Comstock Lode was the greatest silver-mining center in the United States during the 1800's. Its rich deposits, which included valuable supplies of gold, lay in west-central Nevada. Mines on the Comstock Lode flourished from 1859 to 1865 and again from 1873 to 1882. During this second period, a body of ore known as the Big Bonanza produced silver and gold ore worth more than $100 million. The mining area was named for Henry T. P. Comstock, a prospector who took credit for its discovery. But other miners really found the ore first.