Virginia City and Nevada City lie along Alder Gulch about one mile apart, and is the site of the richest placer gold strike in the Rocky Mountains, with an estimated total value of 100 million dollars throughout the 18th and 19th century! The area represents the true and original Old West. Virginia City was designated as the new territorial capital of Montana in 1865 when Alder Gulch had gathered most of Montana's population. At its peak, 10,000 people flooded the area named "Fourteen-mile City" for the numerous settlements that lined the gulch. Virginia City became the largest settlement with an estimated population of 5,000 by mid-1864. It rapidly became the territory's first social center and transportation hub. (https://virginiacitymt.com/index)