Dear HRPS Members,
The frost is on the pumpkin and Thanksgiving will be here before you know it. In this season of thanksgiving, let me thank all of you, our members, who have continued to support us by attending our virtual events, advocating for historic preservation, engaging friends and neighbors by sharing FootPrints or our monthly newsletter, and for your generous donations. We have received more Lifetime memberships in the past 12 months than in any other year!
This month's newsletter is about increasing our awareness, from Sharon Honig-Bear's November 9 presentation on Hebrew Cemeteries in Northern Nevada, Frank Mullen's presentation on November 3 about the importance of journalism in Telling the Stories of our State (with our own Alicia Barber as one of the moderators), a look at the historic significance of Nevada Day, and then several articles from the National Trust for Historic Preservation on the dilemma of using historic former places of enslavement as event venues, and virtual tours of several National Heritage sites. Be sure to scroll down to see what a Thanksgiving meal would have cost 100 years ago in Reno.
We hope in this season of thanksgiving you will find time to be with loved ones and to share memories of favorite times and places, helping keep that history alive.
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November Program "Hebrew Cemeteries in Northern Nevada" Tuesday, November 9, 2021 5:30pm via Zoom |
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Sharon Honig-Bear is a HRPS Board member, Tour Guide and a Past President of HRPS as well as a past Chair of the City of Reno Arts & Culture Commission.
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This presentation looks at the early days of Jewish presence in Nevada and the need to establish cemeteries for their population. The Comstock brought Jews to Nevada—engineers, storekeepers, traders, doctors, journalists, lawyers and of course, fortune seekers. While the Jewish population didn’t exceed one percent of the population, after the Comstock, the majority of Carson City and Reno dry goods shops were operated by Jews. It was a priority for early Jewish settlers to establish a cemetery. Reno’s Hebrew cemetery was begun in 1875 and follows Jewish customs. It is the only entirely Jewish cemetery in Nevada. |
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Program is free and open to the public but advance registration is required. |
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Frank X. Mullen
"Telling the Stories of our State"
In conversation with Alicia Barber and Anjeanette Damon
Moderated by Chris Moran
Wednesday, November 3, 2021 12 Noon via Zoom |
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Join Nevada Humanities for an online conversation with veteran reporter and celebrated writer, Frank X. Mullen, winner of the 2021 Robert Laxalt Distinguished Writer Award. Moderated by former newspaper reporter and editor Chris Moran, Mullen will be joined in conversation by Alicia Barber, a public historian and author working at the intersections of public memory, historic landscapes, and community identity, and Anjeanette Damon, a Reno-based investigative reporter for ProPublica’s Southwest office. Panelists will discuss the history and future of local journalism in Reno and how to tell the truth about this region.
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In 2021, Mullen was inducted into the Nevada Newspaper Hall of Fame and is the recipient of the 2021 Robert Laxalt Distinguished Writer Award.
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Program is free and open to the public. Advance registration is required |
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Frank X. Mullen is a Reno-based journalist, author, historian, and Chautauqua scholar. He has been a newspaperman for 41 years, including 25 years as an investigative reporter at the Reno Gazette-Journal. He is the author of The Donner Party Chronicles, a history of the Donner Party. Mullen has been a Chautauqua performer since 1998. His historical characters include Babe Ruth, Henry VIII, and Albert Einstein. Mullen, now editor of the Reno News & Review, has appeared in documentaries on the History Channel, PBS, and other networks. He was an adjunct instructor of journalism at the University of Nevada, Reno, and continues to teach classes at Truckee Meadows Community College. |
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Nevada Day - Celebration of Statehood |
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A parade celebrating Nevada Day runs through Reno in 1934. The annual parade later moved to Carson City in 1938. (Nevada Historical Society/Courtesy)
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Sunday, October 31, 2021 marked 157 years since Nevada became a state. The first official acknowledgement of Nevada Day took place in 1891 after then-Gov Roswell Colcord signed a bill making Oct. 31 a judicial holiday. It later became a state holiday and, since 1938, the parade has been an annual fixture in Carson City, with a few exceptions: several years during World War II and last year because of the pandemic. In 1999, the state legislature passed a law making the last Friday of the month the official state holiday. Read more about Nevada Day celebrations. |
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The Nevada Women's History Project (NWHP) entered a float in the 2021 parade commemorating the signing of the 19th amendment giving women the right to vote and encouraging everyone to "honor their sacrifice" by voting in every election. Did you know Nevada approved the vote for women in 1914, six years before the 19th amendment was ratified? Women had been campaigning for the right to vote since Nevada became a state in 1864. Read biographies of Nevada suffragists here. Pictured at right, the parade float with Governor Boyle as he prepares to recreate the 1920 signing of Nevada's ratification of the 19th amendment. |
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Reconsidering Celebrations at Places of Enslavement |
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Reconsidering Celebrations at Sites of Enslavement continues that conversation by chronicling the history of sites of enslavement in the National Trust portfolio and the resulting actions taken by the National Trust to ethically steward those sites, while also providing initial guidance for other historic properties addressing similar considerations across the country.
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In 2019, Color of Change, the country’s largest online racial justice organization, raised important issues regarding the practice of hosting weddings and other celebrations at historic slave plantation sites.
In response, the National Trust for Historic Preservation hosted in December 2020 the Plantation Weddings Symposium, which brought together staff who work at the National Trust’s sites of enslavement, descendants of slavery, and public historians to work collectively to come up with new strategies, solutions, and questions on how to ethically steward sites of enslavement. The symposium was a collaboration between the National Trust's Historic Sites Department and the African American Cultural Heritage Action Fund.
Read all 6 stories. |
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Commerce and Industry:
A Virtual Tour of Four National Historic Trust Sites |
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This virtual tour highlights four of the National Historic Trust's 27 historic sites, centering on those related to commerce and industry. Buildings to be visited: - The Cooper Molina building in Monterey, CA
- The Gaylord building in Lockport, IL
- The Hotel de Paris in Georgetown, CO
- The Tenement Building in New York City
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Presidential Accommodations:
A Virtual Tour of Five National Historic Trust Sites |
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The tour continues with five historic buildings with connections to presidents. Featured in this article: - Montpelier - James Madison
- Woodlawn - George Washington
- Decatur House - Washington, DC
- President Lincoln's Cottage - Washington, DC
- Woodrow Wilson's House - Washington,DC
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Imagine Reno 100 Years Ago |
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While we can't go back in time, we still have vestiges of Old Reno all around town.
Download the Reno Historical app or go to the Reno Historical website for an instant mini-history. Each historical vignette contains a photo of an old building and a story about its history. Introduce yourself to our city a little at a time and you'll be amazed at how quickly you feel like an old timer! |
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Encourage Your Friends to Join HRPS! |
The Reno landscape is changing every day, new buildings going up, and sadly, some old ones coming down. HRPS is "Dedicated to Preserving and Promoting Historic Resources in the Truckee Meadows through Education, Advocacy and Leadership" HRPS has nearly 500 members, and your membership is a vote 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. Members enjoy monthly e-mail newsletters, our information-packed quarterly FootPrints magazine, free admission to walking tours and certain other HRPS events, plus the knowledge you are helping support historic preservation in Reno. |
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Help Preserve Our History |
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The Historic Reno Preservation Society is your voice for historic preservation in the Reno area. We strive to keep members up to date on interesting buildings, development that threatens historic structures, and provide you with timely and interesting information to enrich your appreciation of local history, whether you're a multi-generation Nevadan, or brand new to town. |
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Historic Reno Preservation Society is a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization dedicated to preserving and promoting historic resources in the Truckee Meadows through education, advocacy, and leadership. |
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Historic Reno Preservation Society | P.O. Box 14003, Reno, NV 89507 board@historicreno.org | 775-747-4478
Virginia Street Bridge photos courtesy of Nevada Historical Society
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