History Books

Nestled amid California’s High Sierra Peaks, two valleys have captured the imaginations of skiers and mountain explorers year after year. Squaw Valley made a name for itself on the world stage as the host of the 1960 Winter …

The history of Lake Tahoe, nestled in the Sierra Nevada Mountains, stretches far beyond its shores. Travel back in time on more than two dozen hikes, from short lakeside trails used by the Washoe Peopleto all-day trips exploring t…

Cemeteries are more than final resting places for the dead; they are gateways to an area's shared history. Every hand-carved granite or marble monument, every faded wooden marker, holds a clue. Western Sierra populations boomed wi…

Lake Tahoe's legendary scenic beauty is witnessed annually by millions of visitors. While the lake's first sighting (in 1843) by a nonnative was made from a mountain peak, the lake's maritime history began a scant seven years late…

The 1960 Olympic Winter Games were a long-shot effort that succeeded beyond the wildest expectations. Working in a sparsely populated valley in the Sierra Nevada with only rudimentary facilities,organizers created a world-class Ol…

Organized ski racing in America started near Lake Tahoe in the 1860s when gold miners rode 15-foot boards that reached speeds near 100 miles per hour. By 1895, residents of Truckee had started the nation's first winter carnival we…

First sighted by John C. Fremont and Charles Preuss in 1844, the "Lake of the Sky" beckons to pioneers and adventurers today as it has through history. Author Mark Twain, popular lecturer George Wharton James, industrialist Duane …

Lake Tahoe is the majestic mountain lake that spans the boundary line of California and Nevada. The lake's clarity and scenic beauty are legendary.In the 1870s, the Nevada Comstock Lode created an insatiable appetite for Lake Taho…