Reno
ON A FINE SPRING DAY in 1928, Reno held a great municipal celebration at the railroad tracks in honor of paving the two-lane highway over Donner Summit to California. As the band burst into a brassy ragtime, and the bankers, bootleggers and other leading citizens beamed with pride, neon letters on the new iron arch spanning Virginia Street blazed with light for the first time. “RENO,” they bragged against a downtown skyline of Edwardian brick, “The Biggest Little City in the World.”
The iron arch is gone now, replaced by a brighter version, jazzier than the Jazz Age original, and Reno’s golden age of society divorcees, bootleg whiskey and basement gambling rooms is gone with it.
Modern Reno dates from another fine spring noontime, almost 50 years to the day after that gaudy little celebration, when an enormous tan tower rose 26 stories from its bright, light-bejewelled base on an enormous asphalt pad near the edge of the airport, far from the city center.
The $131,000,000 MGM Grand Hotel greeted every incoming flightto Reno-Cannon International the same way the old arch greeted every train at the railroad depot downtown.
But Reno’s not so little any more and the 1928 slogan’s saucy tone doesn’t suit the complex Tesla-flavored city it is still becoming. The great hotels, as splendid as they are, are no longer the whole story. As the city has spread out, its neighborhoods have become more diverse, more interesting and more welcoming.
National Automobile Museum,10 Lake Street, Reno, NV, USA
100 West Plumb Lane, Reno, NV 89509, USA
340 Lemmon Dr, Reno, NV 89506, USA
5105 Sun Valley Blvd, Sun Valley, NV 89433, USA
1650 North Virginia Street, Reno, Nevada 89503, USA
490 South Center Street, Reno, NV 89501, USA
Reno Events Calendar
Comstock Arabian Association Spring Fiesta Horse Show
2021 Spring Fiesta Horse Show Comstock Arabian Association Spring Fiesta Concurrent Horse Shows April 30, May 1 and 2, 2021. Reno-Sparks Livestock Events Center in Reno, Nevada All Classes Held in the Indoor Main Arena SHOW A offering Dressage, Western Dressage, Sport Horse In-Hand, Sport Horse Under Saddle, Sport Horse Show Hack, Halter, Showmanship, Equitation, […]
Find out more »Cowboy Truck Show – Reno, NV
EVENT DETAILS Sunday, June 6, 2021 from 11am to 3pm Registration and truck parking begins at 11:00am $10 truck registration fee in advance $15 truck registration at the gate on the day of show It’s a show for trucks, any 4X4 or just plain outrageousness on wheels – old, new, funk or vintage. By entering […]
Find out more »Reno Rodeo
Welcome to the Wildest, Richest Rodeo in the West! Everyone loves a cowboy, are we right?! The rodeo is THE place to see and be seen. Featuring 10 days and nights of the best rodeo competition in the country with over 750 professional athletes. Enjoy all of the fan favorites, including two world-class team roping […]
Find out more »Hot August Nights in Reno & Sparks
Every August, the streets of Virginia City, Reno and Sparks vibrate with the sound of muffled rumbles of rebuilt engines, rays of sunlight glinting off the polished chrome and heavy scents of Dapper Dan hair pomade fill the air. Droves of spectators line the sidewalks for a glimpse into the past, a time when a […]
Find out more »STIHL National Championship Air Races and Air Show
OVER 50 YEARS Reno Air Racing Association Over 50 years ago, the first plane went up in the Nevada desert to kick off what would become the STIHL National Championship Air Races and a legacy was born. A legacy of history, heritage and preservation. Of daring, imagination and wonder. Of memories made, traditions formed and […]
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