Skip to ContentMark Twain worked at the Territorial Enterprise newspaper in Virginia City in the early 1860s. Dates here come mostly from one secondary source, and each is labelled.
Checked November 2, 2026. Dates, prices and hours change; the official page wins.
- Dec 1858paper’s first issue in Genoa (WP)
- Sep 1860moves to Virginia City (WP)
- Feb 1863“Mark Twain” byline first used (WP)
- 1959the camel-race hoax
The Paper
The Virginia City Tourism Commission says Mark Twain wrote about his Nevada newspaper career in 1868 and that he had worked for the Territorial Enterprise in Virginia City. Wikipedia (secondary) gives the paper’s first issue as December 18, 1858 in Genoa, a move to Carson City in 1859 and to Virginia City in September 1860, and Twain’s stay there as about 22 months from late 1861, when the byline “Mark Twain” first appeared in February 1863. Those dates are from Wikipedia only.
A Hoax That Became a Race
In 1959 the Enterprise editor wrote a fake story about camels racing in Virginia City, the Tourism Commission says; the San Francisco Chronicle printed it, and the next year the town borrowed camels from the San Francisco Zoo and raced them. That is how the International Camel and Ostrich Races began.
Today
The Territorial Enterprise building is on C Street. Wikipedia says a Mark Twain museum was inside it from 1945; whether it is open now is not confirmed. The Comstock History Center or the Tourism Commission (775-847-7500) can say.
Legends And Lore
Stories people tell about this place, each labelled and checked against the record.
What We Could Not Confirm
These items were not read on an official page when we checked, so we do not state them as fact. Who can confirm each one is named.
- Twain’s dates at the paper and the 1863 byline (Nevada State Library or the Comstock History Center; only Wikipedia was read).
- Whether any Mark Twain museum is open on C Street (Virginia City Tourism Commission).
More to Explore
Frequently Asked Questions
Did Mark Twain live in Virginia City?
He worked at the Territorial Enterprise there in the early 1860s, per the Tourism Commission and Wikipedia.
Sources
- Virginia City Tourism Commission (official)
- Wikipedia: Territorial Enterprise (secondary)
- Wikipedia: Virginia City, Nevada (secondary)
Cite this page: It’s Reno editorial team, “Mark Twain and The Territorial Enterprise,” itsreno.com, checked November 2, 2026.