Carson City, Nevada

Carson City
Consolidated Municipality of Carson City
Flag of Carson City
Official seal of Carson City
Nicknames: 
Carson, CC, The Capitol
Motto: 
Proud of its Past...Confident of its Future
Location within Nevada
Location within Nevada
Carson City is located in Nevada
Carson City
Carson City
Location in Nevada
Carson City is located in the United States
Carson City
Carson City
Location within the United States
Coordinates: 39°9′52″N 119°46′1″W / 39.16444°N 119.76694°W / 39.16444; -119.76694
CountryUnited States
StateNevada
Founded1858; 166 years ago (1858)
Named forKit Carson
Government
 • MayorLori Bagwell
Area
 • Total157.12 sq mi (406.94 km2)
 • Land144.53 sq mi (374.34 km2)
 • Water12.59 sq mi (32.59 km2)  8.0%
Elevation4,682 ft (1,427 m)
Population
 (2020)
 • Total58,639
 • Density405.71/sq mi (156.65/km2)
Time zoneUTC−8 (Pacific)
 • Summer (DST)UTC−7 (Pacific)
ZIP code
89701–89706, 89711–89714, 89721
Area code775
GNIS feature ID863976[2]
Websitecarson.org
Reference no.44

Carson City, officially the Consolidated Municipality of Carson City,[3] is an independent city and the capital of the U.S. state of Nevada.[4] As of the 2020 census, the population was 58,639, making it the 6th most populous city in the state. The majority of the city's population lives in Eagle Valley, on the eastern edge of the Carson Range, a branch of the Sierra Nevada, about 30 miles (50 km) south of Reno. The city is named after the mountain man Kit Carson. The town began as a stopover for California-bound immigrants, but developed into a city with the Comstock Lode, a silver strike in the mountains to the northeast. The city has served as Nevada's capital since statehood in 1864; for much of its history it was a hub for the Virginia and Truckee Railroad, although the tracks were removed in 1950.

Before 1969, Carson City was the county seat of Ormsby County. That year, after a referendum approved merging the city and the county, the state legislature issued a revised city charter that merged them into the Consolidated Municipality of Carson City.[5] With the consolidation, the city limits extend west across the Sierra Nevada to the California state line in the middle of Lake Tahoe. Like other independent cities in the United States, it is treated as a county-equivalent for census purposes.

  1. ^ "ArcGIS REST Services Directory". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved September 19, 2022.
  2. ^ a b "Geographic Names Information System". edits.nationalmap.gov. Retrieved May 8, 2023.
  3. ^ Carson City (July 26, 2016). "City Facts". Carson.org. Retrieved September 17, 2024.
  4. ^ "City Facts | Carson City". www.carson.org. Retrieved July 16, 2023.
  5. ^ "About Carson City". Carson City. May 29, 2006. Retrieved November 20, 2011.