Carson City looking north from the top of the Capitol building in 1871.
Saturday
150 years ago
The Board of Pardons had a meeting yesterday and by unanimous voice refused the petition for the commutation of Rufus B. Anderson’s sentence. This seals that rash young man’s doom. We believe his execution is set for Friday, the 30th of the present month.
130 years ago
The Appeal would like to ask the President of the Young Men’s Republican Club when he proposes to call a meeting to ratify the county ticket.
100 years ago
Out With Their Flag. The Boy Scouts, proud as peacocks, were out last evening on parade and at their head was their flag-bearer carrying the great, big silk flag received yesterday from President Wilson. It was a momentous occasion for the boys, but they conducted themselves with all the decorum of a trained force and the serious mien which marked their faces and bearing indicated that they fully appreciate the duties that have been put on their young shoulders.
70 years ago
Ninety-four percent of the prisoners now in the Nevada state prison are out-of-state persons who have spent an average of only two days in this state prior to arrest, according to the chief parole officer. “Return to their resident state upon parole contributes greatly to social readjustment,” said the officer.
50 years ago
Maybe you think the Nevada Day celebration lasts only one or two days and really doesn’t require much preparation, but the Nevada Day Committee thinks you’re wrong. They hired a full time secretary just to help prepare for the celebration. Mrs. Bill Cardinal, secretary to the Nevada Day Committee says they work all year long, and there are a million things to do.
30 years ago
Bureau of Land Management officials today confirmed that their investigators have found 110 dead wild horses in Lander County in barren central Nevada in the last few days. The figure brings a total of 450 found near Austin.
Sunday
150 years ago
These Autumn Days are among the finest of the year. Here in the valley, surrounded by wind swept mountain ridges and arid desert lands, amid brown hues, quiet reigns and there is security and peace. Welcomed by all are these Autumn days.
130 years ago
They are having a taste of practical prohibition at the famous beer-brewing town of Boca, Nevada county, Cal. So many drunken men have been run over by trains, and there has been so much trouble of various kinds from drunkenness, that the Central Pacific Railroad Company has decided to remedy the evil so far as is in their power. To this end they have prohibited the sale of liquor upon lands belonging to them in Boca. This order closes all the saloons that have been running in that town.
100 years ago
Two hundred and nineteen cases of influenza have been reported to the health department in San Francisco in three hours this morning, making the total more than 1,200. The closure of schools, churches, and theaters is being considered. Dance halls have already been closed.
70 years ago
Nevada’s time system was thrown further out of kilter today as a fourth county decided to return to standard time on Oct. 17. Meeting in Fallon the Churchill county commissioners voted to drop daylight savings time because of hardships inflicted upon rural school children. Other counties returning to standard time are Lander, White Pine and Humboldt.
50 years ago
(Photo Caption) After the Fall — An ambulance crew removed stuntman Evil Knievel to Washoe Medical Center for treatment of a possible broken left hip, collarbone and pelvis when he failed in his attempt to jump 10 parked cars (in Carson City). He was listed in satisfactory condition today.
30 years ago
The cowboys around the dinner table at the Grass Valley Ranch fall silent when Molly Knudsen speaks her mind about the recent slaughter of 450 wild horses.
Tuesday
150 years ago
The Camel Nuisance. Between this city and Fort Churchill are residing a couple of Frenchmen, who own a heard of 15 to 20 camels — great and small — which they allow to graze on the traveled north side of the river, to the endangering of the lives of all who travel the road with either horse or mule teams. It is well known that horses and mules are always frightened at the appearance of the camels — mules in particular become perfectly frantic with terror.
130 years ago
On their good behavior. On Sunday last quite a crowd of well dressed strangers were observed on the street, and several people wondered who they were and remarked on their gentlemanly bearing. They were in reality a contingent of Mason Valley cowboys who came up to spend Sunday at the Capital. They were all well dressed, quiet and well behaved and avoided getting drunk.
100 years ago
At Democratic headquarters tonight in the Circe building a Democratic club will be organized, and it is desired that a large and representative crowd be present.
70 years ago
The 1949 session of the state legislature may be asked to consider the possibilities of a state office building in Las Vegas. The suggestion is to centralize the Southern Nevada extensions of state agencies.
50 years ago
Knievel Mishap Mars Racing Show. A good-size crowd braved a cold wind and threats of rain yesterday afternoon at Carson City’s T-Car Speedway to witness a tragedy-marred, but otherwise excellent racing show under the sponsorship of Sierra Nevada Auto Racing Association.
30 years ago
Federal Watermaster Gary Stone has told the South Lake Tahoe Chamber of Commerce not to worry about the possibility of pumping Lake Tahoe now that is below its natural rim. He said it’s not only unpopular, but not a long-term solution to the drought. He also said the legal hurdles would be difficult to clear.
Trent Dolan is the son of Bill Dolan, who wrote this column for the Nevada Appeal from 1947 until his death in 2006.
