Random Stories
California Building
Located in the northwestern portion of Idlewild Park, the California Building is the only remaining architectural element of the Transcontinental Highways Exposition of 1927. The elaborate Exposition celebrated the completion of the Lincoln and…
Heidtman Commercial Building
This three-unit brick commercial building was constructed in 1940 by H.C. Heidtman, and housed a variety of businesses in the decades to come. In the 1940s alone, these included a candy store, a piano and organ dealer, a barber shop, a physician,…
Finley-Prien House
Douglas and Essie Finley moved into the house at 380 Westbrook Lane in the 1960s. Unlike many of the early houses that were moved to Black Springs from other locations, the original Finley house was built here in 1963. The Finley's son, Donald,…
Luella Garvey House
In 1934, Luella Rhodes Garvey commissioned the African American architect Paul Revere Williams to design the most expensive house ever built in Reno up to that time, on a parcel in its most fashionable neighborhood. Williams had already earned the…
Roy House
The house at 491 Court Street was built for Roland F. Roy in 1907, the same year that the nearby Nixon Mansion was completed. Newlands Heights was the most exclusive neighborhood in town, a testament to the affluence and prominence of its…
Park Wedding Chapel (site)
The Park Wedding Chapel, and the Sullivan Apartments next to it, were replaced by a modern commercial building in 2009, but the little chapel’s distinction comes from being Reno’s first wedding chapel. Joseph Melcher, a local advertising executive,…
Featured Stories
Regina Apartments
The Regina Apartments at 260 Island Avenue is a collection of units encased in a lovely brick building designed by Joseph Tognoni. The building's owner, Jean Sigg, was a successful Swiss-born chef who ran the kitchen at a number of downtown…
Original Reno City Hall (site)
Reno underwent a rapid transformation in the first decade of the 20th century, as mineral discoveries in Tonopah and Goldfield brought more residents and more secure economic footing to the state. The city’s business district expanded, as did its…
Nevada Auto Service
In the late 1920s, South Virginia Street was heeding the siren call of the automobile age. Service stations, dealers, and repair shops were popping up all along the thoroughfare, gradually adding a different character to the formerly quiet stretch…
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Reno Historical
A project by Historic Reno Preservation SocietyReno Historical is a free mobile app that puts Reno history at your fingertips, allowing you to explore the people, places, and moments that have shaped the city’s history. Learn about the history of Reno through layered, map-based, multimedia presentations, use social media to share your stories, and experience curated historical tours of the city. It is a work in progress, so be sure to check in frequently for new tours and stories.
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