Virginia City Museums
Comstock History Center
The history center and museum displays one of the Virginia & Truckee Railroad's original steam locomotives, #18 Dayton. A fun experience for the entire family. The center houses the Comstock Historical District Commission and the Comstock Cemetery Foundation.
Admission:
Free
Dates and hours of operation:
10:00 am - 5:00 pm Thursday-Sunday
Season: May - October
Location:
On the corner of E and Union Streets
Contact:
Phone: 775-847-0281
Fourth Ward School Cultural Center
The Fourth Ward School is the last one of its kind still standing in the United States. The 1876 Second Empire, four-storied state-of-the-art wooden school preserves the real story of life in a booming Old West mining town. Built to accommodate more than 1,000 students, the sixteen classrooms retain original patina, desks, maps and books.
The museum and community cultural center feature events and exhibits on alumni, local
history, letter press printing and mining.
Admission:
Adults,. $5.00
Children (3-12), $3.00
Children under 6 free.
Events:
- Comstock Historic Preservation Weekend
- Walking and Geology Tours
- Parties of the Year – Halloween
Dates and hours of operation:
Hours: 10:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., daily
Season: Open May-October
Location:
537 S. C Street
P.O. Box 4
Virginia City, NV 89440
Contact:
Barbara Mackey
Phone: 775-847-0975
Fax: 775-847-3271
Website: www.fourthwardschool.org
LEC #1 Comstock Firemen's Museum/NV State Firemen’s Museum
Founded in 1979 by Virginia City’s volunteer Fire Department, this museum displays 19th-century firefighting equipment. There are many artifacts relating to the history of fire fighting on both the Comstock, and throughout Nevada. Liberty Engine Company No. 1 is still an operating volunteer firefighting unit.
Admission:
Donation
Dates and hours operation:
Hours: 10:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., daily
Season: Memorial Day - Labor Day.
Location:
117 S. C Street
P.O. Box 466,Virginia City, NV 89440
Contact:
Phone: 775-847-0717
Website: comstockfiremuseum.com
The Mackay Mansion
This museum was built in 1860 by George Hearst as the headquarters of the Gould & Curry Mining Company Office and later purchased by John Mackay, one of the “Silver Kings.” Between 1860 and 1950, bars of gold bullion were sold directly from the vault. Tour highlights include mining artifacts, original furnishings, Tiffany silver, and great historical anecdotes.
Dates and hours of operation:
Summer Hours: Daily10:00 am to 5:00 pm
Winter Hours: To be determined by weather/or call the visitor center after 11 a.m. for at 775-847-4386.
Location:
291 South D Street
P.O. Box 971
Virginia City, NV 89440
Contact:
Phone: 775-847-0373
Website: mackaymansion.com
Mark Twain Museum at the Territorial Enterprise
Mark Twain's desk, chair, books and most of the original furnishings and equipment of his pressroom are on display. This is the place where Mark Twain spent most of his Virginia City days writing for the Territorial Enterprise newspaper.
Admission:
Adults: $4.00
Children (ages 5-12) $3.00
Dates and hours of operation:
10:00 am - 5:00 pm
Season: Open Year Round
Location:
53 South C Street
P.O. Box 894
Virginia City, NV 89440
Contact:
Sandy and John Bouie
775-847-0525
Pipers Opera House
Built in the 1880s, Piper’s Opera House attracted famous stars from Europe and the United States and is listed by the League of Historic Theaters. One of the most significant vintage theaters on the West Coast, this stage once welcomed President Grant, Buffalo Bill, Al Jolson, and Mark Twain. Today’s guests at Piper’s Opera House can keep their eye out for the ghosts who are said to attend many of the performances. Piper’s Opera House has recently undergone extensive restoration, so please check the website for upcoming events.
Admission:
Adults, $5.00
Children, $2.00 (ages 6-12,under 5 free)
Family of four, $12.00
Dates and hours of operation:
Hours: 11:00 am – 4:00 p.m. daily during the summer
Off-hour tours are available if you call and make arrangements in advance.
Guided Tours: 11:00 a.m.--1:00 p.m. and 3:00 p.m. summer
Location:
B and Union Streets, Virginia City, NV 89440
Contact:
Phone: 775-847-0433 or toll free 888-422-1956
Website: PipersLive.com
St. Mary’s Art Center
Built in 1876, the St. Mary’s Art Center was originally established as the St. Mary Louise Hospital by the Sisters of Charity and Bishop Patrick Manogue. The 36-room hospital included five wards and 12 private rooms that could accommodate more than 70 patients. Since 1964, the 14,000-square-foot hospital has been operating continuously as an art and retreat center featuring nationally known photography, painting, sculpting and mixed media instructors. The center, located on five acres, is open year round for workshops, exhibitions and special programming. It houses two large studios, four galleries, fifteen sleeping rooms, two communal kitchens, a large sunny dining room and artists’ lounge. The center also hosts a free Open Studio Tuesday from 9:00 a.m. to whenever the creativity runs out. Ghost tours and paranormal investigations are now available by appointment. Please contact Angela or Ron at (775) 847-7142 or
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for more information.
Admission:
Donations graciously accepted.
Ghost tours start at $25 per person for 2 hours and go up, depending on package type.
Events:
- Open Studio Tuesdays
- Girls Day Out
- Brushstroke Art Adventures
- Weekend and Week long Art Classes
- Gallery Exhibitions and Artist Receptions
- Ghost Tours
- NEW! - Bed Pan Tours
Participate in locating strategically placed bed pans and gain a little knowledge about some of the patients who were treated in the old hospital back in the 1800s. Visit the old St. Mary Louise Hospital and see it in a whole new light (or darkness). Ghost Tours and Paranormal Investigations are now available by appointment only. Please contact Angela or Ron at 775847-7142 or
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for more information.
Dates and hours of operation:
Hours: 11:00 a. m. to 4:00 p.m.
Friday through Sunday
Season: May through October
Ghost tours are available year round, by appointment only. Contact Angela or Ron directly at 775-847-7142 or
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.
Location:
55 N. R Street
P.O. Box 396
Virginia City 89440
Contact:
Linda Nazemian, Executive Director
Phone: 775-847-7774
Email:
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Website: smacenter.org
Saint Mary in the Mountains Catholic Church
Virginia City is home to a number of beautiful churches reflective of the late 19th century culture. One such church is St. Mary in the Mountains Catholic Church, arguably the most prominent historical structure and institution in Virginia City. St. Mary’s in the Mountains Catholic Church, Nevada’s oldest Catholic Church, is open to welcome visitors every day. Having been preserved during and since the Great Fire of 1875, this is the “Mother of all Catholic churches in Nevada.” It was built by the 6’4” “Paddy” Manogue, who ministered to the hard-working Irish-Catholic miners for almost 20 years and then became the first Bishop of Sacramento, California. Enjoy a free tour of the museum and wine cellar, and join us for Mass (Saturday 4:00 p.m., Sunday 11:30 a.m.) in this beautiful House of God. Numerous church artifacts and photographs are on display, and St. Mary’s also has an extensive gift shop that supports the small parish and restoration project.
Admission:
Donations are greatly appreciated.
Dates and hours of operation:
Season: Year round
Hours: 7 Days a week
Daily: 10:00 am to 5:00 pm
Location:
Taylor and E Streets
Virginia City 89440
Contact:
Phone: 775-847-9099
Email:
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Silver State National Peace Officers Museum
This museum is dedicated to sharing the rich history of law enforcement nationwide. Located in the Storey County Courthouse 1876 jail, the museum boasts the Nevada Peace Officers Memorial Room, a children's interactive room and an old time law enforcement themed photo studio.
Admission:
Adults: (ages 13+) $5.00
Children (ages 0-12) Free with paid adult
Dates and hours of operation:
Season: May - October
Hours: 7 Days a week
Daily: 10:00 am to 5:00 pm
Location:
Storey County Court House, 26 South B Street
Virginia City 89440
Mailing address:
P.O. Box 17051
Reno, NV 89511
Contact:
Phone: 775-847-7800
Email:
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Website: http://www.peaceofficersmuseum.org
Storey County Courthouse
The Storey County Courthouse, built in 1876 after being destroyed in the great fire of 1875, is the state’s oldest continuously operating courthouse. Built in the Italianate style, the two-story seat of government houses a two-tier jail, courtroom and large iron-lined record vaults. The exterior facade is brick with details of ornate iron. The Victorian era courthouse boasts a Lady of Justice statue without her blindfold. The story is that the county chose to not blindfold her to express that here justice was, and continues to be, not blind.
Admission:
No admission charged, but donations are greatly appreciated.
Dates and hours of operation:
10:00 a.m.-5:00 p.m.
Monday through Friday
Season: Open year round except holidays
Contact:
Website: http://www.nps.gov/nr/travel/nevada/sto.htm
The Way It Was Museum
This museum displays the most complete collection of Comstock mining artifacts in the world as well as rare photos, lithographs and maps of the “Bonanza” period.
Admission:
Adults, $3.00
Children (11 and under), free with adult.
Dates and hours of operation:
10:00a.m. to 6:00p.m., daily
Season: Open year-round, except Christmas.
Location:
113 N. C Street
P.O. Box 95
Virginia City 89440
Contact:
Phone: 775-847-0766
Fax: 775-847-9613
Website: http://www.museumsusa.org/museums/info/13263
Western Historic Radio Museum
If radios are your passion, you must plan on visiting the Radio Museum, located in the Parish House at 109 South “F” Street. This museum is home to numerous antique and vintage radios which are displayed in chronological order with a description of the radio and its significance in radio history. You’ll also enjoy viewing a large collection of radio personality photographs including original, signed posters. The Western Historic Radio Museum features displays of antique, classic and vintage radios featuring examples of the earliest wireless spark-gap apparatus up to the "kitsch" radios of the early fifties. All displays are arranged in chronological order with detailed descriptions of each radio's history and its importance to radio technology. Included in each display are many other types of radio-related items, such as horn speakers, cone speakers and a myriad of other early radio accessories. There is also a display devoted to early vacuum tubes, broadcast microphones, Vibroplex telegraph keys, and early electrical instruments are also on display. Photographs of famous radio personalities are featured throughout the museum. For the amateur radio operator, there are displays of early ham gear from the spark-gap era to the "golden age" of ham equipment. We try to display as many radios and accessories as possible but our space available is somewhat limited. Subsequent return visits will almost certainly show some different radios or memorabilia on display as we rotate some equipment and are always adding more items as we find or create more room.
Admission:
Adults, $5:00
Children (3-12), $1.50
Dates and hours of operations:
Hours: 110:00 am - 5:00 pm., most days.
Season: Open year-round.
Location:
109 S. F Street
P.O. Box 73
Virginia City 89440
Contact:
Henry Rogers
Phone: 775-847-9047
Website: radioblvd.com
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