Trails West group explores Dayton’s history

Thanks to Steve Knight, a member of the Trails West organization, and other Immigrant Trail groups, approximately 55 men and women arrived by bus in Old Town Dayton to learn about the town’s role in the settlement of Nevada and the broader West. One of the most engaging exhibits for these Emigrant Trail enthusiasts at the Dayton Museum was a trail map from the 1858-1859 Simpson expedition, which aimed to establish a shorter route from the Missouri River to the West. This three-by-five-foot fold-out map, from the original 1870 report to Congress on Simpson’s military expedition, highlights that Dayton was on the Emigrant Trail.

Although this significant part of the town’s history is sometimes omitted from Nevada history books, the evidence is now documented. Simpson’s stay in Chinatown is well detailed in the Chinese Exhibit at the Dayton Museum on Shady Lane.

In addition to touring the museum, visitors explored the 1875 Firehouse and Jail, learning about the original jail cells once located in the basement of the Lyon County Courthouse, now the Dayton Community Center. These cells were among the few items saved when the courthouse burned in May 1909. Following a contentious political battle at the Nevada Legislature in Carson City, the county seat was moved to Yerington. To ease tensions among Dayton residents, legislators voted to replace the courthouse with a red-brick high school, which opened in 1918.

Visitors also toured the new St. Ann’s Chapel Museum. Residents Katie Davies and Glenn Hasbrouck provided a tour of their home inside the 1870 Union Hotel at Main and Pike Streets.

Historical Society of Dayton Valley docents Katrina Hedlesky, Gloria Manning, Dave Schmitt, and Larry Tuttle guided the tours around town.

The Dayton Museum, housed in one of Nevada’s oldest buildings—the state’s oldest schoolhouse still at its original location—is located at 135 Shady Lane in Old Town Dayton. Managed by volunteers, it offers books on Dayton and Nevada history for sale. The museum is open weekends from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Saturday and 1 p.m. to 4 p.m. on Sunday, or by special appointment at 775-246-6316.