Orion Clemens House

The Orion Clemens House is a historic house in west Carson City. The address is 502 N. Division, and it is located at the northwest corner of Division and Spear streets. It was built in 1863-64. The house is best known as the residence, for a few years, of Orion Clemens, the first Territorial Secretary of Nevada, as well as the brother of Mark Twain. Mark Twain, who was still going by his given name Samuel Clemens at the time, spent a lot of time in this house with his brother before they both left Nevada in the mid 1860s.

Orion bought the land from George B. Cowing on November 17, 1863. This house was completed a few months later, in early 1864. The cost was around $12,000. Orion and his wife moved out in March 1866, and sold the house later that summer.

See Also

• Historical Marker 78
• Three Historic Cities: Orion Clemens House
• Guy Rocha: Historic Myth a Month #54 - "Sell The Sizzle And Not The Steak": Mark Twain In Carson City
• Nevada State Historical Marker #78: Orion Clemens Home