Virginia City, Nevada

Silver Terrace Cemeteries

As many historic cemeteries, The Silver Terrace Cemeteries of Virginia City have suffered much vandalism, and lack of care in the past decades.  Preserving this cemetery means to preserve American history, because Virginia City in the 1800s provided much silver to the budding America, and saw this country through the Civil War.  Without Nevada's silver mining, the most coming from Virginia City mines, the North would not have won the Civil War.  There is much here to appreciate.  Samuel Clemens stayed here and worked for The Territorial Enterprise, and coined his pen name here, "Mark Twain."  The list goes on.

The Silver Terrace Cemeteries are a series of terraces dramatically located on the steep, windswept hillside of Virginia City.  Few people know the real name of this cemetery. 

As this booming mining camp became a more permanent settlement, the need arose to establish a cemetery. Beginning in the 1860s, a wide variety of fraternal, civic and religious groups established burial yards on the hillside including the Masons, Pacific Coast Pioneers, Knights of Pythias, Firemen, Wilson and Brown, Improved Order of Redmen, Roman Catholic, and the city and county. Nearly every plot is fenced or bordered, a typical practice of the Victorian period. The characteristic features of this burial place reflect the breadth of styles and designs popular during its long history. This cemetery was once a beautiful garden spot, more like a park than a cemetery.  There were trees, bushes, flowers, and beautiful wrought iron work.  The town paid for the huge expense of the bringing of water to this spot, so that was quite an endeavor, and shows the love the Victorians had for their departed.

Grave markers range in materials from wood to metal to cut stones. The inscriptions on the markers give silent testimony to the social and economic fabric of Virginia City. The majority date to before 1920. Very few of the adults buried in these cemeteries were born in Nevada. The birthplaces noted throughout the grounds provide a glimpse of the scope of immigration and the makeup of the settlement that supported the Comstock mining industry.

The historic significance of the cemeteries enabled them to qualify for a Save America's Treasures grant through the National Park Service. Restoration is under way.

The Silver Terrace Cemeteries are located at the end of North E St., northeast of the C St. business district in Virginia City. The cemeteries are open to the public daily, but close at dusk.

"Some people are malicious enough to think that if the devil were set at liberty and told to confine himself to Nevada Territory, he would...get homesick and go back to hell again."  - Mark Twain, a Biography

Click on his picture to view some of his writings.

Last update on:

06-Apr-2010 7:05 AM