January 2023

HRPS News & Updates

Dear HRPS Members,

Let me be among the first to wish you a Happy New Year! We look forward to providing you with engaging monthly programs, an expanded Walking Tour schedule, and - fingers crossed - the return of our Harvest of Homes Tour in September.

If you are interested in serving on the Home Tour committee, would like to have your home considered for the tour, or if you know someone with an historic home who would be willing to discuss the possibility of being on the tour, please contact Carol Coleman at board@historicreno.org or 775-849-3380.

Thinking of New Year's Resolutions? How about resolving to become more active with HRPS by serving on a committee or a board position? The position of Secretary is still open. This position requires a commitment of about 5 hours a month, primarily to attend the monthly board meeting and take minutes.

The position of President is still open as well, and while Carol Coleman has continued to perform some of the functions and I have been chairing our monthly board meetings, we still need to fill this position. You don't need to be an expert in historic preservation, but we do need someone with good leadership and organizational skills.

If educating residents and local officials about the importance of preserving our history is important to you, if you enjoy attending our programs and events, and if you want to see our work continue, please consider one of these positions, or let us know if you would like to recommend someone. Contact Carol Coleman for more information: board@historicreno.org or 775-849-3380.

Wishing you a very Happy New Year!

Debbie Hinman, Vice President

Historic Reno Preservation Society

paris652@nvbell.net

January Program

Sacred Waters, Secular Waters: A History of the 1902 Reclamation Act, Pyramid Lake, and the Truckee River

Matthew S. Makley, Ph.D.

Sunday, January 8, 2023, Noon-1:30pm

Downtown Reno Library, 301 S. Center Street

(Free street parking on Sundays)

Indigenous communities in the American West consider water to be sacred, but that has not been enough to protect it in American courts. As the twentieth century unfolded, Native communities had to find secular, and legally sound ways to protect sacred waters. Nowhere is this clearer than on the Northern Paiute Reservation at Pyramid Lake. This talk will focus briefly on the Reclamation Act of 1902, which set in motion the Truckee-Carson Reclamation Project, often referred to as the “Newlands Project.”

Matthew S. Makley, PhD, is a professor, and chair of the History Department at Metropolitan State University of Denver. He has authored two books. His recent, The Small Shall be Strong: A History of Lake Tahoe’s Washoe Indians (2018), won an American Library Association’s award for “Outstanding Academic Titles.” Born and raised at Lake Tahoe, Makley has lived in Golden, Colorado since 2007.

Nevada Historical Society and Washoe County Library present

High Noon with Neal Cobb

Camels on the Comstock

by Eric Moody

Thursday, January 23, 2023, 12 Noon via Zoom

Many people know that camels appeared in Nevada back in the 1860s during the Comstock mining era, and that they could be found hauling salt from various inland deposits to Virginia City, where it was used in the mills that processed silver ore. Less well-known is the fact that the exotic beasts of burden were featured in general freighting activity of the period.

Today’s presentation examines the wider use of camels in early Nevada freighting, focusing chiefly on their involvement in the commerce that sprang up between Virginia City and Austin, Nevada's principal mining centers.

Program is free but advance registration is required.

Eric Moody

Eric worked at the Nevada Historical Society in the mid-1970s as a contract employee. In 1980, he was hired as a regular staff person and became the Curator of Manuscripts in 1981. He took on the role of Acting Director in 2007 until his retirement in 2009.

Eric helped create the Nevada in the West magazine and was the editor from 2010-2017. He is the current editor of the Reese River Reveille – the pioneer newspaper that began in Austin, Nevada, in 1863, and appears now as a semi-annual history magazine/community newsletter.

Come in From the Cold Family Entertainment Series

One of our longest running park programs is back for another winter of fun family entertainment! Featuring a variety of performers throughout the series in the warm and cozy Western Heritage Interpretive Center, it's sure to be a hit with the entire family.

Doors open each week at 5:30pm, followed by the program at 7:00pm. Seating is limited! We recommend a $5 donation at the door to help fund the performances which usually last about an hour to an hour and a half. There will be complimentary coffee, tea, and pastries. For more information, please call (775) 828-6612.

Jan 7 - Northern NV Bluegrass Monday Night Volunteers

Jan 14 - Sierra Silverstrings Scottish Tunes

Jan 21 - Larry Maurice's Cowboy Poetry

Jan 28 - Front Porch

Feb 4 - Sage Creek Band

Feb 11 - Jazz Dixie Review

Feb 18 - The Birches

Feb 25 - Western Music & Cowboy Poetry with Richard Elloyan

March 4 - NNBA's Sunday Go To Meetin'

March 11 - Reno Youth Jazz Orchestra

Come in from the Cold Family Entertainment Series 2023 (washoecounty.gov)

For Your Reading List

In Close to the Land: Tales of Smith Valley, Nevada, Reno author Joyce Rowntree Phillips delivers tales filled with pitfalls, adventures, and pure western ingenuity.

Based on her experiences and those of various relatives, the book offers stories about farming, sheepherding, hunting, early aviation, general mischief-making, and even a rooster chase – all in Smith Valley, Nevada. Her book reads like Olds’s “Fifty Miles from a Match,” and Twain’s “Tom Sawyer,” says Nevada State Assemblywoman Robin Titus, M.D. “From the first story to the last, this book will warm your heart.”

In "Close to the Land: Tales of Smith Valley, Nevada," Joyce Phillips tells stories of life in a remote part of the Silver State • Reno News & Review (renonr.com)

New York Magazine's First Issue - April 8, 1968

New York Magazine takes a look back at its first issue on April 8, 1968. In this fun summary you'll find a time capsule of life in the late 1960s.

Here are a few items:

2001 A Space Odessey

Hello Dolly

"The Underground Cafe"

Plus, politics, the stock market, fashion trends, and more.

Excerpts From New York Magazine’s First Issue (nymag.com)

Reno Historical

The Hart-Keresey House

This Revival Pagoda-style home occupies 2/3 acre of what was Patrick Ranch land in the early part of the 20th century. George Hart was a popular piano player and crooner from southern California who performed at such popular nightspots as the Corner Bar of the Riverside Hotel, The Willows, and the Country Club. He and his wife Marie, who married in Reno in 1929, appear to have had the house built in 1934-1935.

Hart-Keresey House | Reno Historical

View this story and more at renohistorical.org.

Join HRPS Today!

HRPS is "Dedicated to Preserving and Promoting Historic Resources in the Truckee Meadows through Education, Advocacy and Leadership". With nearly 500 members, your membership is a vote and a voice for historic preservation.

Do you have friends, neighbors, or family members who share an interest in our mission? If so, forward a copy of this newsletter and encourage them to join HRPS!

A single membership is just $25/year ($45 for a family membership), and you can now join and pay online.

Benefits of Membership