A Few of FR's Finest....Every Day....08-22-03....Nevada - "Battle Born"

Mama_Bear

[Mama_Bear]

A Few of FR's Finest....Every Day

Free Republic made its debut in September, 1996, and the forum was added in early 1997.   Over 100,000 people have registered for posting privileges on Free Republic, and the forum is read daily by tens of thousands of concerned citizens and patriots from all around the country and the world.

A Few of FR's Finest....Every Day was introduced on June 24, 2002. It's only a small room in JimRob's house where we can get to know one another a little better; salute and support our military and our leaders; pray for those in need; and congratulate those deserving. We strive to keep our threads entertaining, fun, and pleasing to look at, and often have guest writers contribute an essay, or a profile of another FReeper.

On Mondays please visit us to see photos of A FEW OF FR'S VETERANS AND ACTIVE MILITARY

If you have a suggestion, or an idea, or if there's a FReeper you would like to see featured, please drop one of us a note in FR mail.

We're having fun and hope you are!
~ Billie, Mama_Bear, dansangel, dutchess, Aquamarine, FreeTheHostages ~

It's FRiday and we hope you will join us once again as we take a cyber-tour of another state in this great Union of ours. As we present and celebrate each of our 50 states we also salute the proud FReepers who call their state 'home'. Over the coming months each "Finest" hostess will profile her own home state - I will be presenting all the others in random order. Please FReepMail me if you would like to participate in spotlighting your state. I would love to have your insight and input on what you would like to see highlighted.

To date I have presented Alabama, Maryland, Vermont and Utah, and Billie has taken us on a cyber-tour of her home state, Texas. Please join us today as we head back out west and visit "The Silver State".

In 1848 the United States acquired the land that was to become Nevada in the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo, and on October 31st 1864 - Nevada became our 36th state. Since this was the time of the Civil War the state motto of "Battle Born" was adopted. The Union needed the minerals which were abundant in the state. As far back as 1857 many names were used to refer to the area that became Nevada, IE: Sierra Nevada Territory; Washoe Territory; Carson Territory; Eastern Slope; Humboldt; Esmeralda; Sierra Plata; Oro Plata and Bullion. But in 1864 the land emerged as "Nevada" a Spanish word meaning snow-covered. Nevada is also known as "The Sagebrush State".

C'mon along, let's explore old Nevada...

What I find most interesting about presenting the western states here at the 'Finest' is the history and lore of the "wild west". There is a certain mystique about the desert and the rugged men and women who trekked across this barren land searching for gold, silver, religious freedom, or the elusive "land of milk and honey" that promised to be just over the horizon.

(If you aren't into exploring and want to head straight for the casinos, scroll down. We'll catch up with you. (Just leave your cash and credit cards with me.) ;-)

Hardships and Tragedy
The stories recorded about the early pioneers and explorers of what is now the state of Nevada; Jedediah Smith, Captain John Freemont, Christopher "Kit" Carson, Antonio Armijo, and Joseph Walker, are fascinating studies in survival and fortitude. As history records, one of the most tragic incidents that took place during the migration west was in 1846 when the Donner-Reed Party, an ill-advised group of emigrants delayed their journey too long in the Truckee Meadows near the present-day City of Reno, Nevada. They subsequently became trapped in the heavy snows of the Sierra Nevada when they attempted to follow the "Hastings Cutoff" through the mountains into California. 47 out of 87 perished.

The Gold Rush
It is estimated that 22,500 settlers passed through the Truckee Meadows in 1849, then 45,000 in 1850 and up to 52,000 in 1852. Gold and silver prospectors began combing the barren lands of Northern Nevada. Towns began springing over night along the prospectors trails, many becoming ghost towns as the mines dried up. One of the most colorful towns to spring up during this time was Virginia City, made famous in recent years by the long running "Bonanza" TV show.

Virginia City and the Comstock Lode still maintain the flavor of the highfalutin mining days, when Mark Twain roamed the streets and everybody wanted a piece of the "Richest Place on Earth."

Carson City
Carson City was confirmed as Nevada's permanent capital with statehood in 1864, and development thereafter was no longer completely dependent on the health of the Comstock mines. Until they began to decline in the 1880s, these mines provided Carson City with most of its economic importance as a freight and staging center, and as a marshalling point for much of the timber harvest in the Lake Tahoe basin.



That was Nevada THEN,
this is Nevada NOW....

Now that we have had our brief history lesson for the day, let's hop in our limo and see the sights in Las Vegas.....

Casinos, casinos....EVERYWHERE!

From the tacky and garish to the truly elegant, one hotel casino after another lines the Las Vegas strip. There is no place on earth like it!






If you aren't into gambling you can surely find a pool to suit you. The Las Vegas hotels have some of the most beautiful pools in the world!


Or, there is always golf...



Before we leave Las Vegas...

An interesting bit of trivia.....The first mechanical slot machine, the Liberty Bell, was invented in 1895 by Charles Fey, a San Francisco mechanic. Fey's machine housed three spinning reels, each decorated with diamonds, spades, hearts and one cracked Liberty Bell per reel. When the bells lined up, they produced your biggest payoff: 10 nickels. The original Liberty Bell slot machine can be seen at the Liberty Belle Saloon & Restaurant in Reno.

Thank you to the following websites for
historical information and graphics....

"The Big Bonanza"
"Nevada's Past - A History Timeline"

I hope this quick trip through Nevada has been as interesting for you as it has for me. I also hope that I have presented a "Nevada" that is much more than neon lights and one-armed bandits. From the breathtaking grandeur of Lake Tahoe to the Pioneer and Las Vegas Territories in the south, Nevada is a state with beautiful parks and recreation....something for everyone.

Thank you for joining us today,
have a nice FRiday!

THIS WEEK'S THREADS 08-18-03...Military Monday 08-19-03...Finest Pets on Vacation 08-20-03...Freepercise 08-21-03...John's Two Cents

Opinions by our own 'King of Ping' The guy's good, folks!

Thanks, Mixer!

1) Click on the graphic to open the Calendar.
2) Once there you can click on any month and even click to the right to go into next year. Once you are in the month that you joined FR you will need to click on the number in the calendar and then an add item screen will come up.
3) In the next box enter your name in the "Calendar Text" field and then click on submit.
4) If any of the screens fail to load simply click on refresh in your browser and that will usually fix it.
5) If all else fails or simply if you want me to do this for you send me an FReepmail and I will gladly do it for you. ~Mixer

[mountaineer]

Hi - this particular "mountaineer" is female (I knew that screenname would cause confusion!).

[Billie]

Mountaineer is a beautiful FReeperETTE! :)

[mountaineer]

Hi, Billie!

[Billie]

:) You beat me. I was trying to find those pictures of your gettogether with dutchess and nan and molly. :)

[Mama_Bear]

A heads-up for all our Navadans. Your state is in the 'Finest' spotlight today!

C'mon by and help us celebrate all that's good about your beautiful state.

[Dubya]

Good morning thanks for the info. Very intresting. I'm off to work.

[Mama_Bear]

Mountaineer is a beautiful FReeperETTE! :)

Oops! I got caught not payiing attention again. :-(

Mornin' Billie and mountaineer. :-)

[Mama_Bear]

I'm off to work.

You have to? :-(

Okay, hope to see you after. Have a good one.

[mountaineer]

Good morning, Mama_Bear. Another muggy day in the Ohio Valley - hope all are well.

[dixie sass]

Billie, it is so good to be back up and running. Trying to catch up is a pain though. I missed each and everyone of you!

[Mama_Bear]

Another muggy day in the Ohio Valley.

Ohio Valley? I thought you were in West Virginia........I got that wrong also? LOL.

[mountaineer]

Upper Ohio Valley - includes the Northern Panhandle of W.Va., the little sliver between Ohio and Pa.

[dixie sass]

I wish that I could remember the person's name. It is driving me crazy - I do know that the person is a he though, lol.

[FreeTheHostages]

Good morning!

[Mama_Bear]

Upper Ohio Valley - includes the Northern Panhandle of W.Va., the little sliver between Ohio and Pa.

Okay, I see. I would have known that if I had paid attention in geography class, I guess.

Presenting these states has been an education in itself - problem is, I haven't gotten to West Virginia yet. I'm workin' my way over there. I could show up on your doorstep any day asking for tour of your state. ;-)

[Mama_Bear]

Mornin' Free. I see the calendar pages are back. :-)

[Calpernia]

Goodmorning to the Finest!

Click the Mountain Bluebird

[FreeTheHostages]

10 nickels!!

Imagine if St.Louie1 were to go to Las Vegas with the Finest hostesses and win the jackpot. What lovely gifs [sic] we'd all receive!

I went to Las Vegas once to see the World Chess Championships. It was a silly place to have 'em!

[Diver Dave]

Mornin' MB, FR's Finest... Hostesses.

Nice presentation of the Great State of Nevada. Someday we're gonna have to make that drive up the mountains to Reno and Tahoe so I can add Nevada to the list of states I've visited. You'd think that with all the dinner hour interruption phone calls we get telling us we've won a trip to Reno, we would have made the trip by now. Wonder what the odds are that we'll do it sometime soon?

[Aquamarine]

Very interesting post about Neveda and very well done as usual MB!