Storey County Courthouse - Nevada Historical Markers on Waymarking.com

Storey County was organized in 1860 and is named after Captain Edward Storey who was killed during the Pyramid Lake Indian wars in Nevada. The prior courthouse erected on this site was destroyed in the Great Fire of October 26, 1875, that also burned many of Virginia City’s early documents. Storey County hired the architectural firm of Kenitzer and Raum of San Francisco to design the replacement. Work began in 1876 by contractor Peter Burke, and was finished in 1877 at a cost of $117,000.00. The courthouse also served as headquarters for the Storey County Sheriff’s Office until 1992 when a new facility was built on State Route 341, about a 1/4 mile from this site. This building is one of two nineteenth century courthouses in Nevada still serving county government. It currently houses the Clerk Treasurer, Assessor, Comptroller, Recorder, County Manager and the County Commissioners.

The Statue of Justice perched on the second-floor alcove is the only one to grace the exterior of a Nevada building, and has been the source of much controversy. The seven foot zinc figure was manufactured in New York and arrived in Virginia City in 1877 at a cost of only $236.00. Over the years a legend has evolved that she was one of only a few created not blindfolded. Research has proven that about 20 such models exist in the country. Perhaps this one was chosen by residents to make sure that justice would always see that justice prevailed on the Comstock.

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