode and Virginia City offers a fascinating look at the silver barons and at the multiethnic community that existed around them. Original. UP.

The Roar and the Silence: A History of Virginia City and the Comstock Lode (Shepperson Series in Nevada History)

Book by James, Ronald M., Harvey, Elizabeth

Nevada's Historic Buildings: A Cultural Legacy (Shepperson Series in Nevada History)

Harvey, Elizabeth

Title: Nevada's Historic Buildings( A Cultural Legacy) Binding: Paperback Author: RonaldM.James Publisher: UniversityofNevadaPress

Founded in 1859, Virginia City quickly became world famous for its extraordinary prosperity. Over the next two decades, the mines of “the Richest City on Earth” yielded millions in gold and silver. The newly wealthy built mansions and churches, opera houses and schools, with furniture, fashions, and entertainment imported from Europe and the Far East. Here young Samuel Clemens, reporting for the Territorial Enterprise in 1863, first called himself Mark Twain. At its height Virginia City was a magnet for immigrants and the world leader in technological innovations in mining. The city’s story did not end when the Comstock Lode played out. Beginning in the 1930s, bohemian artists, literati, and tourists were intrigued by this remnant of the Old West. The leader of Manhattan’s café society, Lucius Beebe, moved here and relaunched the Territorial Enterprise in 1950. Television’s most popular western from 1959 to 1973, Bonanza, located its fictional Ponderosa Ranch nearby. In the summer of 1965, a handful of Bay Area musicians, including Big Brother and the Holding Company, performed at the Red Dog Saloon and launched psychedelic rock, part of the inspiration for a defining decade of youth culture. Today it is both a National Historic Landmark District and a living community. Visitors come to enjoy its saloons and restaurants, admire its architecture, and learn from its museums and exhibits. A Short History of Virginia City will enhance their experience and will also be enjoyed by anyone interested in the history of Nevada, mining, and the Old West. • Includes an illustrated walking tour describing more than thirty buildings and sites

A Short History of Virginia City

Castle in the sky: George Whittell Jr. and the Thunderbird Lodge

Thunderbird Lodge Preservation Society

See the best price to sell, buy, or rent books by James, Ronald M.. BookScouter helps to compare book prices from 25+ online bookstores and 30+ buyback vendors with a single search.

Books by James, Ronald M.

See the best price to sell, buy, or rent books by James, Ronald M.. BookScouter helps to compare book prices from 25+ online bookstores and 30+ buyback vendors with a single search.

Virginia City and the Big Bonanza (Images of America)

Virginia City and the Big Bonanza (Postcards of America)

Virginia City: Secrets of a Western Past (Historical Archaeology of the American West)

The Folklore of Cornwall: The Oral Tradition of a Celtic Nation

Temples Of Justice: County Courthouses Of Nevada (Shepperson Series in Nevada History)

The Roar and the Silence: A History of Virginia City and the Comstock Lode (Shepperson Series in Nevada History)

Nevada's Historic Buildings: A Cultural Legacy (Shepperson Series in Nevada History)

Nevada's Historic Buildings: A Cultural Legacy (Shepperson Series in Nevada History)

A Short History of Virginia City

Castle in the sky: George Whittell Jr. and the Thunderbird Lodge