California Trail Days

Event Details

The California Trail Interpretive Center will present the 16th annual pioneer reenactment, California Trail Days, on May 18-19, from 10:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. The family friendly event is free and open to everyone.

Visitors will have the opportunity to tour the pioneer encampment and Shoshone summer camp. Young visitors can learn how to shoot a bow, pan for gold, play pioneer games, and much more.

Sunday, May 19

10:00 a.m., Lobby: The Anatomy of a Wagon:  How a Wagon Works

Wagons were indispensable for thousands of emigrants. Join Frank Tortorich to learn how a wagon works. Tortorich is a historian, author, and member of the California Trail Heritage Alliance.

11:00 a.m., Lobby: Railroad Music with Hank Cramer

Hank Cramer is a folksinger from Washington. He is widely known for his booming bass voice, smooth picking on a vintage flat-top guitar, and his wry sense of humor. He has a repertoire of over a thousand modern and traditional songs, spanning the genres of Celtic, Appalachian, maritime, cowboy, and plain old folk music.

11:30 a.m., Plaza: Traditional Black Powder Firing Demonstration

12:00 p.m., South Fork Room: Hands-on History: Material Culture of the Chinese Railroad Workers

The Chinese immigrants who left their homes in the mid-19th century and spread throughout the world brought with them pieces of their homes. Chis Merritt will discuss how archaeologists study artifacts to understand the stories of their lives, along with stories not recorded in history books.

1:00 p.m., South Fork Room: Lim Lip Hong, the Man Who Carved Mountains for the Central Pacific Railroad

Andrea Yee will share the story of her great grandfather moving to America and working on the Central Pacific Railroad. Andrea Yee earned a MFA degree in Performance Art. She has directed, written, and acted in theatres on the West Coast and Alaska. She now devotes her time teaching and researching the untold stories of the railroad builders.

2:00 p.m., Lobby: Frontier Music with Hank Cramer

3:00 p.m., South Fork Room: A History of the Northern Nevada Railway

BLM Archaeologist Nicholas Pay grew up on the abandoned tracks of the Northern Nevada Railway. Learn how this once prosperous railway, stretching from the mines near Ely to the Western and Southern Pacific Railways, shaped the history of eastern Nevada.