Elko Trail Days

Formal Presentations

California Trail Days
California National Historic Trail Interpretive Center
Elko, Nevada
Friday and Saturday May 28 & 29, 2010
10:00 a.m. Till 5:00 p.m.
Free Admission

Located 8 Miles West of Elko Nevada on Interstate Highway 80 at the Hunter Exit 292

FOR MORE INFORMATION CONTACT:
California Trail Center 775-738-1849 or Gary Koy at 775-934-2467

There will be formal presentations throughout the event as well as a variety of family friendly activities and demonstrations. See the Friday and Saturday Schedules for times and locations of presentations.

Brief Descriptions of Formal Presentations:

Gold Rush Music – Live music from the Old Melodeon Minstrels featuring songs of the gold rush and reminiscent of the minstrel shows that visited the gold rush towns.
Shoshone Culture - A presentation by Leah Brady of the White Knife Shoshone Company and the Great Basin Native Market on Shoshone Culture Then and Now.
The Simpson Road Survey - The story of Captain James Hervey Simpson of the U.S. Army Corps of Topographical Engineers who laid out the Great Basin portion of modern U.S. 50 as part of a wagon road. Simpson, a West Point graduate (1832), became the Army's chief topographical engineer in Utah in 1858. Simpson was certain that a shorter route through the Great Basin to California was possible and in 1859 began to lay it out.
Wagon Train with Denny Miller: Denny Miller who played Duke Shannon on the Wagon Train TV series will discuss his experiences on the show and how Hollywood’s version of history might be different than the “real” thing.
Chautauqua - Mary OxBorrow: Pioneer Midwife and Healer: In this living history presentation sponsored by Nevada Humanities Anita Watson portrays Mary Oxborrow who came to Nevada as a young girl on a wagon train and became well known for her medical skill.
Bidwell-Bartleson: The Bidwell –Bartleson party is considered to be the first emigrant party to travel across northern Nevada. They claimed that all they knew was that California was somewhere to the west, but what did they really know and when did they know it?
Pony Express History: 2010 marks the 150 year anniversary of the first pony express delivery of mail from Saint Joseph Missouri to Sacramento California. Learn the real stories of the men who carried the mail during this colorful part of American History.