Reno is located in the greenest of valleys and surrounded by the Sierra Nevadas, the most majestic mountain range in the United States. These mountains cover a length of six hundred miles from Mount Jacinto to Mount Shasta, and a breadth of from seventy-five to one hundred miles, with long and gradual slopes on the west, cut by deep canons. The climate of the Sierras is beyond an adequate description: the beautiful summer days are mild and rainless. The main peaks of the western range are: Mount King, Mount Gardner and Mount Brewer; those of the eastern range: Mount Kearsage, Mount Tyndall, Mount Williamson and Mount Whitney. Mount Whitney is the highest peak in the United States outside of Alaska, rising 14,898 feet above sea level. The other main peaks of the Sierra Nevadas exceed 13,000 feet in altitude. The peaks nearest Reno are: Mount Rose and Peavin Mountain, both of which can be seen from any part of the City of Reno.
In this setting nestles our much-talked-of "Gem City of Nevada"—the city of heart-throbs and dreams! Its chief industries, I would say, are gold and love…. One less poetic might call these mining and divorce.
Next to its dreamy, romantic side, Reno has a very practical side: its position as a business center. The railroads radiating north, east, south and west, give it an enormous tributary territory. There are modern business blocks, department stores, excellent hotels. The best hotels are: The Hotel Golden, the Riverside and the Overland.
[Illustration: Lobby of the Golden Hotel]
Reno is a city of beautiful residences, trees and shrubbery; asphalt and macadam streets. There are fine public buildings, libraries and theatres of the first magnitude.
One of the most noteworthy features of Reno is its beautiful schools. There are six besides the High School and the University; Orvis Ring School, McKinley Park School, Southside School, Mt. Rose School, Mary S. Doten School and the Babcock Memorial Kindergarten. The architecture is the "old mission," and it is difficult to decide which one really excels in beauty. Apart from the beautiful architecture, these schools are all equipped with every modern device for the training of the younger generation, both physically and mentally. Never in any public school have I seen such a splendidly equipped Domestic Science room as the one in the McKinley Park School. Its beautiful open, airy Assembly Hall with its hardwood floors and stage for private theatricals and other social affairs is the acme of modern refinement. In this hall the "Mothers' Club" holds its meetings, and the children have their school dances.
The University of Nevada has the best equipped school of Mining Engineering in the Western States; it also has a summer course on several interesting subjects, which often is taken advantage of by many who find time passing slowly, and wish to "brush up a bit."
Among the imposing buildings downtown is the Y. M. C. A., an artistic and splendidly equipped edifice. It is located on the north bank of the Truckee, commanding a beautiful view of snow-capped Mount Rose and Slide Mountain in the distance, above the green of the trees. Part of this building is devoted to indoor sports and consists of a gymnasium, conducted by able instructors; a handball court, bowling alleys, pool and billiard tables and a spacious swimming pool with shower-baths; it furthermore has a library and a large number of private rooms for out- of-town guests. At the time of the writing of this book, 1917, the Y. M. C. A. donated the use of its Assembly Hall to the American Red Cross for making hospital supplies and for "First Aid" classes. Here, the residents of Reno work side by side with members of the "Divorce Colony," women in all walks of life, from all parts of the world; women famous and beautiful, all working for the great cause of Humanity without any social prejudices, personal feelings, or pettiness…. So much for the Y. M. C. A.
[Illustration: Mt. Rose School]
Among the prominent and beautiful buildings are: the Nixon Building and the Nixon Home on the banks of the Truckee, both of which are artistic and worthy of mention.