Nevada was home to the Paiute, Western Shoshone, Washoe, and Mojave people for many years, relying on enormous knowledge of a land that looked empty to outsiders but provided for those who knew it.
Spanish explorers claimed the area as part of their North American empire as early as the 1500s, but no Europeans actually set foot in what is now Nevada until the late 1700s. Franciscan missionary Francisco Garcés crossed the southern tip of Nevada in 1776, and a few decades later, American fur trappers came in from the east. Jedediah Smith became the first American to cross Nevada in 1826, and in the 1840s, prolific explorer, John C. Fremont, led expeditions that finally mapped much of the state’s rivers, deserts, and lakes.
Nevada became U.S. territory after the Mexican-American War ended in 1848, the same year gold was discovered in California. Thousands passed through the state, but few stayed. A decade later, silver was discovered–the Comstock Lode. The population boomed, and with the wealth resulting from the find, the area changed dramatically.
When the Civil War began, Nevada’s mineral wealth became a matter of national importance. President Lincoln wanted Nevada in the Union both for its silver and for its votes, and in late 1864, Nevada was admitted as the 36th state. It was perfect timing to help re-elect Lincoln and ratify the Thirteenth Amendment.
The state went through cycles of boom and bust with towns booming, then disappearing almost overnight. All across Nevada you can still find ghost towns, remnants of wealth that suddenly disappeared. Driving across Death Valley once, we found ourselves in Rhyolite, my first experience with a ghost town. I recognized the scene, but couldn’t quite place it, until I realized it was where part of The Island was filmed.
In 1931, the state made two decisions that would change everything for Nevada: it legalized gambling, and shortened the residency requirement for divorce to six weeks. With the influx of workers building the Hoover Dam, it didn’t take long for a little town called Las Vegas to build into something much more.
With its casinos, neon, the Rat Pack, Howard Hughes, mob history, and mega-resorts, Las Vegas is like nowhere else. My first visit was in 2017 to teach at Quiltique; I must have driven up and down the Strip a dozen times just to see everything I could. Each time I return, there are new spectacles to see. My favorite addition has been The Sphere. It, like Vegas, is so unique it deserves the visit.
A bit north of Vegas is one of my favorite places, the Valley of Fire State Park. It has some of the most otherworldly red rock formations I’ve ever seen. We camped at Valley of Fire several times and every time was magical with ancient petroglyphs and inexplicable terrain.
We’ve yet to make it to Great Basin National Park, even though we lived in the area for nearly a year. It sits on the Nevada-Utah border and includes Wheeler Peak, a small glacier, marble caves, and a grove of bristlecone pines, some of them more than 4,000 years old. It’s not far from Cathedral Gorge State Park, a place we kind of stumbled upon one weekend. Again, just otherworldly and inexplicable. We walked in among the rocks, eerily silent and towering over us. Absolutely one of the strangest places I’ve been.
Quilt Block
While I love the geography of the state, it doesn’t make a beautiful quilt block and I’d venture to guess that it’s the gambling that many of us correlate with Vegas. Nevada’s block for the Quarter Millennial Quilt represents hitting the small wins of a slot machine–a little stack of coins.
This very traditional block is easily constructed with strips and I’ve made them oversized for you to trim down as you see fit. Watch the tutorial for a few extra tips:
Quilt Shops
- Quilt Parlor in Battle Mountain is a wonderful shop off the highway in northern Nevada–they were kind enough to host us during our LQS tour and I’ve sent a few quilts to be long-armed by them.
- Quiltique in Henderson is one of the first places I taught at and was so impressed with their displays that I go back to see them every time I’m in town.
- Christmas Goose in Las Vegas is tucked into a strip mall but has a surprising variety of fabrics, battings, embroidery and more.
- Sew Yeah Quilting in Las Vegas is well-known for their YouTube shows with live selling and sometimes crazy antics. They have hosted classes with me a few times, both in-person and online.
If you’ve got a favorite place or memory in Nevada, I’d love to hear about it!
