Roughing It

By the time Twain makes his journey in Roughing It, the California Gold Rush has already ended. However, a new discovery of precious ore is about to send another wave of young adventurers westward. In 1859, the Comstock Lode was found beneath the slopes of Mount Davidson in Virginia City, Nevada. This deposit was the first significant silver ore discovery in America. To this day, Nevada ranks second only to Alaska as the greatest silver producer in the nation. The first bonanza of the Comstock Lode, the Ophir vein, would ultimately produce 70,000 tons of silver before being depleted in 1864. Five other bonanzas would follow within the first five years of the Comstock Lode’s discovery. Because the lode runs beneath the streets of Virginia City, an entire infrastructure developed at a subterranean level to support mining activities.

The news of the silver strike created another westward wave of immigrants eager to cash in. Twain arrived in Nevada in 1861 and was active in mining during the peak early years of the silver boom. It wasn’t necessary to work for a large mining operation to strike it rich. With silver ore veins branching out everywhere in the surrounding area, people in town begin staking claims to wildcat mines in their own backyards or root cellars.