Carson City, Nevada

Carson City, Nevada Education, Geography, and History

Carson City, officially the Consolidated Municipality of Carson City, is an independent city and the capital of the state of Nevada, named after the mountain man Kit Carson. Based on the 2010 census, the population was 55,274.

Etymology - Origin of Carson City Name

The first European Americans to arrive in what is known as Eagle Valley were John C. Fremont and his exploration party in January 1843. Fremont named the river flowing through the valley Carson River in honor of Christopher "Kit" Carson  (1809-1868), the mountain man and scout he had hired for his expedition.

Demographics:

County QuickFacts: CensusBureau Quick Facts

Carson City History

The Consolidated Municipality of Carson City, Nevada's territorial and state capital, has a rich and colorful frontier past. Eagle Valley had been settled by ranchers. Carson City is named for the famous frontiersman and scout Christopher "Kit" Carson. During his 1843-1844 expedition, John C. Fremont had named Carson City's nearby river for Kit Carson, Fremont's scout.

Carson City was founded as a community in 1858, seven years after the first settlement of Eagle Station trading post in 1851. November 25, 1861 - It is the smallest county in the state, 168 sq. mi. 12 of which are under water at Lake Tahoe. Originally named Ormsby in honor of Maj. William M. Ormsby, who came to the area in 1857, and later slain in the Pyramid Lake Indian War of 1860.

  Pioneer Abraham Curry arrived in Eagle Valley in 1858 and soon thereafter surveyed and plotted a town site, when Major Ormsby purchased the land and named the area Carson City.  A cadre of well-connected attorneys whose names still decorate street signs here (Proctor, Musser) bought the richest part of the valley for $500 and a herd of horses. The farsighted and optimistic Curry set aside 10 acres expressly for the construction of a capitol - this was before the formation of Nevada Territory in 1861. Carson City was soon designated both the territorial capital and county seat of the new Ormsby County. President Abraham Lincoln, recognizing the importance of Nevada's silver and gold to the Union's Civil War effort, signed the proclamation that ushered Nevada into statehood on October 31, 1864. Carson City was selected as the state capital at the constitutional convention and has retained that honor to the present day. The name of the county was changed when Ormsby County was consolidated with Carson City in 1969. Ormsby is still remembered by Ormsby Boulevard and Ormsby House.

Neighboring Counties

Bordering counties are as follows:

• Douglas County, Nevada - south
• Lyon County, Nevada - east
• Storey County, Nevada - northeast
• Washoe County, Nevada - north
• Placer County, California - west

Education

The Carson City School District operates ten schools in Carson City. The six elementary schools are Bordewich-Bray Elementary School, Empire Elementary School, Fremont Elementary School, Fritsch Elementary School, Mark Twain Elementary School, and Al Seeliger Elementary School. The two middle schools are Carson Middle School and Eagle Valley Middle School. Carson High School and the alternative Pioneer High School serve high school students. Carson High is on Saliman Road.

Western Nevada College (WNC) is a regionally accredited, two-year and four-year institution which is part of the Nevada System of Higher Education. It has an education program. The school also offers associate of arts, associate of science.

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