View from the Past

100 Years ago

The City Water is Low — Due to the lateness of the irrigation season this spring and the fact that water was allowed to run to keep pipes from freezing during the cold spell last winter, the city’s wells are lower than usual at this time of year, causing some difficulty in keeping the pressure up to normal in the city water system. Another unusual condition is the fact that irrigation on the ranches has been held back while people in the city have been busy irrigating lawns and gardens.

Churchill County Eagle, April 28, 1917

75 Years ago

Sugar Rationing Program Here to Start Soon — The sugar rationing program in Churchill County will be under way next week when dealers and café owners will register at the Fallon High school building. Principal George E. McCracken of the Fallon High School will be in charge of registering all sugar dealers which include wholesalers, retailers, cages, boarding houses and soft drink dispensers where sugar is used. All such dealers in the county are expected to appear for sugar purchase certificates, to register and to receive instructions to enable them to comply with the sugar rationing regulations. Any one member of a family may register and secure rationing cards for consumer groups who will be registered during the first four days of the week commencing on May 4. Each person in the family will be issued a ration book, each contained 28 stamps, at first, entitling the holder to one pound of sugar which is expected to cover a period of two weeks. This quantity will later be decreased. Those registering will be required to declare the amount of sugar they have on hand. All such supplies over two pounds for each person will result in a removal of stamps from the ration book issued up to ten pounds. Dealers will sell sugar only when ration books are presented, not the stamps alone. Housewives needing quantities of sugar for canning will apply to their boards later. Consumers living at a great distance from stores who buy supplies for several months as a time will be issued “permissive certificates” for larger quantities of sugar.

The Fallon Standard, April 22, 1942.

50 years ago

Troop 70. G.S. — Girl Scout Troop no. 70 of Fallon, named the Pelicans and Flamingos, enjoyed a memorable day on April 15 in a cookout at Camp LA Ho in the vicinity of Lahontan Dam. Even two occasions of snowfall failed to dismay them or dampen spirits. After the clean-up, a contest between the two patrols concerning deer trails took place. The Flamingos laid out a deer trail by Scout tradition, which the Pelicans were required to follow in order to locate the former. A game called Red Rover was played until it was time for all to depart for home.

The Fallon Citizen, April 27, 1967

A view from the past… Stories from the Churchill County Museum and Archives, researched and compiled by Brianna Schwab, Churchill County Museum assistant