Information and history of the state of Nevada

The first Europeans who explored the region were the Spaniards. They gave it the name of Nevada (snowy) due to the snow which covered the mountains at winter. The land comprising the modern state was inhabited by Native Americans of the Paiute, Shoshone, and Washoe tribes prior to European contact. The United States gained the territory in 1848 following its victory in the Mexican-American War, and the area was eventually incorporated as part of Utah Territory in 1850.

The discovery of silver at the Comstock Lode in 1859 led to a population boom that was an impetus to the creation of Nevada Territory in 1861. Nevada became the 36th state on October 31, 1864.

The tourism industry remains Nevada's largest employer, with mining continuing to be a substantial sector of the economy as Nevada is the fourth largest producer of gold in the world.

Some Nevada braska Symbols

1. State Bird	2. State Mammal	3. State Flower	4. State Gemstone	5. State Soil
6. State Tree	7. State Reptile	8. State Fossil	9. State Fish	10. State Metal

1. Mountain Bluebird - Nevada designated the mountain bluebird as the official state bird in 1967.
2. Desert Bighorn Sheep- The desert bighorn sheep was designated the official state animal of Nevada in 1973.
3. Sagebrush - Nevada designated sagebrush as the official state flower in 1917.
4. Nevada Turquoise - Nevada turquoise was recognized as the official state semi-precious gemstone in 1987.
5. Orovada soil series - Orovada series soils are extensive in northern Nevada, where they have an extent of more than 360,000,000 acres.
6. Bristlecone Pine Tree - Nevada designated bristlecone pine (Pinus arisrata) as an official state tree in 1987.
7. Desert Tortoise - Nevada designated the desert tortoise as official state reptile in 1989. Found in the extreme southwest of Nevada, the desert tortoise is the largest reptile in the southwest and can live more than 70 years.
8. Ichthyosaur - Nevada designated Ichthyosaur (genus Shonisaurus) as the official state fossil in 1977.
9. Lahontan Cutthroat Trout - Nevada designated the Lahontan cutthroat trout as the official state fish in 1981.
10. Silver - Nevada designated silver as the official state metal in 1977. Silver was one of the most important minerals of Nevada's early mining days - in fact, Nevada's nickname is The Silver State.

Did you know?

• Locals use terms like The Sagebrush State, The Silver State, and The Battle Born State as nicknames for Nevada.
• Construction worker Hard Hat's were first invented specifically for workers on the Hoover Dam in 1933.
• The longest morse code telegram ever sent was the Nevada state constitution. Sent from Carson City to Washington D.C. in 1864. The transmission must have taken several hours.
• Las Vegas has more hotel rooms than any other place on earth.
• In 1931 the Pair-O-Dice Club was the first casino to open on Highway 91, the future Las Vegas Strip.
• Once the highest concrete dam in the world, Hoover Dam offers guided tours and a museum of artifacts of the construction and its workers.
• There were 16,067 slots in Nevada in 1960. In 1999 Nevada had 205,726 slot machines, one for every 10 residents.