BigDaddyData.Com: Nevada Carson City

Carson City (1990 census, 40,443) is the capital of Nevada. Located 23 km (14 mi) east of Lake Tahoe in the westernmost part of the state, it also served as the county seat of Ormsby County. In 1969, Ormsby County and Carson City were consolidated to form one community. It has a semiarid climate, with annual rainfall averaging 125 to 500 mm (5 to 20 in). Although the livestock industry is important, the economic mainstay is legalized gambling.

Founded in 1851 as Eagle Station, a stop for wagons and stagecoaches passing over the nearby Sierra Nevada, Carson City was renamed (1858) for the frontiersman Kit Carson. The discovery (1859) of silver (known as the Comstock Lode) in the nearby Virginia City area stimulated the development of Carson City. It was named the territorial capital in 1861 and the state capital in 1864. Because of its proximity to the silver mines, the city became the site of a U.S. mint (1870-93) that now serves as the Nevada State Museum.