The median income for a household in the city was $33,684, and the median income for a family was $41,477. Males had a median income of $35,043 versus $23,295 for females. The per capita income for the city was $15,677. About 9.8% of families and 13.5% of the population were below the poverty line, including 14.4% of those under age 18 and 9.4% of those age 65 or over.
When gold and silver were discovered at the Comstock Lode, miners came west with hopes of getting rich. This caused boom towns and in turn people who didn't mine came and also got rich selling supplies to the miners. Some of these people stayed after the gold rush was over. This greatly sped up the population of the west.
After 1878, the bonanza discoveries rather rapidly petered out, and, although the Comstock was to produce ore until the 1940s, it was at a greatly reduced rate. In total, we are told that from 1859 until 1882, the official amount taken out of the Comstock was $305,779,612.48.he initial discovery was in 1859, and soon the Rush to Washoe was in full swing. For the next twenty years the Comstock was the dominating event in Nevada history, and for that matter, of considerable importance in American history. Its history can be broken down into three main periods.