80 Years Ago – Following a fire which damaged a recently constructed apartment unit in Hawthorne, the Independent-News editorially urged community citizens to volunteer to raise funds to purchase some kind of motorized equipment to serve as a fire truck. Difficulty in getting hose carts to the scene of the fire was blamed for much of the damage done by the fire. (Photo courtesy of Mineral County Museum)

10 Years Ago

• Military training exercises involving Marines and role playing Afghans took place around the Hawthorne area for a couple of weeks.

• John (Bud) and Shirley Senko of Walker Lake celebrated their 60th Wedding Anniversary Jan. 24. John and Shirley were married Jan. 24, 1948 in Flushing, Long Island, N.Y. A few years after the wedding in 1948 the couple moved out west to make their home. Prior to moving to Walker Lake 1993 Bud and Shirley resided in Topaz Ranch Estates, Nev. for eleven years. Bud is a retired employee of TWA Airlines and enjoys flying and working with aircraft and Shirley worked for several years as a technical writer for the McDonald Douglas Company and is very proficient in oil painting and enjoys collecting Indian plates and other collectible items. Bud and Shirley have two children, John Carlson Senko and Sharlene Bennett, both of Hawthorne. They have three grandchildren and one great grandson.

• CAHS had 150 children (63 families) from Mineral County, including Schurz and Walker Lake, referred to them for the CAHS Angel Tree Program. This is an increase from last year of 20 families.

• Sheriff Ed Smith told county commissioners that he recommends Melissa Gunter be named as the Mineral County Animal Control Officer. Commissioner Jerrie Tipton made a motion was seconded by Richard Bryant and approved.

20 Years Ago

• Hawthorne Elks Lodge 1704 selected the “Students of the Month” for December. Chosen were: Patrick (Bud) Gazaway and Amanda Kunzi of the Hawthorne Junior High School and Chris Deckard and Emily Wilson of Mineral County High School. Elks Youth Activities chairman, Doy Skidmore presented the certificates for the Elks.

• Jim Gillis, General Manager of the Candelaria Mine, presented the title of a 1979 Forty-passenger bus to Sheriff Rocky McKellip, representative of the Mineral County Youth Athletic League. The bus was to be used to transport youth of the Pop Warner Football League, the Youth Golf and Youth Cheerleaders to participate with other towns during the summer and fall activities.

30 Years Ago

• Dawn Winters of Hawthorne placed first in the Northern Nevada Hoop Shoot competition held in Winnemucca.

• The Gabbs girls basketball team defeated Smith Valley 41-34 and Gerlach 47-34.

• The Gabbs boys team lost a thriller to Smith Valley 48-47 but defeated Gerlach 69-61.

• The MCHS Serpent Junior Varsity basketball team defeated the Lovelock Junior Mustangs 70-50.

• The Hawthorne Lady Serpents JV team won over the Lovelock ladies 42-38.

40 Years Ago

• The contract for construction of Phases II and III of the Hawthorne Swimming Pool Park was approved. The contract was awarded to Angelo Pecorilla Inc. of Carson City on a base bid of $157,408.

• The Mineral County High School Serpents won two big games in their weekend play. They defeated the Manogue Miners 74-57 and won over the Incline Village Highlanders 66-52.

• A grant in the amount of $18,950.22 was awarded to the Mineral County School District to be used for Paiute language and cultural development in the Schurz Elementary School. Judy Trejo was the teacher of the Paiute language program.

50 Years Ago

• An airplane which crashed into Walker Lake on the night of December 30 was located and towed to shore. The body of Emrose E. (Earl) Price, one of the two men aboard the ill-fated aircraft, was not in the plane.

• Robert Tracy of Hawthorne was appointed by the county commissioners to fill the position of superintendent of the county road department.

• Well known Hawthorne resident, Durand Avery, was one of five persons who were killed in a multiple-vehicle collision on U.S. Highway 99 about ten miles south of Bakersfield, Calif.

• The Serpent basketball team lost two games while on the road, playing against the Elko Indians 67-57 and the Lovelock Mustangs 65-63.

• The MCHS Wrestlers lost their first match of the 1968 season to Yerington 27-22.

60 Years Ago

• Discouraged officials of the Mt. Grant Television Booster Service Group announced that because of diminishing financial support from local signal users they were faced with the prospect of abandonment of their Nevada-issued charter and FCC approved temporary construction service permit to provide local TV reception.

• The time-worn expression about breaking the bank at Monte Carlo was reactivated in Hawthorne this week 60 years ago when a brief period of heavy play at the gaming tables of the Hawthorne Monte Carlo assertedly resulted in the house sustaining losses amounting to several thousand dollars. In fact, the entire establishment-casino, bar and restaurant—ceased operations shortly after the loss period. The closing, local officials said, was on orders of Edward Herbst, who had been operating the Monte Carlo under a lease from Joby Lewis who owned the establishment.

70 Years Ago

• Farrell l. Seevers, who operated a service station on the corner of 6th and E Streets in Hawthorne, was appointed as wholesale distributor for the Standard Oil Company of California products in this area.

• The Reno High School Huskies avenged an earlier loss to the MCHS Serpents by defeating them 50-42 in Basketball play.

• Construction was started on the new Catholic Church building at the corner of 8th and A Streets in Hawthorne.

• New officers were installed by the Hawthorne 20-30 Club. New officers were: Pio Lommori, president; Marino “Tug” Tognetti, vice-president; Stanley “Shorty” Schacht, sergeant at arms; Joe Tipton, secretary-treasurer; Ted Longseth, Jim Warf, Harold Wheeler, Frank Simoni, Jim Hardie and Minard “Mickey” Maus, directors.

80 Years Ago

• Martin Chiatovich resigned as bookkeeper for the Hawthorne Water System and Mineral County Power System and Albert Fick, assistant to the superintendent of the power system, was appointed to assume the duties of bookkeeper.

• George Coleman of Alhambra, Calif. announced a company was being organized to mine diatomaceous earth in an area 25 miles east of Mina. The company had acquired 1920 acres, Coleman said, and had an option on 200 adjoining acres where the non-metallic “earth” was produced in 1925 by a company that marketed the finished product as tooth powder. Superintendent was the name of the product which was marketed in several Nevada towns. Diatomaceous earth was listed as having more than 1,100 uses. Major uses were for construction purposes in the building trades.