| Demographics |
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Statehood: October 31, 1864, the 36th State.
Capital: Carson City
Total Area: 7th among states,
286,367 sq km (110,567 sq mi).
Water Area: 1,971 sq km
(761 sq mi).
Highest Point: Boundary
Peak 4,005 m (13,140 ft).
Total Population: 35th
among states.
2010 census - 2,700,551
Population Density in 2010: 24.6
people per sq mi
Distribution in 2000: 87.4%
Urban, 12.6% Rural.
Economy:
Gross State Product - $127 billion
(2010)
Personal income per Capita - $38,578 (2009)
Largest cities in 2010:
Las Vegas: 583,756
Henderson: 256,729
Reno: 225,221
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During the Cold War, the U.S. Atomic
Energy Commission chose a Nevada site to
test nuclear weapons.
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Berlin-Ichthyosaur
State Park near Gabbs has fossils of ancient fishlike reptiles.
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Virginia
City, founded when the Comstock Lode was discovered, was home to 20,000
people at its peak in the 1870s but now has
only about 800.
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John
Charles Frémont led the first thorough exploration of the Great Basin,
which includes most of Nevada, in 1843 and
1844.
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Nevada is the driest state in the nation with an average annual rainfall of only about 7 inches. The wettest part of state receives about 40 inches of precipitation per year, while the driest spot has less than four inches per year.
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Nevada was made famous by the discovery of the fabulous Comstock Lode in 1859. Its mines have produced large quantities of gold, silver, copper, lead, zinc, mercury, barite, and tungsten.
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Nevada is the gambling and entertainment capital of the United States.
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Hoover Dam, near Las Vegas, impounds the waters of Lake Mead, one of the world's largest artificial lakes.
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In 1899 Charles Fey invented a slot machine named the Liberty Bell. The device became the model for all slots to follow.
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There were 16,067 slots in Nevada in 1960. In 1999 Nevada had 205,726 slot machines, one for every 10 residents.
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Nevada is the largest gold-producing state in the nation. It is second in the world behind South Africa.
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Las Vegas has more hotel rooms than any other place on earth.
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