Nevada Trivia & Tidbits - Page 4

—A 3,200-square-foot rainforest graces the desert community of Henderson, thanks to Carolyn Reedom’s determination to excite students and teachers about science. Now an educational consultant, Reedom was the principal of Henderson’s John C. Vanderburg Elementary School in 1996 when she began organizing and raising money for the school’s indoor biosphere. The $1.4-million facility, which opened in 2002, features more than 100 species of plant life and is credited with helping increase student science proficiency from 75 percent to 88 percent.

—Last December, at the Winnemucca Grammar School in Winnemucca (pop. 7,174), Gov. Kenny Guinn dedicated a small bronze replica of the Sarah Winnemucca statue that stands in the state and U.S. capitols. The statue shows the Paiute educator and spokesperson holding a book in her left hand and her namesake shellflower in her right, with her hair and dress flowing in the wind.

—Marion Jones Farquhar, who in 1900 became the first American woman to play in the Wimbledon tennis tournament in England, was inducted into the International Tennis Hall of Fame last year. Farquhar, a native of Gold Hill, now a ghost town in Storey County (pop. 3,399), also competed in the 1900 Olympics in Paris, winning bronze medals in both singles and mixed doubles.

—Sand Mountain, located near Fallon (pop. 7,536), also is known as the “singing” mountain because its shifting sand can produce noises such as booms. The U.S. Bureau of Land Management reports that the 600-foot-high dune originated when quartz particles, created by glacial action more than 10,000 years ago, were deposited in the Walker River delta and then blown by the wind to their current location.

—Swimmer Limin Liu, who won a silver medal in the 100-meter butterfly at the 1996 Olympic Games in Atlanta, works for the Nevada Commission on Tourism, based in Carson City (pop. 52,457), as its marketing manager for visitors from China. Liu earned a gold medal last summer when she won the 50-meter butterfly race in the 30-34 age group at the FINA Masters World Championships.

—The Spring Mountain Advanced Driving School in Pahrump (pop. 24,631) uses cars such as the Z06 Corvette to introduce drivers to the sport of racing on a 2.2-mile purpose-built track that features a variety of corners and elevation changes. The high-performance cars feature 405-plus horsepower, along with 400 pounds of torque, a six-speed manual transmission and antilock disc brakes.

—When Katharine Jefferts Schori was invested as the presiding bishop of the Episcopal Church in the United States last November, she became the first woman ever to serve in the role. Jefferts Schori was the bishop of Nevada between 2001 and 2006, when she was elected to her new position. Her investiture took place in Washington National Cathedral in Washington, D.C.

—Opened on Valentine’s Day last year, Lover’s Lock Plaza is located near the historic Pershing County Courthouse in Lovelock (pop. 2,003) and encourages people to follow the ancient Chinese custom of symbolically “locking” their love by attaching a lock to chains located on the plaza and throwing away the key. Many local businesses participate by selling heart-shaped locks.

Named one of the 20th century’s 20 greatest bowlers by Bowling Magazine, Don Johnson (1940-2003) of Las Vegas earned 26 Professional Bowlers Association tour titles during his career, and was named PBA Player of the Year in 1971 and 1972. The right-handed bowler was inducted into the PBA Hall of Fame in 1977.

—Although its location in Nevada puts it officially in the Pacific time zone, Jackpot in Elko County (pop. 45,291) sets its clocks an hour later, observing southern Idaho’s Mountain time. Founded in the 1950s after Idaho banned gambling, Jackpot’s location just inside the Nevada state line provided a convenient destination for Idahoans looking to play slot machines and, later, blackjack and other games.

Dat-So-La-Lee, one of the Washo Indian tribe’s most skilled basket weavers, lived in Carson City (pop. 52,457) for many years and was buried in the community’s Stewart Cemetery in 1925. Reported to have been born in 1829 in Carson Valley, Dabuda (her birth name) became known for her baskets—many of which are exhibited in museums—after merchant Abe Cohn recognized her skill in 1895.

—In July, two Nevada families—the Duvals of Ruby Valley and the Capurros of Sparks—received the Centennial Ranch and Farm Award, which honor ranches and farms that have remained in the same family for a century or more. The Duval Ranch was founded in 1892, while the Capurro brothers graze livestock on land the family has owned since 1876.

—Idaho Gem and Idaho Star made history in June in Winnemucca (pop. 7,174), where the two cloned mules raced against each other during the annual Winnemucca Mule Race, Show & Draft Horse Challenge. Reported to be the first professional competition between cloned animals, the race included naturally bred animals, too. The cloned animals came in third and seventh.

—The Mackay Mansion was reported to have one of the first “working bathrooms” in Storey County’s (pop. 3,399) Virginia City. Built in 1859 by George Hearst, who launched the Hearst fortune with just $400, the Italianate-style building featured a 500-gallon, gravity-flow water tank that provided running water. In the 1870s, the mansion became home to John Mackay, one of the Comstock Mining District’s wealthiest silver kings.

—The Fraternity of the Desert Bighorn earned the Wayne E. Kirch Conservation Award earlier this year for its work constructing water sources for desert bighorn sheep and other wildlife in Nevada’s southern mountain ranges. Members of the 40-year-old fraternity supported five water development projects in 2005 with funding and some 1,500 hours of work.

—The Children’s Heart Foundation hosted its second annual Camp Mend-a-Heart in June at Rapport Executive Retreat in Alamo in Lincoln County (pop. 4,165). The free, medically supervised camp is where children with heart problems can make friends and memories. The foundation is based in Las Vegas.

—Hunters of elk, desert bighorn sheep and antelope had a record-breaking year in Nevada in 2005, harvesting 1,246 elk, 135 bighorn rams and 1,608 antelope. The state Department of Wildlife estimates 8,000 elk, 5,500 bighorn sheep and 20,000 antelope inhabit the state. Good environmental conditions and increased relocation efforts have boosted the animals’ numbers in recent years. OREGON—The Oregon Coast Trail stretches about 360 miles along the state’s coastline, from the mouth of the Columbia River northwest of Warrenton (pop. 4,096) to the California border south of Brookings (pop. 5,447). The majority of the hiking trail is on the beach, but it also traverses forest corridors, headlands, state parks, highway shoulders and privately owned land.

The Oregon Coast Aquarium in Newport (pop. 9,532) rescued two birds last April: a common loon that had been tangled up in fishing line, and a common murre with an injured wing. Grants from the Kinsman Foundation and the Hugh and Jane Ferguson Foundation covered the costs of caring for the birds. Wildlife that is successfully rehabilitated at the aquarium is returned to the wild.

Tail fins from dismantled bombs have become public art in the “Fin Field” near Hawthorne (pop. 3,311). Painted red, white and blue, about 120 fins, which come from the nearby Army Ammunition Depot, established in 1930, stand in alternating lines of color, with others hung as windmill blades. Hawthorne is known as “America’s Patriotic Home” because of its military ties.

Visitors to the Nevada Northern Railway Museum in Ely (pop. 4,041) can see vintage steam and diesel locomotives, ride in passenger cars pulled by locomotives, and even rent the locomotives for private excursions. The original railway carried copper ore and operated from 1906 to 1983.