2027 Tour of the Marlette Water System

Marlette Lake Water System Tour Sponsorship Opportunities

September 22, 2027

The Marlette Lake Water System is a historic water system originally constructed in the mid-1870's to provide water to Virginia City.  It was an engineering marvel, using gravity to move water up and out of the Tahoe Basin, down the Sierra and into the Virginia Range to Virginia City.  It still provides raw water to Carson City and Storey County, providing water through an inverted siphon that doesn't need power.

Event Registration fee includes tour transportation, non-alcoholic beverages, lunch, snacks and informative handouts. Your registration confirmation email will include departure location information and attire recommendations. Participants are responsible for their own hotel reservations (if needed) and transportation to the departure location in Washoe Valley/North Carson City.

September 23, 2027

The mining operations of the Comstock might have brought in the metals, but at a cost of diminishing water supplies. Alternatives were pursued and this led to the remarkable Marlette Water System.

Your tour day will begin at the Courthouse Slammer & County Museum for check-in, a Marlette Water System presentation and departure. The fi rst stop will be Five Mile Reservoir, a crucial component of the historic Marlette Lake Water System that supplied water to Virginia City and Gold Hill, especially during the silver mining boom.

We will then visit the Water Treatment System, have lunch at a local favorite and tour the Comstock Gold Mill, the last fully operational stamp mill in the state. The tour will conclude at the Courthouse Slammer & County Museum with an afternoon presentation.

Event Registration fee includes tour transportation, non-alcoholic beverages, lunch, snacks and informative handouts. Participants are responsible for their own hotel reservations (if needed) and transportation to the departure location in Virginia City.

Discussion and presentations throughout the tour with
Jason Wierzbicki, Public Works Director, Storey County, and Ted Jost, Marlette Lake Water System

The Five-Mile Reservoir was a crucial component of the historic Marlette Lake Water System that supplied water to Virginia City, Nevada, especially during the silver mining boom. This reservoir, completed around 1886, served as an intermediate storage point for water delivered from the Sierra Nevada mountains via a pipeline originating from the Hobart Reservoir and pipe inlet at "The Tanks," before a final flume carried the water to Virginia City and Gold Hill.

Water Treatment System - The availability of good quality water is vital to the sustainable growth of Storey County. The Water and Sewer Services Division is committed to protecting the public health, safety, and welfare of residents, businesses, and visitors by providing high-quality drinking water and waste water treatment, as well as providing for future economic growth through progressive planning, the efficient use of technology, promoting education about water conservation and quality, and monitoring public health and the safety of the environment.  Storey County is proud to be voted “best tasting water in Nevada” for 2003, 2007, 2019, and 2024 by the National Rural Water Association.

Piper’s Opera House – Check in, Marlette Water System presentation and short tour. 

 Comstock Gold Mill - As the last fully operational stamp mill in the state, the mill at Comstock Gold Mill first operated in Marietta Ghost Town, near Hawthorne. It was built in 1864, the same year Nevada became a state, and built by Joshua Hendy in San Francisco. The mill is a two stamp gold mill, which was used to process gold and silver rich ore by stamping it (or breaking it down) to extract the precious materials. Interestingly enough, though the mill originally came from the town of Marietta, it did in fact process Comstock silver and gold. Funny how things have a way of coming full circle, isn’t it? While Virginia City was home to the largest silver strike in United States history and home to a mind-melting 236 mills operating round the clock, the Comstock Gold Mill is one of only three that remain and connected to Virginia City-area history. Best yet, it is the only that still functions.

Date:
Wednesday and Thursday,
September 22-23, 2027

Time:
8:00 a.m. - 4:00 p.m.
*Lunch is included

Two-day Registration:
NWRA Member - $225
Non-Member - $250

Student Registration:
$25

Add on 1st Day - Tour in Washoe Valley
$150

Add on 2nd Day - Tour in Virginia City
$150

Meeting Place for Day 1 Tour:
Washoe Valley/North Carson City

Meeting Place for Day 2 Tour:
Piper’s Opera House
12 B St, Virginia City, NV 89440