[email protected]| P.O. Box 14 | Genoa, NV 89411 | (775) 782-8696 | www.genoanevada.org MORE INSIDE: __________________________ GENOA CEMETERY . . . . . . . . . . . . .PG. 2 FARMER’S MARKET . . . . . . . . . . . .PG. 7 ADVERTISERS . . . . . . . . . . . . .PG. 4-11 GENOA EVENTS LIST . . . . . . . . . .PG. 12 VOLUME NO. 2 • ISSUE NO. 6 • SUMMER 2018 Town of Genoa Newsletter Nevada’s Oldest Settlement Founded 1851 OFFICE: TOWN OF GENOA 2289 MAIN ST. ~ P.O. BOX 14 GENOA, NV 89411-0014 TELEPHONE: (775) 782-8696 N E W S L E T T E R ADVISORY BOARD: The Genoa Town Advisory Board meets on the first Wednesday of each month at 6:30 p.m. in the Town Meeting Room. Timothy M. DeTurk, Chair Linda R. Birdwell, Vice Chair Greg Pace Patricia A. Eckman Steven J. Shively TOWN STAFF: Phil Ritger, Town Manager Billie J. Rightmire, Historian Jenn Hollister, Newsletter Graphic & Layout Design NEWSLETTER CONTENTS: FRIENDS OF GENOA ~ NEWS Greetings and news from Friends of Genoa… Continued on Page 2 MORMON STATION PARK SCHEDULE 2018 season Summer Activities at the park… Continued on Page 4 THE WHIT HALL INTERPRETIVE CENTER A family’s memorial for a son becomes a living legacy for the Carson Valley and Genoa… Continued on Page 5 HISTORY CORNER WITH BILLIE JEAN Louis Finnegan: Another side to “Lilly”… Continued on Page 6 ‘LILLIAN’ STATUE PROJECT UPDATE Clay-covered styro is ready for the foundry… Continued on Page 8 THE FRIENDS OF SNOWSHOE THOMPSON Once an idea for a memorial to the legendary “Mailman of the Sierra,” FOST is now more… Continued on Page 9 CANDY DANCE VOLUNTEERS & MORE GCD Volunteers needed; Genoa Cleanup Day; Hans Meyer-Kassel Memorial at museum… Continued on Page 10 GENOA NOTES: GTAB BOARD UPDATE The Genoa Town Advisory Board needs more volunteer board members before December… Continued on Page 11 WEDNESDAY, JULY 4 — SEE PAGE 3 SEE GENOA NOTES – PAGE 11 SUNDAY CONCERTS BEGIN JUNE 10, 2018 – PAGE 3 TOWN BOARD CANDIDATES NEEDED
our small Nevada community that demonstrateits social unity.
Those qualities among many include our richhistory, values and a genuine desire to shareour experience with others. Charmingcommunities subscribe to the guiding principleof maintaining a people-centric approach intheir planned activities. It is this exactprincipal that the (your) Friends of Genoaconsiders in all that we do.
With that said, we want to express ourcongratulations to the Genoa Volunteer FireDepartment and their event SteeringCommittee on their successful inauguralpresentation of Genoa Western Heritage Day.By all measures the day’s activities were wellattended, as were the Friday and Saturdaydinner concerts. This event is one of manyactivities that takes place in our communitywhich enriches our social unity. As such, the
Greetings fromThe Friends of Genoa
Friends of Genoa NewsFriends of Genoa was pleased to havecontributed partial creation funding to this eventin the hope that it will continue.
To that end, we are noticing “new faces” in ourcommunity, no doubt from their encountering theabove-mentioned unity experience. In ourcontinued effort to extend our down homehospitality, the Friends of Genoa and the PinkHouse restaurant are co-hosting a Genoa Meetand Greet event. The express purpose of thisevent is to enlighten those residents who wouldlike to learn more about our history, gainknowledge of opportunities to volunteer, meetour board and perhaps become a member of theFriends of Genoa. The event will be held at thePink House located on Genoa Lane, on ThursdayJuly 12th from 5 to 7 p.m. Please RSVP [email protected]. If you’reinterested in learning about the town, please visitour Friends of Genoa page on Facebook.com.
Thank you for your continued support…– Dave Whitgob, President, Friends of Genoa
During the month of April, firecrews from the NevadaDepartment of Forestry assistedin the annual Genoa Cemeteryclean up. The crew spent two fulldays clearing pinecones, pineneedles, and other wind strewndebris from our historicgraveyard. A week later, a crewfrom China Spring Youth Campvolunteered to help cleanup.
Thank you to the boardmembers of the Genoa Cemetery
Association for ensuring that thefinal resting place of Genoa’spioneers is well maintained.
Thanks also to the followingvolunteers: Betsy and RandyFalcke, Todd Falcke, Roger Falcke,Wally Adams, Steve and ElaineShively.
Plots are still available in GenoaCemetery. You needn’t live inGenoa to be interred at thecemetery. Please call WallyAdams, President of the Genoa
Cemetery Association, for moreinformation, (775) 720-1627.
News About Town: Genoa Cemetery Cleanup
As with any of our events, we would love tohear from you. You can easily reach FOG at ouremail address: [email protected]
or call 901-3508. We’d love to have your helpand participation. Donations can be mailed toFOG, PO Box 224, Genoa, NV 89411. Thank you.
On Wednesday, July4th, Friends ofGenoa presentsthe annualGenoaAmericanaCelebration.
Please come join us as wecelebrate our nation’s birthday inMormon Station State Park from10 a.m. until 6 p.m.
The festivities willbegin with the Childrenand Pet Parade at 10a.m. (no motorizedvehicles, please).Parade participantsshould meet before 10at Genoa Town Park toprep for the parade.
At 11 a.m., the GenoaVolunteer FireDepartment will beginserving their deliciousJuly 4th BBQ Chickenmeals with all the fix’ns.
From 11 a.m. through4 p.m. music oftraditional Americanbands will fill the air
with everything from Bluegrass,to Country Western and more.
At 4:15 p.m. we will enjoy apresentation by the ScottishAmerican Military Color Guardand finally at 4:30 p.m. ourfeatured performer, the CarsonCity Symphony, will perform thebest of classical music for ourAmerican Independence.
Guests are welcome to bringblankets, low back chairs andpicnic baskets. The park will beopen for set up at 8 a.m.Wednesday morning.
The Town of Genoa continues tosponsor the free summer concertsfor the 2018 season. Bring friends,family and a picnic and enjoy avariety of music in the beautifulGenoa Town Park. Our Sundayconcerts begin at 5 p.m. and arescheduled as follows:
June 10 – Ike & MartinLive acoustic Classic Rockwww.IkeandMartin.com
July 8 – ApothicBlues, R&B and Americana, vocal andinstrumentalwww.RedHorseMusic.com/Apothic
August 12 – The Connor PartyAuthentic and original Classic Rockand Blues.www.TheConnorParty.com
September 9 – Sagebrush RebelsCountry Western, fiddle infused fun.
Greetings from Mormon Station!We are extremely proud to beoffering a wide variety ofinterpretive programs at the parkthis summer, including guidedwalks/hikes, history talks, and
children’s arts and crafts. Some ofthe programs scheduled for thissummer include:
July 8, 1:30 p.m. – Tour theGrounds with a Ranger
There’s even more to MormonStation than meets the eye! Join apark ranger for a “behind thescenes” guided tour throughoutthe grounds of Mormon StationState Historic Park, and learnabout the fascinating history ofthis four-acre parcel of land.
June 16 & July 14, 11 a.m. –Junior Ranger (Children’s Activity)
Join park rangers for aneducational junior ranger lessonand activity! Participants will beawarded their own junior rangerbadge at the end of the activity.
June 30 & July 28, 1 p.m. – Paintwith a Ranger
Join park staff for a fun programthat will lead participants step-by-step through the painting process!Participants will have their own12” x 12” canvas painting to takehome at the end of the program.Reservations are required for thisprogram, and space is limited.
June 16 & 30, July 14 – Paranor-mal Investigation & Camp-out
Join this local group on a realinvestigation using professionalequipment! Participants must beat least 15 years old, andaccompanied by an adultguardian over 18. Reservationsare required for this program andspace is limited (see contact info).
June 18, 10 a.m. & July 16, 11 .a.m. – Crafts in the Orchard
Children and parents/guardians:Meet in the apple orchard for funand educational arts and craftsactivities, such as “Make yourown Petroglyphs,” and “Make aCovered Wagon.” All art supplieswill be provided by the park, andparticipants will be able to taketheir project home with them.
For the full schedule, stop bythe park and pick up a brochure,or visit our Facebook page atFacebook.com/MormonStation. For more information, or to
make a reservation, contact thepark: (775) 782-2590, or by email:[email protected] orvisit the Nevada State Parkswebsite for park updates:parks.nv.gov/parks/mormon-station.
Summer 2018 Activity ScheduleMormon Station State Historic Park
Whit Hall wasraised in the CarsonValley and embracedit wholeheartedlythroughout hisyouth, working onhis family ranch andenjoying outdoorsports such asskiing, hiking andfishing. He settled with his familyin the Seattle area, but madefrequent trips back to the CarsonValley for his love of the outdoors,the environment and mentoring.The Hall Family and FairweatherFoundation in support of theNature Conservancy, proudlyoffer the Whit Hall InterpretativeCenter as a vibrant, living legacyto a thoughtful, smart, well-educated, kind man who alwayscalled the Carson Valley, “Home.”
Scientists & Students at WHICLast year, the Whit Hall
Interpretive Center at River ForkRanch served as basecamp for agroup of 25 scientists, graduatestudents and researchers fromMongolia, France, and the U.S.,focusing on macroecology as itrelates to river basins in majortemperate steppe regions of theworld. The project receivedNational Science Foundationsupport to sample three rivers,including the Carson River, inthree different ecoregions on twocontinents over three summerfield seasons. This summer, fivegraduate students from U.C. SantaBarbara’s Bren School ofEnvironmental Science andManagement will intern at theWHI Center as they evaluate
watershed ecosystemservices and potentialnature-based conservationsolutions in the Carson andWalker watersheds. Thestudents will be researchinghistoric and current waterflow rates, predictedprecipitation type and timingas well as projected water
use in the two watersheds.The Western Pond Turtle is the
only native fresh water turtle inNevada. Nevada Department ofWildlife staff along with a cadre ofNature Conservancy citizenscientists, working from the WHICenter, are continuing a multi-yearproject to evaluate the habitatuse, home range, dispersalpatterns, population dynamicsand genetic source of the pondturtle population in the CarsonValley. The project includestelemetry tracking, geneticsampling and occurrence basedsurveys. Based on theirpreliminary findings, NDOWscientists recently published areport on the Habitats and HomeRanges of the Western Pond Turtlein Nevada’s Carson River.
In 2018, we’re expanding ourwork to determine whether theCarson, Truckee and Walker riverturtle populations have a commongenetic origin. These efforts willguide future monitoring andhabitat conservation efforts.
The WHI Center and River ForkRanch serve as an outdoorclassroom and field laboratory fornumerous groups each year,connecting people with naturethrough school field trips,
community outreach events,citizen science research andservice learning opportunities.
For details, contact RobertSchilling at One Carson River (TheCarson River Watershed Group) at(775) 591-4550 or by email,[email protected].
Astronomical Society of NevadaJoin us on the second Friday of
every month, as expert volunteersfrom the ASN turn their telescopesto the night sky and bring thewonders of the stargazing toeveryone. Free and suitable for allages. A red lens on your flashlighthelps keep all eyes dark-adapted.Contact Frank Davis from theAstronomical Society of Nevada at(775) 267-9936 or [email protected].
Whit Hall Interpretive Center at The River Fork Ranch
Lillian “Lilly” May Virginwas born in Genoa onOctober 6, 1877, to MaryRaycraft Virgin and JudgeDaniel Webster Virgin. Shegrew up to be a beautifullady, graceful, talented,very well educated(University of Nevada)and admired by everyonewho knew her. She met Louis inGenoa in 1903 while he wasthere on business.
Louis Zerratt Finnegan wasborn in 1858 in Dublin, Ireland.Finnegan was considered one ofthe pioneers of Goldfield,Nevada. At times he also resided
in other placessuch asTonopah,Hawthorne andGenoa, Nevada.The 1920 U.S.census showsLouisFinnegan’soccupation asMiningProcurator. In
other words, a broker with abusiness in Goldfield, where hewas very successful.
Lillian married Finnegan onFebruary 26, 1907, in Genoa atthe “Pink House”, Lillian’s familyhome, before relatives andfriends. They left on ahoneymoon tour to the westcoast. Could it have been on thistrip to the coast that Lillyconceived the idea of passingcandy around at a dance athome to earn money for thestreet lights in her belovedGenoa? (The Genoa CandyDance 1919)
During their marriage, Lilliantraveled most of the time withLouis on his mining venturesthroughout the west. When nottraveling Lillian returned toGenoa for a visit with her family.Finnegan had a guest house builta short distance from the rear ofthe “Pink House” just for thosevisits.
Finnegan was in and out ofmost of the mining areas inNevada and perhaps California.In August of 1904, it wasreported a land sale was made
through Finnegan for thePortland group on a piece ofground between the Septemberand Bull Con mines from Murphyand Meyers, saying, “…goodlooking rock has been openedup.” Finnegan was at his best.
In 1906 in Tonopah, Nevada,Finnegan was involved in a 1904lawsuit where he and two othermen, E. O’Brien and O. F. Reibelhad a “grubstake” ($75) interestin the Montgomery-Shoshonemine with E.A. Montgomery. Thecase was denied by Judge Breen.The case was appealed. Inappeals court, it was ruled theplaintiffs, Finnegan and friends,had failed to prove their case.Loss: grubstake money, courtcosts, other expenses and time.It is said that Finnegan made andlost several fortunes over theyears. History shows us thatmining was, and still is, a gambleand not always a sure thing.Finnegan held stock in severalmines, to name a few: ThePortland in Goldfield, ManhattanJumbo Mining Co., City ofGoldfield Mining Co., and others.
Louis Finnegan died at Cisco,Eastland, Texas, on July 13, 1926,of natural causes. He was thereon business. He is buried in theGenoa Cemetery.
Lillian died February 6, 1938,at age 60. She is also buried inthe Genoa Cemetery. Louis andLillian had no children.
Ref: Joan Stephens, researcher1920 US CensusThe Record-Courier Newspaper
The Centennial GenoaCandy Dance StatueProject reachedsignificant milestones inApril. The Douglas CountyPlanning Commissionapproved a Special UsePermit to locate thebronze statue of LillianVirgin Finnegan on thenorthwest corner of Nixonand Main Streets. Thestatue will be installed inthe summer of 2019. TheStatue Project committeethanks everyone whoassisted with securing a “home”for Lillian, including Genoa TownManager Phil Ritger, members ofthe Genoa Town Advisory Board,the Friends of Genoa and R.O.Anderson Engineering, Inc.
A 7-foot Styrofoam enlargementof the 18-inch maquette (model)of Lillian Virgin Finnegan has beencreated by 3D scanning theoriginal. The rough cut Styrofoamwas then refined by hand,covered with clay, andtransported from the Bronze-smith Foundry in Prescott Valleyto the home of Debrine and Larry
Smedley in Scottsdale.Debrine, the sculptress,is at work adding clay,sculpting, and refiningthe statue details, to becompleted by the end of2018.
In April, members ofGenoa “pioneer”families and StatueProject committeemembers gathered atthe home of Marilynand Tony Prestigiacomofor a social evening ofconversation. Billie Jean
Rightmire, Randy & Betsy Falcke,and Judy Brierly shared Genoahistory and reminisced aboutCandy Dance events over the
years. The Genoa PioneerReunion Picnic is planned forSunday, June 10. Details will beposted on the Genoa’s website:
GenoaNevada.org. For moreinformation, contact MarilynPresti, (775) 721-5663.
Statue Project donor forms areavailable at the Genoa TownOffice and The Pink House. Formore information, contact: GailTeig (775-790-4231). [email protected] orvisit our Facebook page atFacebook.com/GenoaCandyDance
Full-size styrofoam: before and after covering with clay.
What began in the year 2000 asa means to raise funds to erect astatue of the “Legendary Mailmanof the Sierra” eventually becameThe Friends of SnowshoeThompson organization (FOST),whose purpose in Genoa today is:“To promote and foster thememory of John ‘Snowshoe’Thompson through events andactivities, and to maintain thestatue and planter in MormonStation State Historic Park.”
This year on February 24, theorganization celebrated its 18th Annual SnowshoeThompson Ski & SnowshoeCelebration at the Lake TahoeGolf Course in South Lake Tahoe,CA. For the first time FOST,partnered with the Lake TahoeHistorical Society, Alpine Countyand the Douglas County HistoricalSociety — all in communitieswhere Snowshoe Thompson madea significant impact.
The event was a resoundingsuccess with more than 60attendees — exceedingattendance of all past events!
Many joined SnowshoeThompson (portrayed by SteveHale) on a journey around thesnow-covered golf course groundsand learned about “long-boarding”from member and Norwegiannative Nina MacLeod. MusicianRichard Blair entertained with hisoriginal folk songs, including oneabout Snowshoe himself. AuthorFrank Tortorich brought copies ofhis book John A. “Snowshoe”Thompson: Pioneer Mail Carrier ofthe Sierra and signed them forbuyers. There were also displays
and exhibits by the Lake TahoeHistorical Society, as well as TheFriends of Snowshoe Thompson.
Mark your calendars now for
Saturday, March 2, 2019, with thesame event location for next year.
Snowshoe Thompson’s legendextends far and wide, beyondGenoa and the Carson Valley. Ifyou are interested in becoming alifetime member for only $10 orjust want information about theorganization, please visit thewebsite: SnowshoeThompson.org,or visit our Facebook page:Facebook.com/FriendsOfSnowshoe.
For more, contact secretary SueKnight at [email protected] (775) 315-7777, or Kim Harrisat [email protected] and(775) 220-0605.Beste hilsener! (Best wishes!)– Kim Harris, President, The Friends
of Snowshoe Thompson
The Friends of Snowshoe Thompson
Photo courtesy of Kurt Hildebrand, April 2018.
Live Music at the
SUNDAYPORCH PARTY
Genoa residentsenjoyed the May 20thPorch Party hosted bythe Genoa Bar. MorePorch Partiesscheduled thru Oct.
On May 19, a beautifulmonument at the CourthouseMuseum was unveiled commemo-rating the lives of artist HansMeyer-Kassel (1872-1952) and hiswife Maria Meyer-Kassel.
Proclamations from GovernorBrian Sandoval and the DouglasCounty Board of Commissionerswere presented. Bill Brooks, localGenoan and the couple’s nephew,donated the painting selected asa U.S. postage stamp in 1951. Thepainting will be on permanent dis-play at the Courthouse Museum.
The Nevada Museum of Art’sexhibit, Hans Meyer-Kassel: Artistof Nevada, ends September 2.
On Saturday, June 16 at 8 a.m.the amazing volunteers of theTown of Genoa will gather in frontof the Town Office to begin ourannual town cleanup day.
The Town of Genoa will providethe trash bags, latex gloves andwater for the volunteers. Pleasebring your own work gloves.
We will work untilapproximately 11 a.m. Pleasecome join in the fun as we spruceup our town for the summer.
Genoa Cleanup Day
The Genoa Candy Dance Arts &Crafts Faire is fast approaching —Saturday & Sunday, Sept. 29 &30. Last year, we had 127 selflessvolunteers… Bottom line? Weneed your help again this year!
VOLUNTEERS NEEDED FOR:• CANDY MAKING — Begins in
August. Love cooking? 3,100pounds of candy were madelast year. Only volunteer jobavailable before the event.
• CANDY SELLING — Sell candy inthe Town Hall during the Faireand assist with setup andcleanup.
• DINNER/DANCE — Setup seatingon Saturday afternoon andassist with hosting duties at thedinner/dance on Saturdayevening.
• INFO BOOTH — Assist Faireattendees with questions,locating vendors & more, whilesitting in the shade.
• VENDOR HOSTS — Provide booth-sitting and/or walking aroundto assit with the arts and craftsvendors during the Faire.
• ICE SALES — Responsible for thesale of ice to food vendors. This is a “cool” job for anyone!
• OTHER POSITIONS — will needstaffing as the event date nears.
This is a fun way to meet localpeople! So…if you’d like to be apart of Candy Dance, please emailor call us at the contact below: [email protected]. (775) 782-2430 (Alison & Roger)We’d love to hear from you!
G E N O A C A N D Y D A N C E 2 0 1 8
Are you ready to be a Volunteer?Memorial Dedication
Author Jack Bacon and Genoan BillBrooks beside the memorial.
In December of 2018, three ofthe current Genoa Town AdvisoryBoard members will concludetheir terms. Board Member GregPace has served 12 consecutiveyears on the board and will betermed out at the end of 2018.Two other board members, TimDeTurk and Linda Birdwell, willalso conclude their tenure at theend of this year. Tim serves as thechairman of the board and Linda,the vice chair.
One Genoa resident, BrianCrowe, filed papers at the countyto run for a seat on the board.Brian, a resident of Genoa since2000, worked as a mechanicalengineer/construction manageron large power, nuclear andcommunication facilitiesthroughout the world. He then
joined Western Nevada College astheir Environmental, Health andSafety Coordinator. Brian retiredafter 13 years at WNC withemeritus status.
The two remaining vacantpositions will be filled byappointment.
Our current board memberswill interview interestedcandidates and select twoappointees to serve two-yearterms on the board. Anyinterested Genoa residents shouldcontact Town Manager Phil Ritgerat 782-8696.
To serve on the Genoa TownAdvisory Board one must live inGenoa and be a registered voter.The town borders are indicatedon the map (right). The GTABmeets on the first Wednesday of
every month at 6:30 p.m. in theGenoa Town Office meeting room.
22nd
1996 • 2018 ANNIVER
SARY
GENOA NOTES: Advisory Board Members needed
Download a large map PDF: www.GenoaNevada.org/GenoaTownBoard.htm
