Ely Renaissance Village
Ely Renaissance Village, with the tagline ‘Where the World Met and Became One,’ is a unique venue located in Ely, Nevada. Travel back in time to this nostalgic village’s turn-of-the-century town. Here you will find miners’ cabins transformed into international theme homes. Completely stocked with period piece furniture, knick-knacks, photography, and so much more. It’s a rewarding and pleasant journey back in time with something for all ages.
Visit Ely Renaissance Village from mid-May to mid-September on Fridays and Saturdays.
Each of the ten homes will bring you back to the 1920s and its occupants’ daily life.
Find Ely Renaissance Village at 400 Ely Street, Ely, Nevada 89301
Admission in the summer of 2023 is $5 per person.
Ely Renaissance Village
‘Where the World Met and Became One’
Spanish house
The Spanish house was conceived and decorated by Lenora Lujan Leibold to commemorate the home in which she and her family lived when she was a girl.
Like most of the Spanish in Ely, McGill, and Ruth, the Lujan family came from New Mexico, their ancestry tracing to the earliest Spanish explorers in the new world.
As with many of those who migrated to White Pine, The Spanish were hard workers and were committed to family, their church and their community.
As an important part of the community today, those values still stand.
Slavic House
An important number of the immigrants arriving in White Pine County came after escaping political and economic upheaval in Serbia and Croatia.
They brought with them culture and music and a strong work ethic.
The men worked in the mines in Ruth and in the copper mill and smelter operations in McGill.
These White Pine citizens have proven to be among the most loyal and patriotic Americans.
The women supported the men and reared successful families who continued to contribute to their American communities.
Irish
The Irish came here as miners and as missionaries. Sacred Heart School was operated by an order of Irish nuns, and the priests were also Irish.
The First Lady Thelma Patricia Ryan “Pat” Nixon, was born about 200 yards east of here.
Asian House
Ely’s early China town was about a half mile west of here. Most Chinese of the time were mining and were later working on the railroad when the tracks were coming south from the mainline.
The Asian part of town continued to be in this part of Ely. During the first half of the twentieth century, there were a number of Chinese restaurants in Ely.
The Japanese population lived in this neighborhood. There were Japanese families farming as well. Japanese families raised vegetables for restaurants and provided home delivery to the town. Some Japanese families owned laundry and dry cleaning businesses. There was a Japanese section of McGill.
Local Japanese were inturned in camps during World War II.
Ely was represented in the highly decorated US Army 442nd Infantry regiment in Europe by George and Juak Nakashima.
As with all of the immigrant families represented all of the Renaissance Village serivce in the United States military has been a source of pride for White Pine’s Asian families.
The house represents contributions by local Chinese and Japanese families.
Greek house
This Greek population is integral to the colorful tapestry of White Pine County.
Many of the Greek people who came to White Pine were escaping the genocide inflicted by the Ottoman Turks between 1914 and 1923. Others came to America for economic and political freedom.
Most Greeks settled in McGill with some setting in Ely and some in Ruth and throughout the county. Greek children were taught Greek culture and language while attending “Greek school” in addition to attending American school.
The Greek Orthodox parish in McGill is among the first organized west of the Mississippi.
The Greek organization AHEPA hosted a Greek celebration each year and shared Greek culture and food with the community.
Italian House
Brene Marchetti Moeller had the idea adopted throughout the Renaissance Village commemorating the homes of some of the nationalities which brought us together “Where the World Met and Became One.”
As is found throughout Nevada Italians make up a critical part of the community, making indispensable contributions in railroading, mining, and processing and in business and ranching.
Many families contributed to the success of the memories shown throughout this house. Some of its families contributing here are Griffone, Mariani, Bianchi, Cordori, and Cavigila.
Bill Geraghty purchased the six houses here at the east side of his property from NNRY in 1925. He moved them from their original location at Avenue B here to be used as rentals. These houses were almost guaranteed to have been occupied by Italian railroad workers and their families.
Come visit the Ely Renaissance Village
Visit the Ely Renaissance Society on Facebook.