2016 Nevada Day Treasure Hunt clue explanations

Clue 1

A different treasure was hunted

When Nevada became a state

Now a medallion is sought

And all are welcome to participate

Explanation: This is an introductory clue to the 2016 Nevada Day Treasure Hunt referencing the Nevada Day Parade’s them, “Nevada: Then & Now.”

Clue 2

While we encourage a jaunt to all 12

Because such a walk may be pleasant

Once you pass the smallest Granville figure

You will no longer find our little present

Explanation: The medallion was hidden in Virginia City on the Comstock Trail, which has 12 trail markers. This clue tells hunters that the medallion is not hidden past trail marker No. 6. Six is the smallest perfect number because it equals the sum of its proper divisors (1, 2 and 3). Granville numbers are extensions of perfect numbers and 6 is the smallest Granville number.

Clue 3

Between the paths

That together cast

Exactly one thirty

You can celebrate at last

Explanation: This clue tells hunters that the medallion is hidden between Interstate 80 and Highway 50 as the sum of 80 and 50 is 130.

Clue 4

The crime began in Paris

But brought devastation here

There was no silver lining

The damage has yet to disappear

Explanation: This clue points hunters to the Comstock mining boom in Virginia City, where the medallion was hidden. Congress passed the Coinage Act of 1873, known as the “Crime of 73,” implementing recommendations made at the 1867 international monetary conference held in Paris. The act demonetized silver and ultimately negatively affected the silver mining industry by reducing the amount of silver purchased by the federal government. As a result, the Comstock mining boom was effectively over by 1880.

Clue 5

A pair of the eight

Have a sum of two

Make sure you choose

The one to get you through

Explanation: There are a total of 108 cities and towns in Nevada. Of the eight counties where the medallion could have been hidden, Washoe, Douglas, and Lyon counties all have more than five cities and towns. Mineral and Pershing counties have four cities and towns, and Carson City has one city, itself. Only Storey and Churchill counties have two cities and towns. Therefore, this clue tells hunters that the medallion is hidden in either Storey or Churchill County.

Clue 6

The first act was

Too much of a drain

But after Gesell

There was more refrain

Explanation: This clue points to Derby Dam, which is partially in Storey County where the medallion was hidden. The Derby Dam was completed in 1905 to provide water to the arid Lahontan Valley. It was the first project of the U.S. Reclamation Service from the Reclamation Act of 1902. The dam’s diversion of the water in the Truckee River had a detrimental effect on Pyramid Lake. By 1967 the lake’s level had dropped, at which time the Pyramid Lake Paiute Tribe began filing a series of lawsuits aimed at halting the decline of the lake. These actions led to a 1973 United States District Court opinion, which called for the gradual reduction of the diversion of water from the Truckee River, and was known as the Gesell opinion after District Court Judge Gerhard Gesell who decided the case.

Clue 7

The capital’s legislators

Did not accept the payoff

Resulting in seven years of

Success before dying off

Explanation: American City, also known as American Flats, was located west of Gold Hill in Storey County. People began settling in American City in 1860 and its founding fathers offered a bribe of $50,000 to the Nevada territorial government to relocate the capital from Carson City to American City. Most of Storey County was in favor of the move, but the rest of the state opposed it and the legislators rejected the proposal. By 1867, American City was pretty much a ghost town.

Clue 8

The death of Demming

Caused by a roaming band

Was the excuse to break the truce

Causing the death of K’s Command

Explanation: This clue references the Pyramid Lake War in 1860. Settlers to the area had entered into a peace treaty with the Paiute tribe in 1858. That treaty was broken when a band of Paiutes murdered Dexter Demming on Jan. 13, 1860. Demming’s death led to the Pyramid Lake War, in which Edward Farris Storey was killed on June 2, 1860, during the Second Battle of Pyramid Lake. Storey was the commander of Company K, Nevada Militia, known as the “Virginia City Rifles,” and Storey County, where the medallion was hidden, was named after him.

Clue 9

View the loaf in the

161 kilometers east

Milled with butter

So dough will be released

Explanation: Virginia City, where the medallion was hidden, is known for its 100-mile view, or 161-kilometer view, looking east over Six Mile Canyon. Within that view is the Sugarloaf rock formation, which is a volcanic plug rising above the canyon and is considered a landmark in the area. Near Sugarloaf Mountain is the stone and concrete ruins of Butters Mill, once the largest cyanide mill in the United States. In 1901 Charles Butter build the cyanide mill that many hoped would rescue the Comstock from decline, but it was unable to do so. The mill was closed in the 1930s.

Clue 10

His partner wrote the pact

She was famously mute

They were patiently waiting

And all shared this as a root

Explanation: This clue tells hunters the medallion is hidden in Virginia City by pointing to the King-McBride House, which has had a long list of tenants. In the 1880s, Judge Richard Rising and his family rented the home from the King family. When Judge Rising relocated to Nevada, he formed a law partnership with William Stewart, who drafted the Nevada Constitution. During the time that the Catholic Church owned the home, it rented it out to silent film actress Bobbett Simpson. Then in 1944 the house became the Bonanza Inn, which was a retreat for eastern socialites awaiting their six-week residency for a Nevada divorce.

Clue 11

22 came from Oxford but

Only one vaulted to the top

Accounting for its heritage

It’s now a great place to shop

Explanation: Once again this clue tells hunters that the medallion is hidden in Virginia City by directing their attention to V&T Rail Car No. 13. The Oxford Car Company built 22 cars for the Virginia & Truckee Railroad: 20 flat cars, a mail and baggage car, and an express car. The Mail-Bullion Car No. 13 was specifically built with a steel reinforced bullion vault in one half of the car and an accounting office in the other half. Until 1939 she transported precious cargo, worth millions of dollars, from Virginia City to the mint at Carson City and to the South Pacific Railroad connection in Reno. Rail Car No. 13 now houses the Comstock Wild Horse and Mining Museum and Gift Shop on C Street in Virginia City.

Clue 12

Patrick was chosen

To oversee the flock

But his house is now haunted

With the medallion a short walk

Explanation: In 1864 the Daughters of Charity opened a school, orphanage, and hospital in Virginia City. The sisters’ dark blue habits and billowing starched white cornettes led the native Paiutes to call them “God’s Geese.” Under the supervision of Father Patrick Manogue, a four-story building, the St. Mary Louise Hospital, was constructed for their use. Today the building still stands and houses St. Mary’s Art Center at 55 R St. in Virginia City. There have been many recorded paranormal activities at the old building and it is considered to be a modern day “haunted house.” If hunters continued down R Street, they would have found the Comstock Trail, where the medallion was hidden.

Clue 13

R you ready to hunt?

Then follow our first commander

And he will lead you straight to

Where you might want to meander

Explanation: The Comstock Trail, where the medallion was hidden, is located at the end of Washington and R streets in Virginia City. Washington was the Commander in Chief of the Continental Army and the first U.S. President.

Clue 14

From one student to another

Thank you for your dedication

Thus providing all of us with

The medallion’s current station

Explanation: This clue tells hunters that the medallion is hidden on the Comstock Trail in Virginia City, which was erected by students of the Storey County School District.