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Travel Nevada:

Legendary Nevadans and their stomping grounds

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Nevada has a rich and colorful history—one that includes noble, heroic figures, as well as Wild West shootouts, mob activity, gambling and intriguing individuals of all kinds. With Nevada Day observed this year on Oct. 29, we’ve rounded up a list of Silver State legends and where you can follow in their footsteps today. Use this as a blueprint for your next trip, inspiration for your bucket list or to just simply bask in Nevada pride.

Full disclosure: You’re not going to find the Rat Pack or mobsters on this list, though they are Nevada legends. We’re looking at a few notable folks outside the Las Vegas Valley.

Earliest inhabitants

It’s believed that Nevada’s earliest inhabitants trace back about 12,400 years, dated by petroglyphs and archeological sites in locations such as Valley of Fire State Park, Gold Butte National Monument and Basin and Range National Monument. Ancestral Puebloans, Western Shoshone and Northern Paiutes are only some of the American Indians who call Nevada’s Great Basin home. Today, there are 27 Indian reservations, bands and colonies in Nevada.

1826-1903

Eilley Bowers was one of the richest women in the country and the state’s first female millionaire, amassing more than $4 million during the mining boom. But millionaire mine owner wasn’t her only title—she was also a purported fortune teller, socialite and prospector.

Check out a surviving piece of her legacy at Bowers Mansion Regional Park in Washoe Valley. The estate hasn’t changed in 150 years, making it an incredible opportunity to step back in time.

Hightail it to Virginia City and Gold Hill, where Bowers began her prospecting career. Don’t miss the oldest hotel in Nevada, Gold Hill Hotel & Saloon, which opened around 1861.

1829-1925

Dat So La Lee was a famous basket weaver of the Washoe people in the northwestern part of the state. Her baskets are so celebrated and well-known, you can find them in museums across the country, including the Smithsonian and the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York. Locally, the Nevada Historical Society in Reno and the Nevada State Museum in Carson City have her willow baskets on display.

1832-1867

Another famed Virginia City boomtown character, Julia Bulette was once Virginia City’s most beloved prostitute, and today, she’s somewhat of a folk heroine. She was known for caring for sick miners and raising money for the Union during the Civil War. Sadly, Bulette met a gruesome end and was found murdered in her bedroom. As a show of respect, the mines, mills and saloons in Virginia City closed to mourn her passing.

The Cobb Mansion Bed & Breakfast in Virginia City is a pristine mansion in one of Nevada’s most historic towns. And they have an entire room honoring Bulette.

Liberty Engine Company #1 State Firemen’s Museum is a must-stop for history buffs—and an important part of Bulette’s story, as she was named an honorary member of Virginia Engine Number 1 and donated her time and money to the organization.

1835-1910

There are few authors more meaningful to American literature than Mark Twain. Born Samuel Langhorne Clemens in Missouri, he moved in 1861 to the Nevada territory, where he adopted his pen name, Mark Twain. Many of the experiences he had in Northern Nevada would later inform his writing.

The hot springs at David Walley’s Resort in Carson Valley, near Genoa, was a well-known stomping grounds for Twain. Soak in the mineral-rich waters Twain, fellow frontiersmen and countless guests have enjoyed since its inception in 1862.

Unionville is near where Twain tried his hand at mining and where his cabin still stands today. If you head up to this area, stop at the Old Pioneer Garden Country Inn.

1848-1929

Wyatt Earp was a lawman, gambler and gunfighter in Tombstone, Arizona, before he, and his brother Virgil Earp, moved up to central Nevada. They were known to spend time in what are now some of our favorite ghost towns—Tonopah and Goldfield.

Local legend says the Earp brothers frequented the Mizpah Hotel in Tonopah. You can still stay at the Mizpah today, where you’ll enjoy the 1900s decadence—and possibly a ghost sighting or two. While in Tonopah, stop at the Central Nevada Museum to learn more about this special part of the state.

Virgil Earp worked at a saloon in Goldfield, and both brothers spent time at Hoist House Tavern (now Mozart Tavern) and Santa Fe Saloon—two sagebrush saloons in Goldfield that will take you right back to the 1800s.

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