These 12 Nevada historic sites may go extinct, historians say

Las Vegas is a city that constantly reinvents itself, transforming from a small boom town along 1900s railroads to an international gaming destination. Structures don’t stay long, razed for bigger and better casinos or shopping centers.

Some holdover gems that represent different eras of the Silver State’s history still exist, especially in more remote parts of the state with slower growth. But historians worry many of these are in danger of vanishing in the near future.

In December, Preserve Nevada, a statewide nonprofit that advocates for historical preservation, released its list of 12 places and things from Reno to Las Vegas that are at risk of extinction, whether that’s because of development or a lack of maintenance.

Michael Green, a UNLV professor and Preserve Nevada board member, said maintaining the integrity of old buildings and artifacts safeguards lessons still to be learned from historical events.

“In Nevada’s case, history ranges from the dawn of time until 10 seconds ago,” Green said. “We encourage people to know our history and to understand the importance of preserving it.”

Like Las Vegas, the yearly list is ever-changing. The list is often a tool to help bring awareness to places that community members may be interested in saving. It’s worked before, such as when the organization joined a chorus of historians who wanted to protect Kiel Ranch in North Las Vegas, one of the valley’s first ranches founded in 1875. In 2016, the city founded Kiel Ranch Historic Park and rehabilitated what was left of the site, used before for dumping.

“Sometimes, we keep beating the drum,” Green said of the list’s repeat offenders. “We have members in northeastern Nevada, central Nevada, the Reno-Carson City area, down here in Las Vegas. We’re trying to expand our efforts to become a clearinghouse of information.”

Whether Nevadans are new to the state or are Battle Born to the core and think they have seen it all, here’s the group’s guide to endangered history they may want to catch before it’s gone:

Frontier cemeteries

Around the Western frontier, cemeteries are what’s left of mining settlements that became ghost towns when deposits ran out and people were called elsewhere.

In 1962, the Nevada Legislature found there were about 3,000 historic cemeteries in the state, many of which had already been defaced or were in need of restoration. These relics, the organization argues, are important to descendants of those buried there and serve as records of the existence of ghost towns.

Old Mormon Fort

One of the only Las Vegas places on the list, the Old Mormon Fort, is situated within a state park.

However, the organization says the city’s plan to raze the Grant Sawyer State Office Building for a parking lot across the street is a concerning development that could later threaten the fort, which is Nevada’s oldest existing structure.

The fort was built by missionaries from The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in 1855, and the park has been home to the city’s first post office, pioneer families, Indigenous people and chemical testing needed for Hoover Dam construction.

Historic theaters in Reno, Las Vegas and beyond

Theaters across the Silver State have delighted audiences for generations. But many of the state’s original ones lie abandoned and have been on the organization’s list before.

In Las Vegas, the Huntridge Theater is slated for renovation after being closed for decades. A dispute with a company refusing to relocate a cell tower slowed down construction and was the subject of a lawsuit. The Boulder Theatre in Boulder City’s downtown is today the home of the Boulder City Ballet.

The city of Reno began a structural assessment of its historic Lear Theater this year, and groups have rallied to preserve others like the Gem Theater in Pioche.

Nevada’s historical markers

Since 1967, when the Legislature approved a program to create them, historical markers in the desert have held the best-kept secrets of Nevada’s story.

These plaques have fallen into disrepair in many cases, historians argue, because of a lack of funding needed for the Nevada Division of State Parks to rehab and update them.

Arborglyphs

To the West and parts of Northern Nevada, Basque sheepherders brought arborglyphs with them. They are drawings with different meanings carved into the bark of aspen trees.

Aspen trees live for about 100 years, causing the University of Nevada, Reno, to join the Arborglyph Collective, a multi-university effort to catalog them before they’re gone.

Nevada Northern Railway Depot and Freight Building

Earthquakes might be the biggest threat to the buildings in Ely, part of the Nevada Northern Railway National Historic Landmark. The railroad stopped running in the ‘90s, causing the depot and freight buildings to then be owned by the state of Nevada and the rest of the complex to be owned by the Nevada Northern Foundation.

A lawsuit between the foundation and the state has suspended needed repairs to the freight building indefinitely, Preserve Nevada says, as well as improvements needed to help the depot withstand seismic activity.

Nishikida Laundry Building

In Gardnerville, this structure is of significance to Nevada’s Japanese-American community. It was first a school in the late 1800s, but later the Nishikida family bought it and turned it into a laundry facility.

Japanese-American Nevadans were not relocated during World War II like in some other states, so the family remained in Gardnerville, even hosting a relocated California family member during the war. The owners of the property are seeking funds meant for brownfields, or abandoned areas that may carry pollution, to rehabilitate the building, according to Preserve Nevada.

Micca House

The Micca House in Paradise Valley is of importance to Italian-Americans in Nevada, serving as a 19th-century meeting place.

Italian immigrant Alfonso Pasquale bought the land in 1905, converting an old warehouse and an adobe building that housed businesses like a shoemaker into the Micca House, named after where he grew up.

Hannah’s Cabin, or Hannah’s Hideaway

A rundown shell of what it once was, Hannah’s Cabin is a relic in the backwoods of Lake Tahoe Nevada State Park.

Lumber baron William S. Hobart Sr. built it as a summer retreat for his granddaughter Hannah in 1929. The Nevada State Parks system said in 2015 that the structure desperately needed repairs in the next three years.

Southern Pacific Railroad resources of Reno and Sparks

Under this umbrella, Preserve Nevada is concerned about several buildings in Reno and Sparks that help tell the story of the transcontinental railroad that was integral to both cities’ development.

The Machine Shop building in Sparks, now 120 years old, may be cleared for truck parking. It’s the last relic of the Southern Pacific yard and shop complex that gave the city its nickname of “Rail City.” In Reno, Preserve Nevada is worried about the unused Southern Pacific Freight Depot and the half-vacant, city-owned Southern Pacific Railroad Depot.

Bethel AME Church of Washoe County

A hub of the Civil Rights Movement in Northern Nevada and crucial to the history of Reno’s Black community, this church is in an area of the city that has caught the eye of private developers.

A failed attempt by developers to have the city abandon public streets and alleys near the church would have impeded access to it, Preserve Nevada says.

Elko County public defender’s office

This building has had many purposes: the first publicly funded high school in Nevada in 1896, a library and the Elko County manager’s office. It’s at risk of being turned into a parking lot, according to Preserve Nevada.

Contact Alan Halaly at ahalaly@reviewjournal.com. Follow @AlanHalaly on X and @alanhalaly.bsky.social on Bluesky.