The habitat of the Eastern Sierra must have been a welcome refuge for explorers Kit Carson and John C. Fremont as they rode into Eagle Valley during their 1840s quest to map the West. To the east, long stretches of desert mark the difficult terrain settlers had to endure to get here. To the west, the Sierra Nevada mountains stretch out as a gateway to the Pacific.

During that time, Northern Nevada saw its first wave of white settlers. The Bidwell-Bartleson party is believed to have made their way through the area in 1841. Westbound traffic increased, spurred by the big boom of 1848-1849 when the discovery of California gold ignited the frontier spirit and transformed Eagle Valley.

By 1851, Eagle Station, a trading post and small ranch on the Carson Branch of the California Emigrant Trail, served as a stopover for travel-weary gold prospectors.
According to historical accounts, the station and surrounding valley took their names from an eagle shot by Frank Hall with his ball-and-cap Colt and mounted on the trading post wall. Frank, brother W.L. Hall and George Jollenshee ran the ranch, located at the current site of Fifth and Thompson streets.

In 1858, Abraham Curry bought Eagle Station when he found lots in Genoa to be too expensive. Carson City’s future designation as a capital was largely the fruit of Curry’s labor. He left a 10-acre plaza in the city center for his predicted location of the state capitol as he laid plans for the city’s future.

In 1859, gold prospectors hit silver in the hills east of Carson City. The Comstock Lode, as it was called, was the largest silver find in world history. Tens of thousands of miners poured into Carson City and Virginia City.

In the 1860s, Carson City was a station on the Pony Express and the Overland mail under both Butterfield and Wells, Fargo and Co. In 1861, true to Curry’s prediction, and largely because of his shrewd maneuvers, Carson City became the capital of the Nevada Territory.

Despite its small population and expansive territory (Nevada is the seventh largest state), statehood was inevitable. War was brewing in the east, and Nevada’s wealth, as well as its congressional votes, would prove vital to the Union war effort. Nevada was granted statehood on October 31, 1864. Each year Nevada’s “Battle Born” roots are celebrated in Carson City with the Nevada Day parade.

Prosperity continued when the Big Bonanza, another major silver strike, was discovered in 1873. Construction of the Virginia and Truckee Railroad served the mines by transporting ore and timber.

Carson City is the capital of the state of Nevada in the United States of America. As of the 2000 census, its population is 52,457. Carson City is now an independent city, not part of any county. Like many towns in Nevada, Carson City was founded in the boom days of mining — in the case of Carson City, silver mining. It was the county seat of the former (1861-1969) Ormsby County, and was named for explorer Kit Carson.

Carson City was one of five state capitals not served by an interstate highway. Dover, Delaware; Jefferson City, Missouri; Juneau, Alaska; and Pierre, South Dakota are the other four state capitals with this distinction. This changed on February 16, 2006 with the opening of Phase 1 of the Carson City Freeway Project; a four lane stretch between Lakeview Hill and US 50. This will eventually be renamed Interstate 580 when the link between Reno and Carson City is complete. With the completion of Phase 2, the Carson City Freeway will loop around the city and end near US 50 to the south.

Carson City has the distinction of being the smallest of the 361 Metropolitan Statistical Areas as designated by the United States Census Bureau (as of 1 July 2004).

The largest nearby city to Carson City is Reno, about 30 miles to the north.
A supply station for miners in the valley, it achieved importance with the discovery (1859) of the Comstock Lode and became the terminus of the railroad carrying ore. In 1861, when the Territory of Nevada was created, the city was made the capital, and in 1864 it became the state capital. Carson City and Ormsby co. were consolidated into one community in 1969. A U.S. mint, closed in 1893, is now the Nevada State Museum. Lake Tahoe and the Carson River are nearby.

Considered a small town by most visitors, “The Biggest Little City” is full of surprises. The Truckee Meadows offers year-round entertainment, sports activities and special events. The town is undergoing Reno-vation and it shows; the downtown area has revitalized itself with major changes along Virginia Street and the Truckee River Walk. Business people will have every amenity necessary to make their stay pleasurable, while family vacationers will find activities for each member to enjoy. Accommodations are available to suit everyone at very reasonable rates compared to most vacation spots. Sparks, our neighboring city to the north, and Lake Tahoe both have excellent lodging and are included in this guide.

If you are a traveling on business, accessibility and convenience may be a factor when you decide where to stay. The Airport Plaza Hotel is located right outside the Reno/Tahoe Airport for your traveling convenience and they offer shuttle buses to and from the airport. To stay near the Reno/Sparks Convention Center, the Atlantis Casino is located directly across from it to make your commute a breeze. The marvelous Peppermill Hotel is in the same vicinity with some of the best rooms in town. If you are a big spender in the casino or have an extra $5,000, you might want to spend a night in the Safari Suite. And, of course, you might want to mix a little pleasure with your business. Most of the major casinos have huge convention areas including John Ascuaga’s Nugget in Sparks with more than 100,000 square feet of meeting facilities, not to mention the fine casino and restaurants. The Silver Legacy downtown offers 150,000 square feet of convention space and has excellent catering and convention services.

Reno is more than just a gambling town; gone are the days when the casinos catered only to adults; here to stay are the family-oriented resorts we see today. This new era of casino resorts offers entertainment for people of all ages. Most resorts have elaborate arcades and some even have actual thrill rides to keep the kids busy; families come to the “Biggest Little City” from all over the world to enjoy them. You can indulge in any number of adventures and outdoor activities that will keep the entire group happy. Boomtown Casino is a great place for kids to have fun while the parents might be trying their luck at the machines or table games. Another obvious choice might be Circus Circus. The Reno Hilton offers a large arcade and a bowling alley for both children and adults to enjoy. (more…)

RTC’s Citifare bus system covers most of Reno’s metropolitan area. The routes generally go to and from downtown - the main transfer site is near Victoria St. Most routes run Monday to Saturday from 07:00 to 19:00, though others have more restricted hours. If you’d prefer to drive, you’ll have no trouble renting a car - all the main agencies are based at the airport. Reno’s streets are easy to navigate, and a car is handy for getting between sites around the town.

Reno-Cannon International Airport sports direct flights to many West Coast destinations, as well as Dallas, Denver and Chicago. The airport is a few miles southeast of downtown. The easiest ways to get into the city from the airport are to catch the local bus or drive along Highway 395.

The Greyhound bus network links Sacramento and San Francisco throughout the day and at least daily to Los Angeles, Las Vegas and Salt Lake City. Trains can also get you to Sacramento and San Francisco but they’re more expensive than the buses.

The Truckee River runs through town, as does the Union Pacific Railroad, Interstate 80 (east-west) and US 395 (north-south).Reno has an extensive bus system called Citifare, which is provided by the Regional Transportation System of Washoe County. The bus system has its main terminal in downtown Reno and secondary terminals in Sparks and at Meadowood Mall in south Reno. The RTC also has a service Called Citilift that provides transport for handicapped people. PRIDE buses link Reno to Carson City.

The city also provides a free bus service up and down Virginia Street called the Sierra Spirit, whose bright yellow busses are easily recognizible. This regular service is free of charge.

Amtrak also serves the city of Reno. Amtrak train 5, the westbound California Zephyr, departs Reno every morning and serves the cities of Truckee, Colfax, Roseville, Sacramento, Davis, Martinez, Emeryville, and Sacramento. Amtrak train 6, the eastbound California Zephyr, departs Reno every afternoon and serves the cities of Sparks, Winnemucca, Elko, Salt Lake, Provo, Helper, Green River, Grand Junction, Glenwood Springs, Denver, Omaha, Galesburg, and Chicago.

Amtrak California Thruway Motorcoaches also arrive and depart Reno four times daily in each direction connecting to and from the Coast Starlight, Capitol Corridor, and San Joaquin trains at Sacramento, California. The city is served by Reno/Tahoe International Airport, with general aviation traffic also handled by Reno Stead Airport.

As of the censusGR2 of 2000, there were 180,480 people, 73,904 households, and 41,681 families residing in the city. The population density was 1,008.3/km² (2,611.4/mi²). There were 79,453 housing units at an average density of 443.9/km² (1,149.6/mi²). The racial makeup of the city was 77.46% White, 2.58% African American, 1.26% Native American, 5.29% Asian, 0.56% Pacific Islander, 9.26% from other races, and 3.60% from two or more races. 19.18% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race.

There were 73,904 households out of which 27.6% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 40.5% were married couples living together, 10.6% had a female householder with no husband present, and 43.6% were non-families. 32.6% of all households were made up of individuals and 9.2% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.38 and the average family size was 3.06.

In the city the population was spread out with 23.2% under the age of 18, 11.8% from 18 to 24, 31.5% from 25 to 44, 22.2% from 45 to 64, and 11.4% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 34 years. For every 100 females there were 104.6 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 104.0 males.

The median income for a household in the city was $40,530, and the median income for a family was $49,582. Males had a median income of $33,204 versus $26,763 for females. The per capita income for the city was $22,520. 12.6% of the population and 8.3% of families were below the poverty line. 16.3% of those under the age of 18 and 7.1% of those 65 and older were living below the poverty line.

Universities and Colleges

The University of Nevada, Reno is the oldest university in the state of Nevada and Nevada System of Higher Education. In 1886, the state university, previously only a college preparatory school, moved from Elko in remote northeastern Nevada to a site north of downtown Reno, where it became a full-fledged state college. The university’s first building, Morill Hall, still stands on the historic quad at the campus’ southern end.

The university grew slowly over the decades, but began to expand rapidly along with the rest of the state and currently has an enrollment of approximately 15,000, with most students hailing from within Nevada. Among its specialties are mining engineering, agriculture, journalism, and one of only two Basque Studies programs in the nation. It also houses the only judicial college in the United States.

Truckee Meadows Community College is a regionally accredited, two year institution which is part of the Nevada System of Higher Education. The college has an enrollment of approximately 13,000 students attending classes at a primary campus and four satellite centers. The college offers a wide range of academic and university transfer programs, occupational training, career enhancement workshops, and classes just for fun.

Courses are conducted daytime and evening in the classroom, by cablecast, and on the Internet. TMCC offers associate of arts, associate of science, associate of applied science or associate of general studies degrees, one-year certificates, or certificates of completion in more than 50 career fields, including architecture, auto/diesel mechanics, criminal justice, dental hygiene, graphic design, nursing, and welding.

Public schools

Public education is provided by the Washoe County School District.
Reno has eleven public high schools: Damonte Ranch High School, Galena High School, Hug High School, I Can Do Anything Charter High School, Robert McQueen High School, North Valleys High School, Regional Technical Institute High School, Reno High School, Truckee Meadows Community College High School, Washoe High School, and Earl Wooster High School.
There are also three public high schools in neighboring Sparks, attended by many students who live in Reno: Edward C. Reed High School, Spanish Springs High School, and Sparks High School.
Reno-Sparks has 16 middle schools: Billinghurst, Clayton, Damonte Ranch, Dilworth, Gerlach, Incline, Mendive, O’Brien, Pine, Shaw, Spanish Springs, Sparks, Swope, Traner, Vaughn, and Washoe.
Reno-Sparks’s elementary schools are Allen, Anderson, Beasley, Jesse Beck, Bennett, Booth, Brown, Cannan, Caughlin Ranch, Corbett, Desert Heights, Diedrichsen, Dodson, Donner Springs, Double Diamond, Drake, Duncan, Dunn, Elmcrest, Gomes, Roy Gomm, Greenbrae, Hidden Valley, Huffaker, Hunsberger, Hunter Lake, Incline, Johnson, Juniper, Lemmon Valley, Elizabeth Lenz, Lincoln Park, Loder, Mathews, Maxwell, Melton, Mitchell, Moss, Mount Rose, Natchez, Palmer, Peavine, Picollo Special Education School, Pleasant Valley, Risley, Sierra Vista, Silver Lake, Alice Smith, Kate Smith, Smithridge, Spanish Springs, Stead, Sun Valley, Taylor, Towles, Van Gorder, Verdi, Veterans Memorial, Warner, Westergaurd, Whitehead, and Winnemucca.

Private schools

Reno has several private high schools, the largest of which is Bishop Manogue High School. The only college preparatory school in Reno is Sage Ridge School.

As early as the 1850s a few pioneers settled in the Truckee Meadows, a relatively fertile valley through which the Truckee River made its way from Lake Tahoe to Pyramid Lake. In addition to subsistence farming, these early residents could pick up a bit of business from travellers along the California Trail, which followed the Truckee westward, before branching off towards Donner Lake, where the formidable obstacle of the Sierras began.

Gold had been discovered in the vicinity of Virginia City in 1850 and a modest mining community developed, but the discovery of silver in 1859 led to one of the greatest mining bonanzas of all time as the Comstock Lode spewed forth treasure. The Comstock’s closest connection to the outside world lay in the Truckee Meadows.

To provide the necessary connection between Virginia City and the California Trail, Charles Fuller built a log toll bridge across the Truckee River in 1859. A small community to service travellers soon grew up near the bridge. After two years, Fuller sold the bridge to Myron Lake, who continued to develop the community with the addition of a grist mill, kiln, and livery stable to the hotel and eating house. The tiny community acquired the name Lake’s Crossing.

Reno

In 1868, the Central Pacific Railroad, building tracks across the west to connect with the Union Pacific, built from the east to form the first transcontinental railroad. Myron Lake, realizing what a rail connection would mean for business, deeded land to the Central Pacific in exchange for its promise to build a depot at Lake’s Crossing. Once the railroad station was established, the town of Reno officially came into being on May 13, 1868. The new town was named in honor of Major General Jesse L. Reno, a Union officer killed in the American Civil War. (Had Jesse Reno not changed the spelling of his name early in life, presumably the biggest little city would today be Renault, Nevada.) (more…)

Reno is the county seat of Washoe County, Nevada. As of the 2000 census, the city had a total population of 180,480, making it the third largest city in Nevada, after Las Vegas and Henderson. Current estimates place the population of the city proper at 207,000. Reno lies 26 miles north of the Nevada state capital, Carson City, and 22 miles north-east of Lake Tahoe in the high desert. Reno shares its eastern border with the city of Sparks. Reno, known as The Biggest Little City in the World, is famous for its casinos, and is the birthplace of the gaming corporation Harrah’s Entertainment.

Reno is the corporate headquarters for International Game Technology, which manufactures most of the world’s slot machines.Reno is one of the fastest-growing U.S. cities. It has an international airport and serves as a distribution and warehouse center, where commercial goods can be stored tax-free for nearby manufacturing plants. Concrete, automated gaming systems, Western buckles and accessories, beverage dispensers, and plastic and metal products are manufactured. There is alfalfa processing and mining for gold and silver.

The site was once a popular campsite beside a ford on the Donner Pass route to California; in 1860 a bridge was built. The name Lake’s Crossing was changed to Reno when the Central Pacific RR arrived in 1868 and the town was laid out. In the 1990s officials began deemphasizing gambling; one result was the building of the National Bowling Stadium.

Reno is the seat of the Univ. of Nevada, with its school of mines museum and Desert Research Institute. The city is also the headquarters for the Toiyabe National Forest. Lake Tahoe, Pyramid Lake, and other recreational areas and state parks are in the vicinity.