Blast to the Past: A Tour of Nevada's Historical Sites

( 0 Votes ) This is a story I wrote. I know my dialogue and citation are not properly noted but meh whatever ;-P

---

“I’m John and this is my wife Selma.” It’s nice to meet you both, welcome to Sagebrush51. My name is Serina and I will be your guide. Today we will be visiting Winnemucca, Virginia City, Elko, and the El Rancho in Las Vegas. We will be visiting all of these locations in altered time. “You mean we will visit them in the past right?” Yes, exactly. I’m sure you two already know about our ‘protocol’ from your briefing session, but I am required to go over it again with you again. We have only two rules here. Rule one, the Sagebrush51 base is strictly classified so that means no pictures of this airbase or anything on this base. Rule number two, have a good time. “Oh you bet I will. I spent a small fortune for this trip.” Alright then, step into the TTA so we can get going. “The TTA?” Yes, the Time Travel Aircraft. Everything is ready, our first destination is Winnemucca the year will be 1880. So buckle up because here we go.

“That’s it?” Yes, here we are in 1880 Winnemucca, Nevada. “That happened so quickly.” Of course the coordinates are preset so all I have to do is push a button and we can travel through history in the blink of an eye. “That’s amazing.” So is Winnemucca. Winnemucca is a beautiful town as you can see. Look across the lake and you will see the Winnemucca Hotel. It’s a finely crafted building made of brick and was built not to long ago in 1863 by the original riverbank settlement. Except for the homicides that occur so often here, Winnemucca is a placid place. “Homicides are you serious? This place seems so peaceful.” Oh yes this quiet little town is situated on a line of extensive travel where persons of all nations come in contact which results in frequent confrontations and homicide. Just up ahead you will see a cemetery where many settlers and homicide victims are buried. “John this is creepy lets go to the next place on the list.” “Alright dear. Serina can we move on?” Of course, our next destination is Virginia City the year is 1863.

Virginia City is the largest and most famous mining boomtown currently in Nevada. It came into existence virtually overnight as a result of the Comstock Lode silver strike of 1859. Some consider Virginia City to be the birthplace of Mark Twain. It was here in 1863 that writer Samuel Clemens, a reporter on the local Territorial Enterprise newspaper, first used his famous pen name. “Wow can we meet Mark Twain?” No, we will get to see Mr. Clemens but we won’t be able to communicate with him. For the security of history, the altered time that we are in prohibits us from interfering with this reality. In other words, we will get to see and hear Mr. Clemens but he will not be able to see or hear us. “That bites.” “John don’t be so rude.” “Come on, I paid all of that money and I don’t even get to talk to Mark Twain.” It’s clearly stated in our pamphlets and on your contract sir. “This is a scam. If I don’t get to talk to Mark Twain then I want to leave and I want a full refund.” “But John I still want to see Elko and El Rancho.” Well sir there is no way for you to get your money back at this point. You have already visited a location in altered time. “See John we might as well finish this trip and make the best of it.” “Fine but I don’t want to stay here.” Ok sir we’ll head back to the TTA so we can get to our next destination, Elko.

This is Elko, Nevada the year is 1907. This is the year the Western Pacific Railroad reached Elko. Also mining was revived in this area as a result of the excitement that radiated from Tonopah and Goldfield. Elko was founded as a railroad-promoted town site and railhead for the White Pine mines in 1869. You might be unable to tell but Elko is a cow town, the livestock business is soaring here as a result of the mining boom. Prosperity will continue to climb here until Elko gets hit with a one-two punch delivered by the failure of the Wingfield banking chain and the national depression. Here on Railroad Street you can see G.S. Garcia’s famous saddle shop. Garcia is one of the foremost western saddle makers at this time. His American Eagle saddle won gold medals at both the 1904 St. Louis World’s Fair and the 1905 Lewis and Clark Exposition at Portland Oregon. “Boring, what’s next?” “John I can’t believe you are acting this way, you are ruining the trip.” I suppose we should travel to our final destination. Our last stop will be at the El Rancho in 1941, the year that it opened.

Today is the grand opening of the El Rancho. This resort is modeled in a western ranch-styled theme as you can see. Look there goes the owner of El Rancho Thomas Hull. Mr. Hull wanted this casino to be a true destination resort, where all of a guest's needs would be met, so he decided to combine a hotel with a casino. This made the El Rancho the first full-scale casino resort on Highway 91 south of Las Vegas. There are a few isolated gambling clubs on Highway 91, but no full-fledged casino hotels. The El Rancho will be very successful and will trigger a small building boom in the later 1940s including construction of several hotel-casinos fronting on a two-lane highway leading into Las Vegas from Los Angeles. Within ten years that stretch of road will eventually become our present day Las Vegas Strip. Sadly, the El Rancho will be razed by fire on June 17, 1960 and its central structure will burn to the ground. It will never be rebuilt. In our present time, 2008, the land where the El Rancho once stood is now just a vacant lot.

Alright this concludes our trip to the past. As a gift from Sagebrush51 you will receive a complimentary five night stay with tickets to the five free shows of your choice and your own personal chief while you enjoy your stay at the Wynn Hotel. Thank you for time traveling with Sagebrush51. I hope you will cherish this memory forever. I will drop you off in the TTA at the Wynn or back at the base if you like. “You can drop us off at the hotel.” Great, let’s head back to the present. Well here you are. “I enjoyed this trip very much. You are a great tour guide.” Why thank you. “Didn’t you like this tour of the past John?” “Yes it wasn’t that bad apart from the fact that I could talk to Mark Twain.” I apologize for that sir but I hope you enjoy your stay at the Wynn. “We will thank you.” Good bye. “Bye.”  


Works Cited:

Toll, David W. “The Nevada Travel Network Description and History of Winnemucca.” Nevada Web.

“Virginia City: Answers.com” Answers Corporation

Toll, David W. “The Nevada Travel Network Description and History of Virginia City.” Nevada Web.

Toll, David W. The Nevada Travel Network Description and History of Elko.” Nevada Web.

“History of Las Vegas.” Charleston Communications.

“El Rancho Vegas History.” University of Nevada Las Vegas.

• Add New

Comments (0)

Write comment

Your Contact Details:

Name:

Email:

Website:

Comment:

Title:

UBBCode:         -color-aquablackbluefuchsiagraygreenlimemaroonnavyolivepurpleredsilvertealwhiteyellow -size-tinysmallmediumlargehuge

Message:

Security

Please input the anti-spam code that you can read in the image.

Joomla components by Compojoom

< Prev		Next >

Newest Articles	Most Viewed Articles
Minecraft Bomberman Map The Holy Bible: Numbers 25 The Holy Bible: Numbers 24 Half Devil Half Child The Bible and Immigration	Monster Hunter Freedom Unite (PSP) New Castlevania Judgment Movie Trailer Contact Owner - Lost Password - Join the Staff - Report Issues PSP go Accessories *TGS* The Force Unleashed Interview *PC*