Carson City(52) ► Lyon County(47) ► Alpine County, California(50) ► El Dorado County, California(266) ► Mono County, California(76) ► Placer County, California(209) ►
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“A gradual ascent [rough road], the latter portion in a ravine [of Clear Creek], to the top of a ridge [at Spooner Summit].”
- William Bartlett [Bartlett’s Guide], Aug 13, 1853
Guidebook Available
Trails West Inc. P.O. Box 12045 Reno . . . — — Map (db m224084) HM
Originally the site of the I.O.O.F. hall built by Baptiste Borda at the turn of the 19th Century. The Adaven Building has been a merchandise store, soda fountain, restaurant, and hotel. The Adaven Building also had a post office for a period of . . . — — Map (db m21649) HM
From this Valley on 17 June 2002, the crew of Tanker 130, Steven Wass, Craig Labare and Michael Davis answered the call to duty and took wing to fight a horrific fire in the Sierras. For their determination and ultimate sacrifice, we honor their . . . — — Map (db m25358) HM
The Arendt Jensen, Jr. House is a 1-1/2 story bungalow style home and stands near the Arendt Jensen Mansion, the first and largest home built by the Jensen Family.
Completed in 1932, the home was built for Arendt Jensen, Jr. and his wife Minnie . . . — — Map (db m21682) HM
Vernacular with neoclassical elements style
Arendt Jensen built this general merchandise store in the early 1900's. On the store shelves shoppers could find a wide variety of everyday necessities and supplies from clothing to agricultural . . . — — Map (db m21466) HM
This was the name given to the present Centerville Lane on the 22nd day of October 1894 when it was declared a public road by order of the county commissioners. Opening of the road was made contingent on the willingness of ranchers along the section . . . — — Map (db m10801) HM
Double Springs was the notorious Round Tent Ranch, or Spragues, another station on the road to Esmeralda. Here, James C. Dean, one of the owners and Justice of the Peace in the district in 1864, murdered his wife. This station was connected by the . . . — — Map (db m69467) HM
In 1917 State Senator Wm. F. Dressler gave this 40 acre tract to Washo Indians, then living on ranches in Carson Valley. After a school was opened in 1924, it became a nucleus of settlement.
Before the intrusion of Caucasians in 1848, Washos . . . — — Map (db m3190) HM
The East Fork Hotel was constructed in 1893 by George and Charley Brown, two brothers who came to Genoa, Nevada with a traveling circus. The Brown Brothers also owned the East Fork Brickyard, providing bricks that were used in many Valley . . . — — Map (db m24832) HM
Built in the early 1900’s and known at
that time as the “Nevada Consolidated
Telephone and Telegraph Company,” only
five telephone lines were originally
installed in Gardnerville. “Long
Distance Connections . . . — — Map (db m15835) HM
The Garden Cemetery was established in the late 1800's. Interred here are generations of prominent Carson Valley families. All who are laid to rest here are part of the history of this community, and their contributions to The Valley stand today. . . . — — Map (db m54792) HM
Constructed by Douglas County on land donated by the East Fork Township's Fourth Justice of the Peace, Mr. L.S. Ezell in 1910. The main jail in Genoa was destroyed by fire in 1910, and the Gardnerville Branch Jail was quickly placed in full . . . — — Map (db m21409) HM
Buried here are Hiram Mott and family, emigrants from Canada. Isreal Mott, son of Hiram built this house a few yards east of the spot in July 1852. Eliza his wife was the first white women settler in Nevada. Their child Louisa was the first white . . . — — Map (db m90622) HM
This building dates back to the 1870's and was moved to Carson Valley from Virginia City before the end of the 19th Century. It was somewhat commonplace to move buildings from Virginia City after the Comstock Lode Era.
Town founder Lawrence . . . — — Map (db m24091) HM
Arendt Jensen had this beautiful mansion constructed for his family in 1910. Mr. Jensen owned a general store in Gardnerville that became very prosperous. He later established the first bank in the Carson Valley, the Douglas County Farmer's Bank. . . . — — Map (db m21541) HM
The Jensen Family emigrated from Denmark in the late Nineteenth Century. As Gardnerville grew, Arendt Jensen, Sr. took advantage of the growing economy becoming a successful businessman and banker.
The Jensen Family's merchandise store was . . . — — Map (db m21721) HM
Dagget Pass Trail, named for C.D. Dagget, who acquired land at its foot in 1854, was earlier called Georgetown Trail. Replaced in 1860 by the wagon road built by Kingsbury and McDonald, for which they received a Territorial Franchise in 1861, it . . . — — Map (db m21892) HM
Luther Canyon, west of this site, takes its name from Ira M. Luther, who from 1858-1865 had a sawmill there. The house behind the marker was his home. He was a delegate to the second Nevada Territorial Legislature. After 1865, the canyon came to be . . . — — Map (db m34516) HM
This is the site of the settlement on the Emigrant Trail known as Mottsville, where Hiram Mott and his son Israel settled in 1851. Their homestead was the scene of an impressive number of firsts in Carson County, Utah Territory:
1851: Israel . . . — — Map (db m40102) HM
This building has been used for many commercial purposes dating back to the late 1800's and early 1900's. The single story rear portion of the building is thought to be the original home of John and Mary Gardner, the Town's namesake. Ollie . . . — — Map (db m21617) HM
The Record Courier has been published in Douglas County since 1904 when Dr. Southworth merged the Gardnerville Record and the Genoa Weekly Courier into one newspaper. In 2004 the Record Courier marks a solid century of printing.
This building . . . — — Map (db m28071) HM
Opened in 1896 by Mr. and Mrs. William Ritchford, the three-story hotel was a stage stop. A water tower was also built on the site, however it no longer stands.
The Ritchford was the most luxurious hotel in town at the turn of the century. It . . . — — Map (db m25577) HM
The "Corner Saloon" was constructed on this site in the late 1890's. Adjacent uses on and near this site came to include a drug store, blacksmith shop, and mortuary. C.M. Krummes operated the blacksmith shop and mortuary, and served as the first . . . — — Map (db m21446) HM
In 1861, a blacksmith shop, a store, a boarding house, and two saloons comprised the village of Sheridan. The village had grown up around Moses Job’s General Store, established prior to 1855.
The Surveyor General, in his 1889-90 biennial . . . — — Map (db m21309) HM
This building served as the first Catholic Church in Gardnerville, and is an excellent representation of brickwork found in many valley buildings.
Completed in 1919 on land donated by local merchant Sam Imelli, the building was used until . . . — — Map (db m23250) HM
Owned at one time by Baptiste Borda and later leased to the Mitcheo family. Raymond Borda, upon returning from World War II, owned and operated the hotel for many years. The French Hotel was one of the three main Basque hotels in Gardnerville . . . — — Map (db m25321) HM
An important hostelry was so named because of its distance from Genoa and also from Cradlebaugh Bridge across the Carson River. It was built in 1860 by Thomas Wheeler, where the Boyd Toll Road to Genoa and the Cradlebaugh Toll Road to Carson City . . . — — Map (db m89436) HM
Whichever direction your travels take you, you’re going to have a similar experience to what the California-bound immigrants had. You’re going to see the same country, except for the towns and ranch meadows. The big difference, though, is that . . . — — Map (db m98183) HM
"We passed around a barren portion of the mountain, where there gushed from the base... almost a thousand springs of hot water in half a mile,... The springs form a hot water lake all along their course." - William R. Rothwell, Aug 18, 1850 — — Map (db m99871) HM
"At the... foot of the mountains, the Mormons... have established a trading post.... Passing on from this place, as fast as we could,... to save what money we had, we continued up Carson Valley" - Edward Patterson, Jul 11, 1850 — — Map (db m99870) HM
Chartered on September 17, 1868 by the newly created Grand Lodge of Nevada, their first Worshiper Master was Robert W. Bollen. In early 1873 they purchased this building in a partially finished condition. It was subsequently completed in November of . . . — — Map (db m20677) HM
In 1864, the fledgling Nevada State Government was comprised of ten counties with twelve school districts, eight school houses, and eighteen schools. This was a time when no one seriously contemplated making Nevada a permanent home as people . . . — — Map (db m115736) HM
[Front of Marker:]
Genoa
Original Home Station
April 3, 1860 – Aug. 30, 1860
Relay Station
Sep. 1, 1860 – Nov. 20, 1861
By
Town of Genoa
Genoa Volunteer Fire Department
Carson Valley Historical Society . . . — — Map (db m20663) HM
Built by volunteers to replace the church destroyed in the Terrible Fire of 1910, this pioneer refuge served the town for town meetings as well as church services for many years. The bell tower and porch were added in 1978 by volunteers. — — Map (db m21245) HM
On this tree, early morning Nov. 26, 1897 occurred the blackest episode in the history of Nevada. Adam Uber of Calaveras Co. Cal. was forcefully taken from jail abused and hanged by an angry mob, for the pistol killing of Hans Anderson a local . . . — — Map (db m20655) HM
Born: April 30, 1827, Tinn, Telemark, Norway
Emigrated to America from Norway: May 30, 1837
Carried the mail: January 1856 – May 1876 (Twice a month -
during the winter for 20 years.)
Distance: 90 miles between Placerville, Ca and . . . — — Map (db m20679) HM
Born April 30, 1827 at Upper Tinns, Telemark District of Norway, John A. “Snowshoe” Thompson’s parents Tosten Olsen and Gro Johnsdotter baptized him as John Tostensen. At an early age he learned to “snow skate” (snow ski). In . . . — — Map (db m20712) HM
[Upper Marker:]
As a Tribute
To a great compatriot from Telemark
This plaque was presented
by the Norwegian Olympic Ski Team
Competing at Sqaw Valley
In February 1960
[Lower Marker:]
Dedicated to
John A. . . . — — Map (db m20748) HM
Served as first elected judge of Douglas County from 1864 – 66. Later on he served as District Attorney and Superintendent of Schools.
While in the practice of law he was considered one of the foremost jurists of his time and was engaged in . . . — — Map (db m20785) HM
Genoa's first two-story brick mansion
built for his bride in 1855-56 by Mormon
Station locator Stephen Kinsey, editor of
the first newspaper (handwritten). It was
the third land claim in Nevada. It was the
site of elegant socials and the Genoa . . . — — Map (db m135908) HM
Marker One:
Originator of the Genoa Candy Dance
Lillian Virgin Finnegan, known affectionately as “Lillie”, was born and raised in Genoa. An early graduate of Nevada State university, she was a teacher, suffragist, business woman, and . . . — — Map (db m223522) HM
In 1851 Col. John Reese, with a little band of eighteen men crossed the great deserts and built the first trading post in Nevada, “Mormon Station”. Later came more members of the Mormon Faith who settled and established the town of Genoa. Among . . . — — Map (db m20686) HM
In early June, 1850, a party of Mormons led by Abner and Thomas Blackburn, Hampton S. Beatie and Joseph Dumont, established a trading post about a mile to the north of this site. In September, as they returned to Salt Lake City, a party of Bannock . . . — — Map (db m20698) HM
Carson Valley is the birthplace of Nevada. By 1851, people settled at a place they called Mormon Station, renamed Genoa in 1856. With the early establishment of a post office and local government, the community can lay claim to the title of . . . — — Map (db m99652) HM
In 1863, Al Livingston built this building and called it Livingston’s Exchange. In 1884, Frank Fettic bought it and renamed it Fettic’s Exchange. He operated it as a “Gentlman's Saloon” allowing no rough stuff or excessive drinking. It . . . — — Map (db m20661) HM
The principle emigrant trail to California’s gold fields in the 1850’s passed about 50 yards east of here. In June, 1850, Hampton S. Beatie and Abner Blackburn, two Mormons from Salt Lake City, established Nevada’s first trading post a few yards . . . — — Map (db m21218) HM
Built: Spring of 1886 Foundation: Rock
Building Size: 80 x 33 Feet – 16 Foot Ceiling
Flooring: Best Quality Wood Available
Constructed: By the Sons of Joseph Raycraft
Joseph, acting as a wagon master for 300 souls, headed west with . . . — — Map (db m98073) HM
Here stood the first grist mill in Carson Valley built in Mill Canyon Genoa in 1854 by wheelwright Thomas Knott for Colonel John Reese. It was moved to this site by William M. Cary in 1865.
Behind the mill stood a dwelling house, which served . . . — — Map (db m99863) HM
“Brown was a heavy man, about 200lbs, noted as a lawless desperado whose name was terror to all who know, or had heard of him. He made his brags on the day of his death, which was his 30th birthday, that he had killed 11 men, and was going to . . . — — Map (db m115737) HM
In 1877, John H Davis had this building constructed as a new location for his existing store nearby. The general store was an integral part of 1800s era towns like Genoa and supplied dried goods, food and other necessities to the growing Nevada . . . — — Map (db m169673) HM
In 1851, George Chorpenning and fellow Pennsylvania entrepreneur Absalom Woodward received a contract for $14,000 from the U.S. Post Office to establish the first U.S. Mail service between Sacramento, CA and Salt Lake City, UT. The monthly trip was . . . — — Map (db m223623) HM
These plaques are near the site
of the original Pony Express Station.
The Pony Express passed through
Genoa, the oldest city in Nevada, until
the completion of the telegraph.
Erected by the Nevada Pony
Express Centennial Committee. . . . — — Map (db m20711) HM
The Territorial Enterprise, a newspaper founded in Genoa in 1858 was at this location and one other in the town. The press was later moved to Carson City and then Virginia City. The first telegraph office in Nevada was also located on this block. . . . — — Map (db m169650) HM
Like many Nevada hot springs, these dot a fault break along which the mountains rise. In 1862, along this Carson branch of the Emigrant Trail, David and Harriet Walley developed a $100,000 spa with 11 baths, a ballroom and gardens. The thermal . . . — — Map (db m89511) HM
You’re now standing at the western edge of the Great Basin. If you were an emigrant headed to California, you would have entered the Great Basin 450 miles back along the trail in southern Idaho, or 500 miles back in Salt Lake City if you had taken . . . — — Map (db m98142) HM
We Salute John “Snowshoe” Thompson
On his homemade snowshoes John carried the mail and supplies over the snowy Sierras for 20 winters. As he traveled, he saved the lives of seven people who were snowbound in mountain cabins. In . . . — — Map (db m20729) HM
(back) The Pony Express Started on April 3, 1860. The original route from Johnson Pass (Echo Summit) to Genoa went through Hope Valley to Woodfords Station.
On May 14, 1860 the new toll road over Daggett Pass opened to foot and horse . . . — — Map (db m432) HM
This area bears the name of Michele E. Spooner, a French Canadian entrepreneur, who, along with others, was instrumental in establishing the wood and lumber industry which supplied the needs of the Comstock mines and mills.
In 1868 Spooner . . . — — Map (db m69715) HM
Built in 1909 by A.F. Neidt, a cement contractor who also poured most of the early sidewalks in Minden. The home was later occupied by Annie Hickey Raycraft, who offered room and board for "unmarried lady" school teachers. — — Map (db m23833) HM
William H. Boyd was granted a Utah Territory Franchise December 19, 1861, to provide a road to join Genoa to the Cradlebaugh Toll Road, the trunkline to the mining district of Esmeralda. Boyd's Toll Road is still visible to the northwest and . . . — — Map (db m150168) HM
Ground was broken for the garage in 1911, with structure additions in 1917 and 1927. The initials stand for the owner Clarence Oliver Dangberg. Later, under the ownership of the Fred "Brick" Hellwinkel family, the C.O.D. garage was the oldest . . . — — Map (db m23514) HM
"We soon entered the lower end of Carson Valley. The steep mountains on our right, are thickly covered with pines... on the east side of the valley, the mountains present no green thing; all is naked and dreary." - Franklin Langworthy, Oct. 9, 1850 — — Map (db m99867) HM
To recreate turn-of-the-century Minden, local merchants Don and Roxanne Stangle, in 1990, suggested building this park. A beautiful period clock would be its central feature. After seven years of planning and designing the park and raising nearly . . . — — Map (db m23424) HM
Construction of Coventry Cross Episcopal Church began in 1936 at the building's original site in Smith Valley. The church was named for the large stone cross that stands on the church's Rood beam (a beam in a medieval church across the entrance to . . . — — Map (db m23948) HM
The remains of Cradlebaugh Bridge, built in 1861 by William Cradlebaugh, stand ¼ mile westward. This bridge shortened the distance from Carson City to Aurora in the then booming Esmeralda Mining District.
There were two routes from Carson . . . — — Map (db m40100) HM
The Nevada Legislature voted to move the county seat to Minden in 1916. The Courthouse, designed by F.J. Delongchamps, was built for $23,178 on a lot deeded from the Dangberg Land and Livestock Company. Originally the building housed all the county . . . — — Map (db m23971) HM
In Commemoration
of Douglas County men who gave
their lives in World War II
Franklin Mack Andrews ● Semore Arnold ● Donald Cornbread ● Giles Cornbread ● Wilber Frank ● Harlan Fricke ● Walter Leehman . . . — — Map (db m20881) HM
Construction began in 1968 when the old Farmer's Bank, purchased in 1954 by the First National Bank of Nevada, had again outgrown itself. The remodeled building now houses an engineering firm owned and operated by R.O. Anderson. — — Map (db m23787) HM
Grace Dangberg was the granddaughter of Heinrick Frederick Dangberg, a pioneer Carson Valley settler from a village near Minden, Germany, whose family founded Minden, Nevada.
Miss Dangberg, a distinguished Nevadan, devoted her considerable . . . — — Map (db m3191) HM
This, the second house built in Minden (1907), housed Henry Beck, the first manager of the Minden Milling Company, and was located across the street from from the mill at Fifth Street and Railroad Avenue, now Highway 395. — — Map (db m23898) HM
This house was designed for John Dangberg by Frederic DeLongchamps, a noted architect throughout the West. Construction was completed in 1912. John was one of the Dangberg Brothers who founded Minden in 1906. Dangberg Land and Livestock Company . . . — — Map (db m23933) HM
Built in 1917 for local rancher M.E. Fay, the home was later owned by John and Norma Ellis. John, Norma and their son Darwin owned and operated the Minden Mercantile. — — Map (db m23936) HM
Minden, the seat of Douglas County since 1916, was named for a town in Westphalia, Germany, where the founder of the D.F. Dangberg Land and Live Stock Company, was born in 1829. The company established Minden in 1905 to provide terminal facilities . . . — — Map (db m20877) HM
First opened in 1910 by Chris Christoffersen. This was the first store in Minden of its type, selling dry goods, clothing, shoes, and cameras. Later, the store was operated by Lin Blondin and Ken Watson. In time, it became known as Town and Country . . . — — Map (db m23578) HM
Completed in 1908, the new mill was financed by many of the early residents of Minden. Initially, it could process 100 barrels of flour daily from the local grain. Its four silos held 65,000 bushels of grain. In 1921 the mill was described as "one . . . — — Map (db m23981) HM
Built in 1906. the park became the “town square” for the first residential section of Minden. The first bandstand, a rectangular structure, was built in 1914. The present bandstand was built by the Minden Rotary Club in 1984 and . . . — — Map (db m20893) HM
This site marks the end of the Virginia and Truckee rail extension from Carson City which was completed in 1906. A depot was built here as well as first home site for the station manager, Herb Coffin. Mr. Coffin’s home was a converted boxcar but a . . . — — Map (db m23430) HM
The original building was constructed in 1951 for the partnership of Warren Reed and Willard Meneley Insurance Company. In 1953 the offices also served as the temporary home for the Douglas County Public Library. Reed's son Alan and family currently . . . — — Map (db m23742) HM
The Second Farmer's Bank was constructed in 1918 and operated until 1968. The bank had sound financial resources for its size and in 1933, following a bank moratorium called by President Roosevelt, Farmer's Bank was among the first in the nation to . . . — — Map (db m23700) HM
Built in 1910, few buildings in Minden have experienced a more diverse life. Its many uses include a saloon/bar, card parlor, soda fountain, grocery store, and several restaurants. — — Map (db m23361) HM
The members of the Minden Town Board selected this site, on the Minden-Gardnerville boundary and adjacent to the telephone company offices, as a particularly appropriate location for what they have named "Sunset Park".
In the early 1900's, . . . — — Map (db m55510) HM
"The trail, on leaving camp, entered a strip of upland, covered with wild sage and brush and through which run several mountain streams of much beauty." - Silas Newcomb, Aug 28, 1850 — — Map (db m99819) HM
Toll Roads
Johnson's Cutoff, also called the Carson Ridge Emigrant Road, passed over Spooner Summit and down Clear Creek from 1852 through 1854, but was rugged and little used. With discovery of the Comstock Lode in 1859, Spooner Summit . . . — — Map (db m69714) HM
During the late 1940s, this land was used by Sky Harbor Airport and Casino, which flew its wealthy patrons in from San Francisco to spend money in the local casinos. The airport consisted of a dirt landing strip, but with the snow-crested Crystal . . . — — Map (db m91859) HM
In
Commemoration of
The Pony Express
A fleeting but exciting epoch in the
Winning of the West
——————
Erected April 4, 1963
by Harrah’s
William F. Harrah, President
. . . — — Map (db m46433) HM
Carson Valley below, now a broad expanse of cultivated and pasture lands, was originally a strip of meadow along the banks of the river where 49’ers, following the California branch of the emigrant trail, rested their stock and bought vegetables . . . — — Map (db m34518) HM
Lumbering operations in the Glenbrook area of Lake Tahoe began in 1861. Consolidation of V-Flume systems in and near Clear Creek Canyon by 1872 made it possible to float lumber, cordwood, and sawed material from Spooner’s Summit to Carson City and . . . — — Map (db m21014) HM
