The History of

Nevada City
Grass Valley
Truckee
Rough and Ready
Penn Valley
Washington
Empire Mine State Historic Park

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In 1844, a group of immigrants encountered a helpful Paiute (pronounced pie-oot) indian. He kept repeating the word Tro-kay, and the immigrants assumed he was repeating his name. He guided them through a pass along a river that led into the Sierra, they named that river after him, the Truckee. What he was saying, it turned out, was "everything is all right" because he was concerned they might think he was hostile.

The area became infamous as the site where the Donner Party tried to winter. A tragic tale of bad timing, bad decision making, and ultimately bad taste, this is a story that requires a page of its own.

The area wasn't settled until it became a route for the new railroad going over the Sierra. Materials were hauled to a site nearby. In 1863, Joseph Gray built a home for his family that came to be called Gray's Station. Later a man named Coburn built several additional buildings to supply the railroad workers and the miners crossing the Sierra to the mines in Nevada. Soon a town formed around the newly named Coburn's Station. In 1868 a fire burned Coburn's station to the ground, but a new town quickly sprung up nearby called Truckee.

Wagon trains heading west passed through the area as early as 1844, but Truckee’s first white settler was Joseph Gray who built Gray’s Station in 1863, and gave his name briefly to the settlement. The late 1860s saw growth and change for the young community. A logging industry was born, and the first lumber mill was built in 1867. The town’s name was changed to Coburn Station, and to Truckee in 1868 during the rebuilding that followed a major fire. Truckee seems to be an Anglicization of a Paiute Indian term. It was also in 1868 that the first train arrived, as well as the Central Pacific Railroad which would become part of the transcontinental railroad. Thousands of Chinese worked under dangerous conditions to conquer the Sierra Nevada for the Central Pacific, and Truckee had the second largest Chinatown on the west coast. Another industry came on the Truckee scene at this time - ice harvesting. It would play a major role in the community’s economy for 60 years. Ice ponds scattered along the Truckee River were the most important source of ice for California. The intense cold, plentiful clear water, access to rail sidings and a good labor supply contributed to the industry. The end came in the 1920s when technology developed mechanical refrigeration. During the 1890s, a far sighted local recognized that opportunities for Truckee lay in winter tourism. Elaborate ice palaces were built, ice skating and sleigh rides to Donner Lake became popular, and Norwegian skiing came to the area. The area still hosts a major winter carnival. (See Page 33). In 1960, the Winter Olympics were held 10 miles from Truckee at Squaw Valley, putting the area on the map.

Snow and Cold Become a Blessing

It's the autumn of 1894, snow is falling earlier than usual, and the residents of Truckee are concerned about making it though a harsh winter. True, the train is bringing people to town, but there is really no reason for them to get off.

That is, not until Charles F. McGlashan, one of Truckee's leading citizens, took matters into his own hands. More than a few eyebrows must has been raised as he took chicken wire and formed a 60 foot high cone which he sprayed with water each night. The result was a giant icicle lit with a light and clearly visible from the trains.

McGlashan believed Truckee's economy would greatly benefit from becoming a winter sports center. He got the merchants interested, and the next year using his chicken wire technique, an ice palace was built complete with ice rink and toboggan run. McGlashan arranged for the Southern Pacific railroad to run excursion trains, and for the next six years, tourists poured into town.

The first winter carnival was held in 1909, the year Norwegian skiing was taking hold. What is believed to be the first ski lift was built in Truckee in 1913. After the last ice palace was destroyed by fire in 1916, action focused on Donner Lake. Horse drawn sleighs brought people to the lake for ice skating. By 1932, the railroad had established the "Snowball Special." It ran until the 1940s when people began coming by car.

Improved roads led to further development of recreation resorts in the Sierra Nevada. In 1960, 250,000 spectators were drawn to the area as Squaw Valley hosted the Winter Olympics. And, the completion of I-80 in 1964 made the trip up the hill even easier.

Although events have come and gone, McGlashan's vision continues to this day, for Truckee remains a winter sports hub, and has for well over 100 years.

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