Virginia City, Nevada

Virginia City Historic District is a National Historic Landmark District encompassing the former mining villages of Virginia City and Gold Hill, both in Storey County, as well as Dayton and Silver City, both to the south in adjacent Lyon County, Nevada, United States. Declared a National Historic Landmark in 1961, the district is one of only six in the state of Nevada.Virginia City was the prototype for future frontier mining boom towns, with its industrialization and urbanization. It owed its success to the 1859 discovery of the Comstock Lode. The town is laid out in a grid pattern 1,500 feet below the top of Mount Davidson. Most of the buildings are two to three story brick buildings, with the first floors used for saloons and shops. Virginia City was the first silver rush town, and the first to intensely apply large-scale industrial mining methods.After a year in existence, the boomtown had 42 saloons, 42 stores, 6 restaurants, 3 hotels, and 868 dwellings to house a town residency of 2,345. At its height in 1863, the town had 15,000 residents. From its creation in 1859 to 1875, there were five widespread fires. The 1875 fire, dubbed the Great Fire of 1875, caused $12,000,000 in damages.Virginia City continues to attract over 2 million visitors per year. In 2004, the historic buildings were considered to be in a "threatened" state. An inactive mining pit may subside, causing some of the buildings to slide into the pit. The cemeteries have been, and continue to be, vandalized, while erosion threatens more damage. Continued use of the district for tourism is harming historical buildings that are still in use, while neglect of privately held unused buildings increases the damage to the historic nature of the entire district.

The International Hotel was a hotel located in Virginia City, Nevada. The hotel initially opened as a wooden one-story building in 1860. Two years later, a three-story brick addition was added to the hotel. The wooden portion was dismantled in 1863, and was used to construct a new International Hotel in Austin, Nevada, where it remained operational as of 2014. A four-story brick addition took the place of the wooden building. The International Hotel burned down in the "Great Fire of 1875". A new International Hotel began construction the following year, and opened with 160 rooms on March 31, 1877. At six stories, the hotel was the tallest building in Nevada until a fire destroyed it in December 1914. The site of the former hotel became a parking lot.

The Piper–Beebe House, located at 2 S. A St. in Virginia City, Nevada, is a historic Italianate house that is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. It was an 1876 work of Virginia City builder/architect A.F. MacKay, the only one of his works in Virginia City that survives. It was built after the "Great Fire" of 1875 that destroyed much of the city.The house was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1993. It has also been known as the Piper–Clegg House. It is also listed on the National Register as a contributing building within the National Historic Landmark Virginia City Historic District. It was deemed significant for association with its owners and for its architecture.

The Old Washoe Club (also known as simply Washoe Club) is a three-story brick structure in Virginia City, Nevada, USA, located in the Virginia City Historic District. The first story is currently occupied by commercial properties while the upper stories are unoccupied at this time. The building is an un-reinforced masonry building and, as such, has several deficiencies relative to its ability to resist seismic events. The building can be accessed through the main entrance on C Street. The Washoe Club was featured on Ghost Hunters in season 4, episode 8. The Ghost Adventures crew also investigated the club.

The Henry Piper House, in Virginia City, Nevada, United States, is a historic house that is listed on the National Register of Historic Places (NRHP). It is operated as a bed and breakfast, the B Street House Bed and Breakfast, and is the only bed and breakfast in an individually-NRHP-listed house in Virginia City. The house was built after the Great Fire of 1875, which destroyed much of Virginia City, and was completed by December. The house was renovated into a bed and breakfast during 2004–2007, and it received a Nevada state historic preservation award for its renovation in 2008. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2011.Henry moved to Virginia City in 1861 with his older brother John. The two maintained local political careers and partnered in the running of Piper's Opera House as well as the Piper's Corner Saloon on B and Union Streets. Henry served in the Nevada Assembly for one term later becoming a "box herder" at Piper's Opera House. His job was the management of the often drunk and disorderly women of the demimonde and youthful miners who attended the Opera House productions.

The King–McBride Mansion, at 26-28 S. Howard St. in Virginia City, Nevada, is a historic Italianate-style house that was built in 1876, not long after the "Great Fire" in October, 1875. Also known as King House, it was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1998.It was deemed significant for association with its builder, George King, "an important participant in the mining success" of the Comstock Lode, and also as "an excellent example of high-style Italianate architecture that was preferred by the scions of the Comstock" after the 1875 fire.: 7 It is included in the National Historic Landmark-designated Virginia City Historic District.

St. Mary's in the Mountains Catholic Church is a parish of the Roman Catholic Church located in Virginia City, Nevada, under the Diocese of Reno. Its historic church includes a museum about its history and a gift shop.

The McCarthy House in Virginia City, Nevada was built in 1875 before the Virginia City's Great Fire of October 26, 1875 but, downhill from commercial C Street, it survived the fire. It is a gable-front 1+1⁄2-story house with shiplap siding.It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1995. It is also included in the Virginia City Historic District, a National Historic Landmark.The house was occupied by T.F. McCarthy during 1875 to 1914, then vacant from 1914 to 1986.

Piper's Opera House is a historic performing arts venue in Virginia City, Storey County, Nevada in the United States. Piper's served as a training facility in 1897 for heavyweight boxing champion Gentleman Jim Corbett, in preparation for his title bout with Bob Fitzsimmons. The current structure was built by entrepreneur John Piper in 1885 to replace his 1878 opera house that had burned down. The 1878 venue, in turn, had been to replace Piper's 1863 venue which was destroyed by the 1875 Great Fire in Virginia City. Mark Twain spoke from the original Piper's stage in 1866, and again a century later in the third venue, as portrayed by Hal Holbrook in his one-man play Mark Twain Tonight! A lynch mob hung a victim from the first venue's rafters in 1871. American theatrical producer David Belasco was stage manager at the second opera house before moving to New York City. Piper's opera houses played host to Shakespearean thespians such as Edwin Booth. Musical performers Lilly Langtry, Al Jolson and John Philip Sousa once performed here. In 1940, Errol Flynn auctioned off historic Piper memorabilia from the opera house stage, during a live NBC broadcast that coincided with the premiere of Flynn's new movie Virginia City.

The Parish House, at 109 S. F St. in Virginia City, Nevada, is a well-preserved historic Italianate-style house that was built in 1876. It is included in the Virginia City Historic District. It was individually listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1993.It was deemed significant for association with persons who lived there, and for its architecture. Persons lived there served the more successful who lived "on the Comstock" and included: Goodwin Jones, an engineer for the Caledonia Mine, one of the Comstock Lode mines Robert Patterson, proprietor of the International Saloon Dr. Thomas McDonald, a physician John McGrath, a merchant on C StreetThe house was used as the parish house, i.e. rectory, of St. Mary's during 1935–1970, hence its name.

The C. J. Prescott House, at 12 Hickey St. in Virginia City, Nevada, is a historic house that was built in 1864. It is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. It is one of the oldest houses in Virginia City, one of few surviving from Nevada's pre-statehood era, and having survived the "Great Fire" of October 26, 1875.It was built by C.J. Prescott, who owned an early lumber company serving the Comstock Lode. It is a 1+1⁄2-story wood-frame house with vernacular Victorian/Italianate style, with three chimneys and redwood shiplap siding. At the time of its NRHP listing, its exterior colors were oxblood plus gold and green trim, the original colors of the house from 1864.It is included as a contributing property also in the National Historic Landmark and NRHP-listed Virginia City Historic District. The house was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1993.

The Chollar Mansion is located at 565 S. D Street, in Virginia City, western Nevada. It is a historic Victorian Italianate style house, that was built between 1862 and 1864.The residence was listed on the National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) in 1993. It was deemed significant for its association with William "Billy" Chollar, a miner whose Chollar Mine, later merged with Potosi Mine to form the Chollar-Potosi Mine, tapped part of the Comstock Lode, and yielded enormous amounts of silver ore. It is also significant for its fine Italianate architecture.