Reno Arch

Coordinates: 39°31′41″N 119°48′49″W / 39.528122°N 119.813662°W / 39.528122; -119.813662

Daytime view of the current sign.

The Reno Arch is an iconic landmark in Reno, Nevada spanning Virginia Street at the intersection with Commercial Row. The current arch is the third installed at this location. The original arch was built in 1926 to commemorate the completion of the Lincoln and Victory Highways. The current arch was installed in 1987 and retrofitted with new lights in 2009. The arch is a prominent feature of downtown Reno, and for most of its history has featured the city's motto, The Biggest Little City in the World.

History

Reno Arch at night

The first Arch was built in 1926 to promote the Nevada Transcontinental Highway Exposition that ran from July 25 to August 1, 1927, which celebrated the completion of the Lincoln and Victory Highways.[1] Through Nevada, these routes were built along the corridors of modern U.S. Route 50 and Interstate 80, respectively.[2][3] After the exposition, the city council decided to keep the arch as a permanent downtown gateway. The council announced a contest find a slogan to replace the exposition lettering on the arch. G. A. Burns of Sacramento won $100 for his slogan, "Reno, The Biggest Little City in the World." The slogan first appeared on the arch on June 25, 1929 along with an illuminated torch on both sides of the city name. In 1934, some residents complained about the new slogan and it was replaced with a green neon "RENO"; however, after the ensuing backlash over its removal, the slogan returned with new lettering as well as the removal of the torches. In 1963, the original steel arch was replaced by larger arch with plastic panels, a rotating star, and an attached inverted arch below the "RENO" lettering for the slogan "Biggest Little City in the World". The third and current version was installed by YESCO in 1987.[1][4]

The original arch has been moved around downtown Reno over the years. Since 1995 it has been located on Lake Street, just south of the Truckee River (39°31′33″N 119°48′35″W / 39.525718°N 119.809785°W / 39.525718; -119.809785). The second generation arch was donated to the city of Willits, California. The city of Willits removed most of the plastic panels, replaced the star with the flag of the United States and the slogan with "Gateway to the Redwoods" and "Heart of Mendocino County". It now straddles U.S. Route 101 in downtown Willits.[4]

The original Reno Arch, relocated to Lake Street between the National Automobile Museum and Siena Reno

On Tuesday, November 17, 2009, the City of Reno celebrated replacing the 2,076 incandescent 11-watt bulbs in the Reno Arch with highly energy efficient 2.5 watt LED bulbs. The old incandescent bulbs were given away to spectators to commemorate the event.[5]

Legacy

Movies set in Reno, such as Waking up in Reno, feature the arch prominently, as it is an icon for Reno newcomers. Many shows and activities, such as Hot August Nights, are held under the arch.

The sign is seen in the video game Fallout 2 located on Virgin Street in the town of New Reno

See also

References

  1. 1 2 Cindy Ainsworth. "Reno Historic Arch". Special Collections, University of Nevada Reno. Retrieved May 14, 2015.
  2. ↑ "The Lincoln Highway in Nevada". Lincoln Highway Association. Retrieved 2008-03-13.
  3. ↑ "Nevada in Maps - Nevada Highway Maps 1917-2005". University of Nevada Reno. December 11, 2007.
  4. 1 2 "Reno Arch history downtown". newtoreno.com. Retrieved 3 July 2011.
  5. ↑ New Reno Arch light bulbs just the start of energy saving plan
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