Mormon Station opens addition

Genoa may be Nevada's first settlement, but it's also home to the latest addition to the state park system.

The acre and a half Campbell addition has nearly doubled the size of Mormon Station State Historic Park and added some breathing room for park staff in the family's former home.

Silvia Campbell worked as proprietor of Mormon Station for more than 20 years and lived next door to the state park, in what is now the park's offices.

Park Supervisor Suzanne Sturtevant's new office inside the Campbell home looks out over the addition. The home was built in the 1950s near where the Rice Hotel burned down in the 1910 fire.

The additional acre and a half opened to the public this spring. It will receive its first big test on Friday when more than 3,000 people are expected to attend Pops in the Park at Mormon Station.

Visitors will be able to see the orchestra from the back of the addition, but the lack of shade may encourage them to take to the edges. Umbrellas aren't allowed where they block the crowd's view of the stage, but they are allowed inside the fort.

Sturtevant said there is a possibility umbrellas and other shades might be allowed at the back of the addition, but that decision has yet to be made

"We haven't decided if we want to allow shades yet," Sturtevant said of the addition. "Sometimes you need to see how it all works together."

The Campbell addition was purchased for the state by the county in 2003 and then by the state from the county in 2004.

The addition was purchased using money from the 2002 Question 1 bond issue.

Question 1 set aside $325,260 for the acquisition of the property and its conversion into a park.

Sturtevant said long-range plans are to rebuild the Rice Hotel on its original site, near where the Campbell house stands now.

Opening the Campbell property completes a cycle of work on Mormon Station that began in spring 2006, when the new rest rooms were built, and renovations were conducted on the park.

The addition will change the configuration of Candy Dance, Genoa's annual fundraiser in September. Sturtevant said an additional 30 booths will be permitted on the property.

Along with the addition, the park received water rights dating back to 1886, which they use to irrigate the park on their days. Sturtevant said the state planted new apple trees to replace a few of the 100-year-old trees that had to be removed for safety's sake. A state arborist checked out the other ancient trees to make sure they were safe and gave them a trim.

"This is not a bad place to come to work every day," Sturtevant said.