C Street in Virginia City

St. Mary’s in the Mountains Church

One of Virginia City’s fudge shopsThe recent Virginia City Camel Races got us thinking about taking a drive to the historic mining town that is about a half-hour south of Reno to just wander the wooden sidewalks and steep side streets.We head up Geiger Grade to Virginia City, which, according to legend was named when one of its founders stumbled, broke a bottle of whiskey he was carrying, and christened the town in honor of his home state of Virginia.Virginia City, in fact, is all about its past. Over the years, the mines of Virginia City produced more than a billion dollars in gold and silver and created more millionaires than television evangelism.By the early 1860s, Virginia City had grown into one of the most cosmopolitan cities in the West. In addition to having 20,000 residents, the town had an opera house, elegant hotels, banks, businesses, restaurants and churches.Despite a disastrous fire in 1875, which destroyed more than 33 blocks, Virginia City has survived into the 20th century with most of its 19th century charm and appearance intact.Walking its uneven wooden sidewalks under drooping awnings, you can imagine you’re retracing the footsteps of young Sam Clemens, when he was writing for a local newspaper under the pen name, "Mark Twain."Several of the mansions of Virginia City’s mining magnates remain standing and a few are open for visits. For instance you can tour the red brick Mackay Mansion, originally the headquarters of the Gould & Curry Mine, then the residence of John Mackay, one of Virginia City’s fabulously wealthy silver kings.The Presbyterian Church on C Street, built in 1867, was one of the few structures on that block that didn’t succumb to flames during the fire of 1875. Down the hill is the magnificent St. Mary’s in the Mountains Catholic Church and the St. Paul’s Episcopalian Church, both rebuilt to their previous splendor in the years immediately after the fire.No visit to Virginia City should overlook Piper’s Opera House, located on B Street. Built in 1885, the present wooden building, which is being restored, hasn’t changed much since the days when its stage hosted touring performers, including such 19th century luminaries as Lillie Langtry and John Philip Sousa.Virginia City’s C Street is lined with small shops offering souvenirs, antiques, homemade candy and fudge, t-shirts, restaurants, small museums and a handful of saloons.But in the end, the real treat about visiting Virginia City isn’t the fudge and t-shirt shops, although they are fun. It is being able to explore a place that has hung onto history and maintained its unique, frontier character.—-Richard Moreno

The historic Genoa Saloon

Nevada’s earliest years are recorded in the streets of Genoa.

This picturesque hamlet, located about an hour south of Reno via U.S. 395, played an essential role in the state’s development. It was Nevada’s first formal town as well as home of the state’s first printed newspaper and site of the first territorial government meetings.

Today, you can wander the narrow streets of the town to find that nearly every house and building has a story.

The Mormon Station State Historical Monument in the center of Genoa is the most prominent reminder of Genoa’s place in Nevada history. Here, you can find a replica of the original Mormon trading post and fort, which was built in 1851 to provide goods to travelers on the Emigrant Trail.

The Mormon Station is generally recognized as the first permanent building in Nevada. The replica fort, constructed in 1947 on the site of the original, which burned in 1910, contains interpretive historic displays about the area and includes a beautiful, shaded picnic area.

Despite fire and the raves of time, plenty of pieces of the old town have survived, including the Genoa Bar, located in a building that is said to have been built in the 1850s. The bar, which boasts uneven wooden floors and a hodgepodge of historic political posters on its walls, claims to be the “oldest thirst parlor” in the state.

At the corner of Carson and Main streets is a brick Victorian home built in the mid-1850s by William J. “Lucky Bill” Thorington, a gambler, shrewd businessman and, allegedly, a polygamist.

The Raycroft/Depot House, located near the Thorington home, can trace its pedigree to the 1850s. The original building, which has been covered-up by later additions, served as the law offices for Senator William Stewart, one of Nevada’s first U.S. Senators, and was later a newspaper printing plant, a butcher shop, and a stagecoach depot.

The Pratt House, located on Nixon Street adjacent to the Genoa Community Church, was built in 1872 by local newspaper publishers A.C. and Alice Pratt. Now known as the Genoa House Inn, a bed and breakfast, the two-story Victorian is one of the most photogenic homes in Genoa.

The Genoa Courthouse Museum at Main and 5th streets, is a two-story, brick structure that was built in 1865 and served as the Douglas County Courthouse until 1916, when the county seat was moved.

For the next four decades, the building was used as a school. After 1969, it has been a museum. The courthouse, which has been restored, contains dozens of exhibits describing the community’s rich history.

For more information about Genoa, contact the Genoa Genoa Courthouse Museum, 775-782-4325.—-Richard Moreno

Valhalla Estate at Lake Tahoe

Beautiful gardens can be found along the Tallac Historic Site trail

There’s nothing like seeing how rich people live. Exploring a huge mansion or the grounds of a sprawling estate built by a wealthy person offers a vicarious thrill, especially for those of us unlikely to ever live in such a manner.

The Tallac Historic Site at Lake Tahoe is such a place. There, it’s possible to catch a glimpse of the lifestyles of the rich and famous in the late 19th and early 20th centuries.

The Tallac homes were built by some of America’s wealthiest individuals. At one time, the site was also the location of Tahoe’s first casino-hotel. While many of the structures have disappeared over the years as a result of neglect and progress, a few have been preserved and are now managed by the U.S. Forest Service.

The Tallac Historic Site is located on Route 89, north of Camp Richardson. A wonderfully scenic two-and-a-half-mile-long bicycle and hiking path winds through the area.

Riding through the historic grounds is an opportunity to pretend that you’ve gone back to a time before automobiles and airplanes, when only the super-rich could afford to build seasonal homes in a once remote place, such as Lake Tahoe.

The setting is remarkably peaceful and very beautiful. The trail is lined with tall pine trees filled with chattering birds and, as you ride along, provides glimpses of the clear, blue waters of the lake.

While the main path is paved, there are several dirt tributaries that snake through the reserve and lead to small, hidden beaches or particularly scenic tree groves.

Development of the Tallac area started in the 1870s, when Yank Clement opened the Tallac Point House on the south shore to accommodate visitors. “Yank’s” inn also offered steamboat rides, a saloon and dancing.

In 1880, “Yank’s” was sold to Elias “Lucky” Baldwin, a California entrepreneur and professional gambler. Baldwin transformed the sleepy lakeside inn into a 250-room resort that included a casino, ballroom, four bowling alleys, sun parlors and billiards rooms.

Meanwhile, in 1894, George Tallant, son of one of the founders of California’s Crocker Bank, built a rustic summer lodge adjacent to the Baldwin estate.

Five years later, Tallant sold his property to millionaire Lloyd Tevis, who expanded and renovated the home, making it the largest and most luxurious in the area. Tevis added servants quarters, a dairy, stables and a shaded, garden with Japanese tea house and arched bridges.

In 1923, Tevis sold the compound to George Pope Jr., a San Francisco lumber and shipping magnate. To reflect Pope’s ecumenical name, the estate was nicknamed the “Vatican Lodge.”

Also in 1923, another prominent businessman, Walter Heller purchased the land south of the Pope estate. Heller began construction of what would become the last great Tallac mansion, an impressive stone and wood lodge named Valhalla, which is now used for concerts and special events.

The early 1920s marked the heyday of the magnificent Tallac homes but was also the end of “Lucky” Baldwin’s resort. In 1920, Baldwin’s daughter, Anita, closed the casino-hotel and demolished the buildings. Later that same year, Dextra Baldwin McGonagle, Baldwin’s granddaughter, constructed a beautiful single-story home on the family property.

Today, the 2,000-acre Tallac Historic Site includes the historic homes, a museum, gardens, trails, picnic tables and several public beaches including Kiva Beach and Baldwin Beach. For more information, contact 530-541-4975.—Richard Moreno

We read that the Nevada State Railroad Museum in Carson City was going to run one of its old steam trains this weekend so we headed over there for a ride. We arrived to find a small crowd of other train fans waiting for Engine Number 8, a vintage locomotive that was built in 1888 by the Cooke Locomotive & Machine Company and originally used on the Denver, Texas & Fort Worth Railroad.

The classic engine, now used for steam-ups at the state railroad museum, was once owned by Twentieth Century-Fox Films and appeared in several movies including “Jesse James,” in 1938, and “The Gambler” with Kenny Rogers in the 1970s.

After paying for our tickets, a very affordable $5 for adults and $3 for children 6-11 (under 6 free), we boarded the train, which had three passenger cars including a red caboose, an open car, and an antique Virginia & Truckee Railroad car (old Number 10).

Within a few minutes, the locomotive had built up a head of steam and we pulled away from the restored Wabuska Depot, an authentic V & T building that had once stood in the Nevada hamlet of Wabuska (near Yerington). The train runs around the outer edge of the museum grounds, offering an overview of the various buildings, including the main museum and the shops where the trains are maintained and restored.

It passes by a replica of an old-fashioned roundtable, which is kind a “lazy Susan” for trains, before heading behind the structures, by Ted Gibson Park, and toward a wooded area surrounded by a small marsh filled with cattails. There, the train begins a complicated series of maneuvers that allow it to be turned around before returning to the depot.

Along the way, we’re jostled by the swaying motion of the old steam train, feel the metal wheels gripping the tracks, and experience the unique ride only found on an old-fashioned train journey.

We’d been on the train for about a bit under a half-hour but the ride felt like it was much shorter. We chatted briefly with a volunteer, who enthusiastically told us the history of the V & T and the car in which we were riding. We climbed off the train and wandered over to the museum and the maintenance shops.

But as we viewed the shiny locomotives and restored freight and passenger cars on display, we realized that they only made us think about riding the train again.

So we did.

The Nevada State Railroad Museum offers steam train rides on nearly every weekend during the summer and selected dates including Labor Day weekend, Nevada Day weekend, and Thanksgiving weekend. For a complete schedule call 775-687-6953.—Richard Moreno

Check it out—the World’s Oldest Tabasco Bottle (or a reasonable facsimile)

Most of us are fascinated by superlatives. We can’t wait to see something that is said to be the world’s oldest, biggest, smallest, best or first.

And so it was when I recently decided to scope out the exhibition, “Havens in a Heartless World—Virginia City Saloons and the Archeology of the Wild West” at the Nevada State Museum in Carson City until June 18.

The show displays artifacts uncovered between 1993 and 2001 by archaeologists excavating the sites of four 19th century saloons in Virginia City.

I, however, was interested in one object in particular that had been discovered—the world’s oldest Tabasco sauce bottle, which is part of the exhibition. Archaeologists had dug up fragments of the shattered bottle on the site of the Boston Saloon, which had operated in VC between 1864 and 1875. The bottle dates to about 1869 and was reassembled at the University of Nevada, Reno’s archaeology lab.

I really wanted to see this bottle, about which even the Louisiana-based Tabasco sauce company had made a big deal. I looked up the story of the bottle on the Tabasco sauce Web site and discovered that the company’s official historian had certified that it was the earliest surviving form of a bottle used by the company, which began producing the hot pepper sauce in 1868.

Not surprisingly, once I was there I realized that the bottle was only a small part of a much larger presentation. A dozen displays and placards told about the archaeological digs, what they produced and what they tell people about early Virginia City.

As I wandered through the displays, I gained more of an understanding about the role that saloons played in Virginia City’s rich history (they just weren’t for getting drunk).

It was all very enlightening. And, yes, I did see the world’s oldest tabasco sauce bottle. Too bad it was empty.

“Havens in a Heartless World” can be viewed daily from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. in the Nevada State Museum. There is $5 admission charge for adults, $3 for seniors, and free for children under 18. For more information, call 775-687-4810.—-Richard Moreno

The Ponderosa Saloon in Virginia City is home to an underground mine tour.

Virginia City’s Best and Belcher Mine makes more money today than it ever did when it operated as a mine more than a century ago. Tourists, however, are the reason the mine is lucrative these days.

The Best and Belcher is one of the best examples of a mine that was a genuine money pit. Established in 1869, the mine’s shaft was located between the fabulously rich Gould and Curry and Consolidated Virginia mines.

More than $1.6 million was spent developing the Best and Belcher. But despite nearly 40 years of digging, dynamiting, timbering and drilling, the mine was never as profitable as surrounding mines and was finally abandoned in 1917.

About 30 years ago, however, the owners of the Ponderosa Saloon in Virginia City, which is located in the historic Bank of California offices, discovered that the old Best and Belcher shaft ran through the hillside behind the building, which had been built in 1864.

A horizontal tunnel was dug from the rear of the saloon into the old shaft and opened for tours. Since then, thousands of visitors have walked the 315 feet from the saloon into the shaft and caught a glimpse of Comstock history.

The Ponderosa Mine Tour is one of the best ways to get an up close look at the source of Virginia City’s fame and success. You catch the tour in a waiting room just beyond the saloon’s wooden bar.

During a recent visit, the guide, who wore a protective helmet (mostly for effect), began the tour by ushering us through metal doors into a timbered map room. Pointing to a large underground map of the area, he explained how Virginia City is crisscrossed with old mine shafts and noted that if all were placed end to end they would stretch more than 750 miles.

From the map room, we moved into a dirt tunnel (wear shoes that you don’t mind getting muddy) that led into the heart of the Best and Belcher shaft. We passed an old powder room, which still contained a few old, wooden dynamite boxes.

The guide said that during the 1870s Virginia City’s miners were the highest paid miners in the world, making $4 a day (the equivalent of about $230 a day today).

Near the end of the tunnel, we were told that we were about 52 feet underground and that the temperature year-round is a cool 50 degrees. The guide walked to a partially caved-in ventilation tunnel, which he said was the original entrance to the shaft, and lit a small candle.

He extinguished the electric lights and showed us what it was like to work in the mine during the 1870s. The single candle barely illuminated his face, let alone much of the shaft.

Smiling, he said the biggest problem for the miners was a sudden breeze coming in from the ventilation shaft and blowing out the candle. Then, of course, blew out the candle.

After flicking the overheads back on, he added that sometimes miners would bring canaries in small cages down into the mines with them. If the bird suddenly died, it was a sign that the air was bad from methane gas, and the miners would quickly exit.

And from here, so did we.

The Best and Belcher mine tour is offered daily from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Admission is $4.50 for adults and $1.50 for children under 12. The Ponderosa is located on C Street in Virginia City. For more information call 775-847-0757.—-Richard Moreno

(Photo by Hank Moreno)

It’s April and there’s still plenty of snow in the mountains around Reno. So, last weekend we decided to head up to the higher elevations to shoot a few photos. My son, Hank, got a new digital camera last Christmas and he’s been eager to try to fill up a few memory cards with shots.

We drove up the Mount Rose Highway toward Lake Tahoe. As we climbed out of the Truckee Meadows, we could see some recent snow, which this year just seems to keep falling. The mountainsides were blanketed with the white stuff and only the top portions of the trees poked up through the snow.

As the road zigzagged up the mountain, we could see that the high peaks were thickly layered with snow. In most years, only the mountaintops are covered and you can see plenty of craggy rock walls and cliffs. But this year, the snow is so thick that hardly any rock is able to break through the covering.

We continued past Sky Tavern, a city of Reno ski facility for local kids, and the new Mt. Rose Visitor Center, which serves as the trailhead for the Mt. Rose Trail (we’ll hit that beautiful stretch of trail after the weather warms up in either the Spring or Summer).

Just ahead, my son asks me to stop because he’s spotted a snow-covered tree that he thinks might make a good photo. We pull over, climb out of the car and begin our slog through the deep snow. As we trudge closer, we see that the tree is barely alive with part of its trunk exposed and largely devoid of bark. Frankly, it’s a scrawny thing. But despite its scarecrow appearance there is something strong and proud in the way it just stands there in the snow defying everything that Mother Nature has thrown at it.

After my son snaps his shot, we head back to the car to look for other winter scenes. I have no doubt that he’s going to quickly fill up his camera’s memory card.—-Richard Moreno

Cool Native American Baskets

Lighting up the Neon Desert

Reuel Gridley’s Famous Sack of Flour

Recently, my daughter had to write a report on how Reno got its name. She’d heard two versions of the story; one was that Reno was named after the guy who didn’t show up in time to rescue Custer at the Battle of Little Big Horn, and the other was that the city was named after a Civil War hero.

So, I told her we’d check out the Nevada Historical Society, located at the north end of the University of Nevada, Reno campus, to see if we could find anything about Mr. Reno.

We wandered into the Historic Society and discovered it’s actually a combination research library and small Nevada history museum. My daughter was immediately attracted to the society’s large display of prehistoric Native American artifacts, including rows of handmade Paiute, Washo, and Shoshone Indian baskets and cradleboards.

Many of the baskets are the work of a legendary Washo artist, Dat-so-la-lee, who, in the 19th century, created dozens of magnificent grass baskets with intricate weaves and designs. Because of their quality, some Dat-so-la-lee baskets have been valued at tens of thousands of dollars.

Impressed by all the stuff on display, we continued to explore. We found a replica of a Native American grass dwelling as well as exhibits describing Nevada’s mining history.

My daughter found a number of vintage gambling devices that didn’t look like anything she’d ever seen before—strange, mechanical card devices, wooden slot machines, and a big wheel with pictures of dice.

In one corner, we found a couple of antique bicycles with wooden wheels and handle-grips and the most uncomfortable-looking wooden seats.

I told her the story about one thing I recognized, which was an old, stained sack of flour sitting in a display case. The 50-pound sack was originally owned by Austin, Nevada shop owner Reuel Gridley, who, in 1864, lost an election bet and had to carry it through the town.

Following his walk, he auctioned the sack with the proceeds donated to the Sanitary Fund (precursor to the Red Cross). The sack was resold several times that day, generating some $5,000 for charity. Gridley was later asked to repeat the auction in other Western towns and eventually raised nearly a quarter-of-a-million dollars for the Sanitary Fund.

Other displays included a large neon sign from an old Reno bar (”The Phone Booth”) as well as maps, photos and paintings depicting early Nevada, vintage clothing, and beautiful leather saddles and boots.

Oh, and we discovered that Reno is named by the Central Pacific Railroad in honor of General Jesse L. Reno, a Union officer killed in the battle of South Mountain, Maryland in 1862.—Richard Moreno

The locomotive, the Inyo, was also known as “Brass Betsy” because of its shiny brass accessories.

Visitors can explore the interior of the Inyo, which was built in 1875.

The Joe Douglass may be the smallest locomotive you’ll ever see, but it was actually used by a mining company.

The brass bell and dome on the locomotive named Inyo shine brightly. The giant drive wheels on either side of the engine look new. In fact, the Inyo probably never looked this good back in the 1870s, when it was pulling loads to Virginia City.

The Nevada State Railroad Museum in Carson City is truly one of the state’s historic treasures. Railroad fans find it offers everything from magnificently restored engines to a well-stocked gift shop.

And it’s a great place to visit when the weather gets a little dicey—like it’s been lately!

While the museum is devoted to the history of all of Nevada’s railroads—and over the years, there have been about 60 in the state—its primary focus is the Virginia & Truckee Railroad.

The bulk of the museum’s collection of more than 60 locomotives and cars are pieces from the former V & T Railroad. The stock was purchased by the state of Nevada in the 1970s from Paramount Studios. The movie company had acquired the pieces in 1937, when the V & T was experiencing financial difficulties and sold most of its equipment.

Today, when you wander the museum grounds, you’ll be able to see original locomotives and cars, most of it marvelously restored, that helps to tell the state’s rich railroad history.

For instance, inside the brightly-lit main museum building the first engine you encounter is the Inyo, a wood-burning Baldwin locomotive that was built in 1875.

The Inyo was used on the V & T line for more than 50 years. After it was sold to Paramount, it appeared in numerous movies including “Union Pacific” in 1938 and “The Virginian” in 1946. Its last star turn was in 1965, when it was used on the “Wild, Wild West” TV show.

Adjacent to the Inyo is V & T Caboose No. 9, which was built in 1873. Originally a 22-passenger train car, the No. 9 was rebuilt into a 60-passenger coach in 1891, and later used as a crew car. Like the Inyo, it was sold to Paramount and appeared in several films and TV shows.

Another popular piece in the museum’s collection is the Joe Douglass, a narrow guage locomotive built in 1882, and used on the Dayton, Sutro & Carson Valley Short Line Railroad.

The Joe Douglass may be one of the smallest engines you’ll ever see. This mini-locomotive, which seems to be half of the size of a standard engine, was used to shuttle cars of ore between the mills that once operated along the Carson River.

The museum also has a fine exhibit on the role of the Chinese in constructing western railroads. Be sure to check out the reconstructed Chinese Joss House, which served as a community center and place of worship.

The museum grounds offer a couple of other treats including restored Wabuska Depot as well as a typical railroad worker’s cottage, and a reproduction of a square, bat-and-board style water tower, a type that was used in the 19th century.

Visitors shouldn’t overlook the museum gift shop, which has a large selection of railroad books, videos, posters, shirts, and other rail-theme gift items. Admission to the railroad museum is $4 for adults and free for children under 18.

The Nevada State Railroad Museum is located at 1280 South Carson Street in Carson City. It is open daily 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. For more information, call 775-687-6953.—-Richard Moreno

Virginia City’s Historic Fourth Ward School

With its elegant Victorian-era architecture, Virginia City’s Fourth Ward School almost seems too fancy to have been a schoolhouse. Built in 1876, during the peak of the Comstock era, the Fourth Ward School remains one of Virginia City’s civic treasures.

Construction of the school, built in the French-influenced Second Empire architectural style, cost more than $50,000, with some estimates placing it as high as $100,000.

Befitting a successful mining town, the Fourth Ward School was big–it could accommodate more than 1,000 students in 16 classrooms. Housed on its four floors were both a grammar school and a high school.

The structure also boasted many modern conveniences–at least they were modern for the times–such as a central heating system, water piped to every floor, drinking fountains and indoor “Philadelphia-style,” patented, spring-loaded, self-flushing toilets.

Virginia City’s declining fortunes along with the school’s age and construction of a newer school building resulted in the Fourth Ward School closing in 1936.

For the next three decades, the magnificent structure stood empty, its fate uncertain. Starting in the 1960s, however, the community rallied around efforts to save the old school.

The building was finally rehabilitated in the 1980s. It reopened in 1986 as a museum devoted to the school’s rich past and to telling the history of the Comstock region.

Today, a visit to the Fourth Ward School is a chance to glimpse the glorious history of 19th century Virginia City. During our recent visit, we found that several of the old classrooms have been renovated as exhibit halls filled with historic artifacts telling the story of the school and the city.

For instance, one room on the first floor of the school is filled with dozens of historic photographs of past Virginia City school children. The photos feature classes from the late 19th century as well as the mid-20th century.

In an adjacent room is the exhibit, “A Comstock Lesson,” which offers an overview history of the Comstock region including information about the initial discovery of silver, the Bank of California’s control of the Comstock mines, the story of Sutro Tunnel, the history of the Virginia and Truckee Railroad, and other aspects of Virginia City’s rich history.

Another room contains reminders of the school’s glory days such as desks and old chalkboards. The school’s basement houses restroom facilities and the old janitor’s storage area, which is filled with an assortment of old doors and other paraphernalia.

While the building boasts a modern elevator, walking to the second floor is a special treat because you can trudge up the worn wooden steps used by so many generations of Virginia City students and almost feel their presence.

The Fourth Ward School is located at 537 C Street at the south end of Virginia City (the Gold Hill side). The museum is open daily from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. from May to October. A donation is recommended. For more information call 775-847-0975.—Richard Moreno