Pre-Nevada

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Nevada Part II: From Strikes to Statehood

BY RON SOODALTER By the early 1850s, it had become apparent that the gold strikes recently made in the West were game-changing and would significantly impact the nation’s future. California, a recent prize in a war of acquisition with Mexico, had already established itself as a mecca for westward immigrants; the discovery of gold simply […]
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Nevada Part I: The Unknown Territory

BY RON SOODALTER The establishment of Nevada as a territory, and eventually a state, is a long and dramatic story. It features every type of western character imaginable: Indians, Spanish friars, mountain men, explorers, surveyors, Santa Fe traders, prospectors, cowboys, railroaders, Mormons, desperadoes, and ladies of the demimonde. For some, Nevada merely represented a vast […]