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The Reno Arches

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All three Reno Arches were historically located on Virigina Street in downtown Reno, Nevada.  The original arch was installed on October 23, 1926, to commemorate the completion of the Lincoln Highway and Victory Highway in Nevada.  The second arch was installed replaced the first in 1963 which would be followed by the current arch being installed on August 8, 1987.  This blog serves as a brief history of all three arches and along with photos from their current locations.  The original Reno Arch can be seen as the blog cover along Lake Street in Reno. 



A brief history and visit to the Reno Arches

All three Reno Arches when placed were located at the intersection of Virigina Street and Commercial Row.  The intersection is significant due to it being part of the northern branch of the Lincoln Highway in downtown Reno.  

During 1912 Indiana Businessman Carl G. Fisher conceptualized the Lincoln Highway as a major transcontinental Auto Trail.  The Lincoln Highway was formally dedicated on October 31, 1913.  The highway was aligned west of Fallon via split branches over the Sierra Nevada range.  

The Lincoln Highway Association map depicts the early alignment within Reno.  The Northern Branch can be seen entering Reno westbound on 4th Street.  The highway jogged through downtown via Virginia Street where it met a connector spur to the Pioneer Branch (South Lincoln Highway) at Commercial Row.  The Northern Branch west of Virginia Street is shown following Commercial Row, Sierra Street, 3rd Street and 4th Street to depart the city towards Verdi.  

The original Reno Arch was installed at Virginia Street and Commercial Row on October 23, 1926, to commemorate the completion of the Lincoln Highway and Victory Highway in Nevada.  The arch would become part of early US Route 40 upon the commissioning of the US Route System on November 11, 1926.  Secondarily the original Reno Arch was used to promote the Nevada Transcontinental Highway Exposition.  Said exposition ran from July 25, 1927, through August 1, 1927.  On June 25, 1929, original arch was adorned with the slogan "RENO, THE BIGGEST LITTLE CITY IN THE WORLD."

The original Reno Arch can be seen on Virginia Street in what appears to be a 1940s era photo (courtesy UNR Libraries and kunr.org).  The original arch would become part of Nevada State Route 3 in 1929 and later US Route 395 by 1934.  

The original Reno Arch was replaced with a larger version during 1963.  The second arch had larger plastic panels and a rotating star which can be seen below on Virginia Street in a Western Nevada Photo Collection photo.  Unlike the original arch, the second did not have neon lighting elements.  

The current Reno Arch along Virginia Street on August 8, 1987, as part of US Route 395 Business.  The current arch can be seen below during the daytime and night.  The current arch has neon elements which stand out especially at night.  



The original Reno Arch was shifted through several city parks over the years and finally to storage.  The arch was reinstalled on Lake Street just south of the Truckee River in 1995 and can be seen below.


The second Reno Arch upon removal was placed into storage and was eventually donated to the city of Willits, California.  The second arch was redesignated as the Willits Arch in 1995 and was installed on Main Street (then US Route 101 and California State Route 20).  The Willits Arch now reads "Heart of Mendocino County" headed south on Main Street and "Gateway to the Redwoods" headed north.  


The Willits Arch facing north on Main Street at night (now along what is exclusively California State Route 20).  


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