Speaker – “Wicked Virginia City”
Author and historian Peter Mires will share his book Wicked Virginia City and a look the real characters who made the Comstock city so “wicked”!
Perched on the side of a mountain in the Nevada desert, Virginia City existed for one reason only: to make money. The mining frenzy of the mid-nineteenth century uncovered veins of precious metals that would be expressed in billions today, attracting the enterprising madam Cad Thompson, the charismatic highwayman Nickanora and a plethora of swindlers. Miners, flush with their wages, supported a healthy economy of gambling, drinking and prostitution and even launched a few political careers.
Peter B. Mires was born in Vermont when there were more cows than people. He earned a B.A. from the University of New Hampshire, M.A. from the University of Arkansas, and Ph.D. from Louisiana State University. After receiving his doctorate in 1988, Peter taught geography and anthropology at the University of Minnesota-Duluth and the University of Delaware. He currently teaches for Western Nevada College. When not reading or writing he may be found hiking the Tahoe Rim Trail or exploring the Nevada outback.
Cost: Free
The Ranch House will be open 11 am – 1 pm for event guests.
