The Biggest Little City in the World

Jill's Journal: Ready or not, it is time for us to get back out into the world. I think I need to verify that the sky is somehow still blue, the breeze somehow still blows, and that life somehow still hums around us. We decided to visit some of the iconic Reno, Nevada, spots as we slowly ease back into sightseeing.

Of course, the most iconic spot in all of Reno is the site of the famous arch right in the hub of downtown. This is the third arch to grace this spot since 1926. The famous Reno slogan, “The Biggest Little City in the World,” was the result of a contest the city held in 1929 to find a catchphrase. A Sacramento man won $100 for his slogan and, in spite of some Renoites (yes, that’s what residents call themselves) thinking it dated in 1934, it’s stuck ever since.

The original 1926 refurbished arch is installed on a side street not far away from the main arch. It was originally built to celebrate the Nevada Transcontinental Highway Exposition after the completion of the Lincoln and Victory Highways. Incidentally, Reno’s second arch, which stood from 1963 to 1987, was donated to the city of Willits, California. Oddly enough, we saw it there in May.

In the 1850s, a few pioneers settled in the general area of what is today known as Reno. The area was then called Truckee Meadows, as the Truckee River, Lake Tahoe’s only outlet, flows through the area on its way to the desert’s massive Pyramid Lake. The California Trail followed the Truckee westward before branching off toward Donner Lake and the crossing of the Sierras.

With the discovery of silver at the Comstock Lode in 1859, a man named Charles W. Fuller built a toll bridge across the Truckee River so travelers could reach the Comstock Lode’s Virginia City from the California Trail. Two years later, he sold his bridge to Myron C. Lake, who officially founded Reno (first called Lake’s Crossing), with a livery stable, grist mill, kiln, and other important community businesses. Lake’s home has endured and a picture of it is above.

Clearly a visionary, Lake deeded land to the Central Pacific Railroad in exchange for a depot at Lake’s Crossing. Within a short time, the railroad station became the largest settlement between Sacramento and Salt Lake City on the first transcontinental railroad. Reno became an official town in 1868, with the Central Pacific Railroad naming it after Union officer Jesse Lee Reno, who was decorated in the Mexican-American War and was killed in the Civil War at the Battle of South Mountain in Maryland.

Maybe because of its mining history and the lawlessness that accompanied a whole lot of young men with a whole lot of disposable income, Reno quickly capitalized on decadence and pleasure. Long before Las Vegas was known as “Sin City,” Reno held the title. Reno’s fate as a gambling town was sealed in 1931 when Nevada legalized casino gambling. Prior to the late 1950s, Reno was the gambling capital of the U.S.

But even more interesting, Reno was known as the “Divorce Capital of the World.” With liberal divorce laws when many other states had stringent requirements for divorce or didn’t allow it at all, Reno became a destination for those who wanted “the cure” for a bad marriage. It was publicized as early as 1909 as America’s “divorce headquarters.”

The Virginia Street Bridge, above, spans the relatively short distance over the Truckee River. But, it is steps from the courthouse where divorce was readily granted. It became tradition for freshly-minted divorcees to toss their wedding rings into the river. Even Marilyn Monroe did so in the 1961 film, “The Misfits.”

Las Vegas has long since overtaken Reno as a place of spectacle, but Reno occasionally tries for a little spectacle of its own. This 120-foot tall replica of a mining rig under the world’s largest composite dome (in the Silver Legacy Casino) is an example. We had to walk through the casino floor to get there. The girls are growing accustomed to seeing slot machines and the like in just about every public building around – from restaurants to gas stations to grocery stores – but these things always catch their attention and this was their first time in a full-blown Nevada casino. Their eyes nearly popped out of their heads at all the fantastically blinking lights and simulated action. I wonder if kids who live in Nevada learn to tune this stuff out? Or perhaps it’s not so overt outside of tourist areas.

We enjoyed one last Reno icon before calling it a day. We’ve heard nothing but raves about Bertha Miranda’s, a Mexican restaurant. Turns out they were all right. We can’t attest to the whole menu, but the tamales are out of this world.