Storey County Commissioners Support Miners’ Union Hall State Register Nomination

The effort to secure individual historic recognition for Virginia City’s Miners’ Union Hall received an important show of local support on Sept. 1, 2026, when the Storey County Board of County Commissioners approved a letter supporting the Hall’s nomination to the Nevada State Register of Historic Places.

The letter was submitted to the Nevada Board of Museums and History on behalf of Storey County and signed by Commission Chair Jay Carmona, Vice-Chair Clay Mitchell, and Commissioner Donald Gilman. In the letter, the commissioners formally expressed their support for the nomination and listing of the Miners’ Union Hall, located at 36 N. B St. in Virginia City.

The commissioners described the Miners’ Union Hall as an “important historic resource within Storey County and the Virginia City community” and stated that listing on the Nevada State Register would provide well-deserved recognition of the property’s historic significance and contribution to Nevada’s history.

The County’s endorsement comes at an important point in the nomination process. The Nevada Board of Museums and History is scheduled to consider the nomination at its Friday, Sept. 11, 2026, meeting.

Although the current nomination seeks individual listing on the Nevada State Register, the Miners’ Union Hall is already recognized as part of Virginia City’s nationally significant historic landscape. The Nevada State Historic Preservation Office identifies the Hall as a contributing resource to the Virginia City Historic District National Historic Landmark and, as a result, it is included in the National Register of Historic Places as part of the larger district. The existing National Register documentation, however, contains relatively little information specifically about the Miners’ Union Hall.

The individual Nevada State Register nomination provides an opportunity to tell that story in much greater detail.

Constructed in 1876, the Miners’ Union Hall is closely associated with the history of organized labor on the Comstock. The building served as a gathering place for miners during an era when Virginia City and the surrounding Comstock mines were among the most important mining centers in the American West. Today, the Hall remains a tangible reminder of the miners and labor organizations that played an important role in the development of the Comstock.

The building’s history continued after the decline of the miners’ union. During the 1920s, Comstock Aerie No. 523 of the Fraternal Order of Eagles acquired the property, completing its purchase in 1926. The Aerie has now served as steward of the historic building for approximately a century.

During that time, the Miners’ Union Hall has continued its longstanding role as a gathering place. Meetings, initiations, dances, dinners, memorials, celebrations, and other community activities have taken place within its walls. The Hall has also served as a Storey County polling place, continuing its connection to the community well beyond its original use.

The timing of the nomination is particularly fitting. The Miners’ Union Hall marks 150 years since its construction in 2026, while Comstock Aerie No. 523 marks approximately a century of stewardship of the property. The County’s endorsement adds the voice of Storey County and its elected representatives to the effort to more fully document and recognize the Hall’s place in Comstock and Nevada history.

The next step comes on Sept. 11, when the Nevada Board of Museums and History is scheduled to consider the nomination.

Those interested in following the nomination or learning more about the Miners’ Union Hall can visit the Nevada State Historic Preservation Office State and National Registers page, where information about State and National Register nominations and their status is available. The complete Miners’ Union Hall nomination is also available through the State Historic Preservation Office.

With Storey County’s support now formally expressed, consideration by the Board of Museums and History represents the next milestone in the effort to more fully document and recognize the Miners’ Union Hall and its place in the history of the Comstock.