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There's a lot that people don't know about our fascinating state. And, there's a lot that they will never know. Here are some of the more interesting facts about Nevada that you may not have not known.
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Gambling & Reno/Las Vegas
- In Nevada it is mandatory that all video slot machines pay a minimum average of 75 percent.
- Over 38.9 million people visit Las Vegas each year.
- The MGM Grand in Las Vegas, covering 171,500 square feet, is America's largest hotel and 2nd largest in the world.
- The average annual room rate in Las Vegas was $83.00/night in 2003.
- Nevada is the only state in America with legalized prostitution...
- ...However, any county with a population of 400,000 or more is prohibited from exercising brothels and prostitution. In sparsely populated Nevada, this only accounts for Clark County and Las Vegas.
- The only city in Nevada where gambling is ILLEGAL is Boulder City, located 24 miles south of Las Vegas. However, liquor sales are allowed.
- Approximately 45% of Nevada's general fund revenues drive from taxes on gambling.
- The exact odds of hitting the Royal Flush on any video poker machine is 1 out of 645,253.
- Gambling is Nevada's prime source of income, averaging to about 75% of annual revenue. Mining is 2nd and tourism is 3rd.
- There are nearly 150,000 slot machines in Clark County alone -- that's about one for every nine people.
- Sadly, Las Vegas has the highest rate of water consumption in the world. Vegas uses a staggering 375 gallons of water per person per day. This is twice the rate of Phoenix, three times of Los Angeles and four times higher than Philadelphia.
- The Las Vegas Strip has over 15,000 miles of neon lights along its three mile length.
- About 150 couples get married in Las Vegas each day.
- Opening in 1906, the Golden Gate Hotel and Casino was the first hotel and casino to open in Las Vegas.
- The Stratosphere is the tallest, free-standing, observation tower in the US and the tallest structure west of the Mississippi River.
- In 1999, Nevada had 205,726 slot machines, one for every 10 residents.
- Seventeen of the 20 biggest hotels in the U.S. are in Las Vegas.
- It would take 288 years for one person to spend one night in every hotel room in Las Vegas.
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Natural Nevada
- Approximately 40% of Nevada is covered by sagebrush.
- Nevada has a total of 315 counted mountain ranges, making it the most mountainous state in America.
- There are 9 mountain ranges in Nevada that have one or more peaks exceeding 11,000 feet in height.
- There are 5 mountain peaks in Nevada that measure more than 12,000 in height. They are: Boundary Peak (13,140), Wheeler Peak (13,063), Jeff Davis (12,771), Mount Baker (12,298) and Mount Moriah (12,067).
- The lowest recorded temperature ever recorded in Nevada was -50 degrees and occured on January 8, 1937 at the outpost of San Jacinto (about 20 miles south of Jackpot).
- The highest recorded temperature ever recorded in Nevada was 125 degrees, recorded on June 29, 1994 in Laughlin.
- The amount of forest land in Nevada is a staggering 8.6 million acres
- Nevada has more open space than any place in the lower 48 states. Over 80% of Nevada land is for public and recreation use.
- Nevada is the driest state in America, with a statewide annual rainfall of 9 inches.
- Nevada has the largest number of wild horses -- 75%, or an estimated 28,000, of the wild horses roaming free in the U.S are found in Nevada.
- Nevada is the only state to possess a complete skeleton, approximately 55 feet long of an Ichthyosaur, an extinct marine reptile.
- The only Nevada lake with an outlet to the sea is man-made Lake Mead.
- The only river in Nevada to flow to the sea is the Colorado River. Even then, the river sometimes never makes it to the ocean after diversions for agriculture by both California and Mexico.
- Nevada has more than 44,000 acres of man-made reservoirs, 2,760 miles of streams and 14 designated wilderness areas covering 798,067 acres.
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Other Facts
- There is only one summit in Nevada to have four consecutive numbers for its elevation, Geiger Summit in Storey County, at an elevation of 6,789 feet.
- In Nyala - a man is forbidden from buying drinks for more than three people other than himself at any one period during the day.
(Nyala is an obscure 'community' that lies about 20 miles N of NV 375 via a dirt road in Nye County).
- There are about 119,000 weddings performed annually in Las Vegas alone.
- Nevada ranks 1st in silver production in the U.S, producing 10 million troy ounces of silver in 2003!
- Nevada is the largest gold-producing state in the nation and 2nd in the world behind South Africa!
- Hoover Dam, the largest single public works project in the history of the United States, contains 3.25 million cubic yards of concrete, which is enough to pave a two-lane highway from San Francisco to New York.
- Nevada has one of the least population densities in America with only 21 people per square mile.
- Nevada has the lowest percentage of native born residents. Only 1 of every 5 Nevadans were born in the state.
- Nevada has one of the highest count of cattle ranches in the U.S with about 1,600 statewide.
- Nevada has more male residents than female. Of all the states, Nevada has the 2nd highest ratio of males to females, 104 to 100.
- Pershing County located in Cowboy Country features only 1 of 2 round courthouses in the United States. The other is in Bucks County, PA constructed in 1960.
- Nevada has about 50,000 miles of paved road, much of it featured in films like "Vanishing Point," "Breakdown," "Rainman," and "Lethal Weapon 4."
- About 25 million vehicles enter Nevada by way of its Interstates, US Routes and state highways.
- The smallest incorporated city in Nevada is Gabbs, 140 miles S of Reno.
- To drive from Los Angeles to Reno, the direction traveled is to the west. Yes, because of the shape of California's coastline, Reno is actually located slightly WEST of Los Angeles.
- The winner of the Nevada Governor's race is determined by a contest to see who can drink the most martinis without groping a waitress.
- Wyatt Earp started his career as a lawman as Sheriff of Tonopah.
- Virginia City miners were the highest paid miners in the world, making $28 a week compared to $5/week for miners elsewhere in the world.
- Nevada only has two area codes: 775 for the northern half and much of rural Nevada and 702 for Las Vegas and the southern end.
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