I’d have to admit, before Jimmy and I had family settle in Reno, the only thing I could tell you about the fourth most populous city in Nevada was it’s an hour’s drive from the airport to that beautiful alpine body of water, Lake Tahoe. Oh, and there are slot machines all over Reno airport.
This fertile valley, informally called Truckee Meadows, is tucked between two stunning mountain ranges, the Sierra Nevada and the Virginia Range. Reno has always been a great place to gamble, from mining for gold in the mountains or in the casinos.
To provide a convenient connection between Virginia City (as in Nevada) and the California Trail, Charles W. Fuller gambled on striking it rich when he erected his log toll bridge in 1859 over the Truckee River and then waited for the '49ers to come to him.
Fuller undoubtedly lost a fortune when he sold his bridge to Myron C. Lake two years later. Myron ran with the hand he’d been dealt and came up with a full house, adding a grist mill, kiln and livery stable to the existing hotel and eating house. Lake earned the title, “Founder of Reno” to go along with his good fortune.
Ya gotta know when to hold ‘em, and know when to fold ‘em.
Ya gotta know, too, there’s more to Reno than gambling. Here’s what I know when it comes to Reno.
This fertile valley, informally called Truckee Meadows, is tucked between two stunning mountain ranges, the Sierra Nevada and the Virginia Range. Reno has always been a great place to gamble, from mining for gold in the mountains or in the casinos.
To provide a convenient connection between Virginia City (as in Nevada) and the California Trail, Charles W. Fuller gambled on striking it rich when he erected his log toll bridge in 1859 over the Truckee River and then waited for the '49ers to come to him.
Fuller undoubtedly lost a fortune when he sold his bridge to Myron C. Lake two years later. Myron ran with the hand he’d been dealt and came up with a full house, adding a grist mill, kiln and livery stable to the existing hotel and eating house. Lake earned the title, “Founder of Reno” to go along with his good fortune.
Ya gotta know when to hold ‘em, and know when to fold ‘em.
Ya gotta know, too, there’s more to Reno than gambling. Here’s what I know when it comes to Reno.
7 Things You Might Not Know About Reno, Nevada
1. Wild horses are near and dear to this Wild West town! Of course, if you’re a fan of A Place Called Roam, you know this factoid is not really new news. If you’re not a fan, join the party, but not before you check out yesterday’s blog for anything and everything about America’s living legends roaming Reno.
1. Wild horses are near and dear to this Wild West town! Of course, if you’re a fan of A Place Called Roam, you know this factoid is not really new news. If you’re not a fan, join the party, but not before you check out yesterday’s blog for anything and everything about America’s living legends roaming Reno.
No chomping at the bit for these two wild mustangs.
2. During my recent random poll of Reno residents, only two of the ten pollees knew of Major General Jesse Lee Reno’s connection to the city of Reno; of course with minimal prompting (as in enunciating very slowly the name Major General Jesse Lee R-E-N-O), most made the connection.
Had you going there for a minute with the poll, didn’t I? But the basic facts are accurate. Seems Major General Jesse Lee Reno, a Union officer in the American Civil War, was killed during the Battle of South Mountain (I hate when that happens!). Major General Reno was obviously as popular as he was heroic; Reno County, Kansas, Reno, Nevada, El Reno, Oklahoma and Fort Reno in Washington, D.C. were all named after the Major General.
Had you going there for a minute with the poll, didn’t I? But the basic facts are accurate. Seems Major General Jesse Lee Reno, a Union officer in the American Civil War, was killed during the Battle of South Mountain (I hate when that happens!). Major General Reno was obviously as popular as he was heroic; Reno County, Kansas, Reno, Nevada, El Reno, Oklahoma and Fort Reno in Washington, D.C. were all named after the Major General.
Major General Jesse Lee Reno; photo courtesy of Wikipedia.
3. Dallas residents are called Dallasites. Doesn’t take a rocket scientist to know where Grand Rapidians live? Did you know Jaxons hail from Jacksonville, Vegans from Las Vegas, and Sacramentans from Sacramento? Those last few demonyms (today's fancy-pants word for the name of a resident of a locality) were all news to me, and presented for your consideration. So, can you guess the demonym for residents of Reno? You’ll find the answer somewhere in today’s post.
Renoites Brian & Rachel (Jim's daughter) pose on the same spot (Lake Tahoe) where Brian proposed. Sweet!
4. It was during the Transcontinental Highways Exposition of 1927 that Reno’s gateway “Arch” was erected. Not until Mayer E.E. Roberts offered a $100 prize for the best slogan to grace the Arch did the City Council get an entry deemed worthy. Sacramentan G.A. Burns is credited with Reno’s new catchy city slogan.
No gambling for Jimmy and me, hence the Wikipedia image. We lost all our money over the holiday, anyway.
5. Reno’s famous Virginia Street Bridge, built in 1905 over the Truckee River to commemorate Charles Fuller’s original log toll bridge at the heart of this Wild West town, earned the nickname the “Bridge of Sighs” during the first half of the 1900s.
Over 30,000 divorces were granted in the Washoe County Courthouse during the 1930s, when Reno was the only place in the world where “quickie divorces” could be had in six weeks rather than the minimum 12-month industry standard at the time. According to popular legend, women “Reno-vated” after the required six-week Reno “vacation” would kiss a column on the Courthouse portico on their way out, then walk to the Virginia Street Bridge and toss their wedding rings into the Truckee River.
Apparently the trend caught on, because when three buddies applied for and were granted a permit to dredge in the waters beneath the Virginia Street Bridge in the summer of 1976, they came away with 90 rings, hundreds of pounds of silver coins and a good number of casino chips. Their efforts over the next three summers netted more than 400 rings total, although few were worth much; as much as the marriages that ended with the tradition, perhaps.
At least two movies, the 1939 Reno, and the 1960s The Misfits, starring Clark Gable and Marilyn Monroe, incorporated ring-tossing scenes to depict this Reno legend. I much prefer the heartwarming 21st century trend involving lovers and locks and tossing keys. Check out this latest trend via this link to my most popular post to date.
Over 30,000 divorces were granted in the Washoe County Courthouse during the 1930s, when Reno was the only place in the world where “quickie divorces” could be had in six weeks rather than the minimum 12-month industry standard at the time. According to popular legend, women “Reno-vated” after the required six-week Reno “vacation” would kiss a column on the Courthouse portico on their way out, then walk to the Virginia Street Bridge and toss their wedding rings into the Truckee River.
Apparently the trend caught on, because when three buddies applied for and were granted a permit to dredge in the waters beneath the Virginia Street Bridge in the summer of 1976, they came away with 90 rings, hundreds of pounds of silver coins and a good number of casino chips. Their efforts over the next three summers netted more than 400 rings total, although few were worth much; as much as the marriages that ended with the tradition, perhaps.
At least two movies, the 1939 Reno, and the 1960s The Misfits, starring Clark Gable and Marilyn Monroe, incorporated ring-tossing scenes to depict this Reno legend. I much prefer the heartwarming 21st century trend involving lovers and locks and tossing keys. Check out this latest trend via this link to my most popular post to date.
Construction of a new $17 million Virginia Street Bridge is slated to begin this spring. Wikipedia photo.
6. Nevada is one of the most seismically active states in the nation. Reno experiences dozens of earthquakes a year, most of them too weak for people to notice. According to earthquaketrack.com, Reno had 6 earthquakes in the past 7 days, 16 earthquakes in the past month, and 37 earthquakes in the past year. No activity yet today, but it's early. I'm always quaking in my boots when I visit Reno!
All that seismic activity undoubtedly contributed significantly to the beautiful Sierra Nevada over the years.
7. Reno is home to the largest free hot air balloon event in the world. The 2013 Great Reno Balloon Race, held the first weekend in September, was the event’s 32nd anniversary. Each year, hundreds of hot air balloons rise in mass ascension from Rancho San Rafael Park. Guess when I plan to make my next to Reno?
Great Reno Balloon Race. Photo courtesy of Standley White.
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