Speaker - "Virginia & Truckee Railroad from Carson City to Minden"
2026-06-20 10:00 - 11:00 (America/Los_Angeles) | Festival Tent
CLG, National and State Register of Historic Places Coordinator – Architectural Historian, Jean-Guy Tanner Dubé will talk about the V&T Railroad Branch Line between Carson City to Minden with its associated depots and stops such as Stewart School. He will also include a short discussion of the National Register Program and how the public can nominate buildings.
Cost: Free
The Ranch House will be open 11 am – 1 pm for event guests.

Volunteer in Gertrude's Garden
2026-06-24 08:30 - 09:30, 2026-07-01 08:30 - 09:30, 2026-07-08 08:30 - 09:30, 2026-07-15 08:30 - 09:30, 2026-07-22 08:30 - 09:30, 2026-07-29 08:30 - 09:30 | Gertrude’s Garden, 1450 Hwy 88, Minden, NV, 89423, United States
Come volunteer with us in Gertrude’s Garden! Master Gardeners from UNR Extension work with us every week, on Wednesday mornings from 8:30 to 9:30. Bring your gardening gloves and come join them!
This weekly garndening effort includes such tasks as watering, weeding, and pruning. Please bring your preferred gardening tools with you and wear closed-toed shoes. There is no potable water on site, so please also bring a water bottle.
NEW VOLUNTEERS: If interested in volunteering in Gertrude’s Garden, please call the office at 775-783-9417 or email us at director@dangberg.org. Douglas County encourages all volunteers to comply with a standard background check. That process can be initiated here: Volunteer Interest Form.
CURRENT VOLUNTEERS: If interested in volunteering for this event, please let us know by contacting the office or on SignUp.

Chautauqua - "Ranji Smile"
2026-06-24 18:00 - 19:30 | Festival Tent
“Celebrating the American Spirit”
Ranji Smile was an immigrant to the United States who came from British India and quickly rose to great heights as a flamboyant and talented chef. He introduced Indian flavors to the Western palette in the early 20th Century and was the darling of high society for a few years. He may have been America’s first celebrity chef!
Roopa Mohan trained as a volunteer storyteller and docent for school groups at the Asian Art Museum in San Francisco where she tells folktales around objects in the museum’s extensive collection. Mohan has expanded her repertoire, and now enjoys sharing personal narratives, tall tales, portrayals, myths, and legends she heard growing up in South India. She enjoys engaging her audience and enhancing her often braided stories with mudras, Indian dance gestures.
Cost: $15, 16 years and younger – Free
The Ranch House will be open 3:30 – 5:30 pm for event guests.

Chautauqua - "Mary Preston - Part 2"
2026-06-26 10:00 - 11:00 | Festival Tent
“Made in Nevada”
Nancee Goldwater returns to the park to share the second half of her grandmother’s story. Her grandmother Mary Preston grew up in the mining town of Bodie. She will share her experiences during the 1920s census in Bodie. Goldwater is a long-time member of Douglas County Genealogy Group and an enthusiast of local history.
Cost: Free
The Ranch House will be open 11 am – 1 pm for event guests.

Speaker - "The Donner Party: Weathering the Storm"
2026-06-27 10:00 - 11:00 | Festival Tent
Author and historian Mark McLaughlin returns to the park to speak on his book The Donner Party: Weathering the Storm and the history of the ill-fated pioneers.
Educated as an historian and cultural geographer at the University of Nevada, Reno, Mark McLaughlin has lived at Lake Tahoe since 1978. He has more than 650 articles published in regional and national publications such as Sierra Heritage, Wild West, Skiing Heritage, Nevada in the West, and Weatherwise. His work has also been published in the Reno News & Review, Issues in Science & Technology, and the Grolier Educational Science Annual encyclopedia.
Cost: Free
The Ranch House will be open 11 am – 1 pm for event guests.

CANCELLED: Youth and Family: Young Chautauqua Camp
2026-06-30 10:00 - 12:00 | Festival Tent
This Event Has Been Cancelled!
Children can learn how to bring their favorite historical character to life with help from Mary Bennett of the Brüka Theatre in Reno. Local adult Chautauquans will also share research tips and costuming tips too.

Concert - First Take featuring Rick Metz
2026-07-09 18:00 - 19:30 | Festival Tent
Jazz music featuring Rick “The Saxman” Metz on his saxophone.
Cost: $20, 16 years and younger – Free
The Ranch House will be open 3:30 – 5:30 pm for event guests.

Chautauqua - "Virginia City Watchman Alex Coryell"
2026-07-10 10:00 - 11:00 | Festival Tent
“Made in Nevada”
Watchman Alex Coryell: Virginia City Police Department was a watchman from 1873 until June 25, 1891. Coryell was a Civil War veteran who left the state of Virginia after the war and moved to Virginia City, Nevada. His family became well known and prominent in Virginia City. He was the sixth Storey County law enforcement officer to die in the line of duty and the sixteenth in the state of Nevada.
Wes Francis is a Douglas High graduate, a 10-year Veteran of the United States Air Force and Desert
Storm Veteran, and a retired 25-year law enforcement officer. In law enforcement, Francis has
held positions on county, state and federal levels in Nevada and Florida during his career.
Francis has lived and worked around northern Nevada since 1975, except the 10 years of
Military Service. He gives historic walking tours of Virginia City, can be seen blacksmithing at
the Donovan Mill, is a Founder of the Virginia City Silent Riders historical non-profit group and
performs old west style weddings in and around the area. He has also appeared on Ghost
Adventures and in several movies.
Cost: Free
The Ranch House will be open 11 am – 1 pm for event guests.

Speaker - "The History of the USS Nevada"
2026-07-11 10:00 - 11:00 | Festival Tent
Historian and Nevada Sate Museum volunteer, Dave Pierson, will share the history of the United States Navy battleship which survived the attack on Pearl Harbor in 1941.
Cost: Free
The Ranch House will be open 11 am – 1 pm for event guests.

Chautauqua - "Stephen T. Mather in Nevada"
2026-07-15 18:00 - 19:30 | Festival Tent
“Celebrating the American Spirit”
Stephen Tyng Mather was an American industrialist and conservationist who was the first director of the National Park Service. As president and owner of Thorkildsen-Mather Borax Company he became a millionaire. Along with journalist Robert Sterling Yard, Mather led a publicity campaign known as the Mather Mountain Party to promote the creation of a unified federal agency to oversee National Parks administration, which was established in 1916.
Steve Hale of Comstock Characters has been presenting reenactments of pivotal historical characters to audiences for over two decades in the Lake Tahoe region and West coast. Hale has performed at National Parks including a residency at Yosemite National Park’s Valley Theater, State Parks, and various other Chautauqua venues.
Hale is a Certified Interpretive Guide, having received awards for Conservation Educator of the Year, and for Excellence in Interpretation and Conservation.
Cost: $15, 16 years and younger – Free
The Ranch House will be open 3:30 – 5:30 pm for event guests.

Concert - Joey Carmon & Kentucky Blue
2026-07-16 18:00 - 19:30 | Festival Tent
Joey Carmon plays original songs and covers from folk, country, bluegrass and good ole’ rock-n-roll. The band also features Cindy Gray, formerly of The Sierra Sweethearts bluegrass band.
Cost: $20, 16 years and younger – Free
The Ranch House will be open 3:30 – 5:30 pm for event guests.

Chautauqua - "Harriet Walley"
2026-07-17 10:00 - 11:00 | Festival Tent
“Made in Nevada”
Harriet Walley was the wife of David Walley of Carson Valley’s “Walley’s Hot Springs”. While David Walley received most of the credit for the resort, it was really his wife Harriet who ran the establishment while he was alive, and kept it going for many years, under challenging circumstances after his death.
Cora Johnson taught for thirty-six years in the subjects of Physical Education, History, English Learners and retired as a high school librarian. Johnson’s lifelong curiosity in what makes things tick and how they are connected, along with wanting to know about the rich history of her new environs in 2013, prompted her to attend Dangberg Historic Park events. Those events contained many lessons, one of which was Chautauqua. Johnson is an accomplished Chautauquan who also portrays two other Nevada women.
Cost: Free
The Ranch House will be open 11 am – 1 pm for event guests.

Speaker - "Women Convicts of the Past"
2026-07-18 10:00 - 11:00 | Festival Tent
Glen Whorton of the Nevada State Prison Preservation Society returns to the park with his presentation on women convicts who were incarcerated at the now historic Nevada State Prison.
Glen Whorton began his career as an Officer Trainee in the Department of Prisons and retired after thirty-two years of service. Whorton’s last position was Director of the Department. He has additional experience as an Army Aviator, Community College Instructor, Ombudsman for the Nevada Attorney General, and Hearing Representative for the Nevada Parole Board.
Cost: Free
The Ranch House will be open 11 am – 1 pm for event guests.

Open House
2026-07-18 10:00 - 16:00, 2026-08-01 10:00 - 16:00 | Dangberg Home Ranch House, 1450 Hwy 88, Minden, NV, 89423, United States
Drop in to visit the Dangberg Home Ranch house! The Home Ranch house, which was built between 1857 and 1917, was home to four generations of of the Dangberg family. Come see how they lived and what home on the ranch was really like.
The house will be open from 10am to 4pm for self-guided tours, and docents will be onsite to answer your questions. Visitors are welcome to bring a picnic lunch to enjoy on the grounds after visiting the house. This event is free and open to all.

Youth and Family: DARE TO BE A COWBOY
2026-07-23 10:00 - 12:00 | Festival Tent
Saddle up for a fun morning learning about ranching. Includes cowboys and cowgirls, branding, roping, join a scavenger hunt on our “history trail”.
Cost: Free

Chautauqua Showcase - Hope Academy Young Chautauquans Part 1
2026-07-24 10:00 - 11:00 | Festival Tent
“They Made America”
The Young Chautauquans of Hope Academy will present various characters in American History. Part 2 will take place Saturday, June 25 with several more characters portrayed.
The Hope Academy of Nevada is a Christian, community-centered microschool and homeschool enrichment program located in the historic Leport-Tupin House in Carson City. Inspired by the model of a modern one-room schoolhouse, the academy offers flexible, individualized learning opportunities while cultivating a close-knit community of students and families.

Serving students from preschool through high school, Hope Academy provides part-time academic instruction, enrichment classes, and homeschool support. Its approach blends classical learning, hands-on experiences, and discussion-based exploration designed to help students develop critical thinking skills and a lifelong love of learning.

Hope Academy emphasizes bringing history, literature, and ideas to life for students. Rooted in a Christian worldview, the academy seeks to nurture both intellectual growth and character formation, encouraging students to pursue truth, goodness, and beauty while engaging meaningfully with their community.
Cost: Free

Chautauqua Showcase - "Anne Hutchinson: America's First Female Freedom Fighter"
2026-07-24 18:00 - 19:30 | Festival Tent
“They Made America”
Featuring Master of Ceremonies – Doug Mishler
Anne Hutchinson was an English-born religious figure who was an important participant in the Antinomian Controversy which shook the nascent Massachusetts Bay Colony from 1636 to 1638. Her strong religious formal declarations were at odds with the established Puritan clergy in the Boston area and her popularity and charisma helped create a theological schism that threatened the Puritan religious community in New England. She was eventually tried and convicted, then banished from the colony with many of her supporters.
Kim Harris is an accomplished Chautauquan who has portrayed living history characters at various local venues, and from California to New York. Harris currently serves as Events and Education Manager at Dangberg Home Ranch Historic Park in Minden, NV, and is the owner and operator of Western History ALIVE! where she portrays several Chautauqua characters including Wild Horse Annie, Calamity Jane and Lizzie Borden.
Cost: $15 for everyone 17 years and older. No member discount as this is a special Chautauqua fundraising event

Chautauqua Showcase - Hope Academy Young Chautauquans Part 2
2026-07-25 10:00 - 11:00 | Festival Tent
“They Made America”
The Young Chautauquans of Hope Academy will continue to present various characters in American History.
The Hope Academy of Nevada is a Christian, community-centered microschool and homeschool enrichment program located in the historic Leport-Tupin House in Carson City. Inspired by the model of a modern one-room schoolhouse, the academy offers flexible, individualized learning opportunities while cultivating a close-knit community of students and families.

Serving students from preschool through high school, Hope Academy provides part-time academic instruction, enrichment classes, and homeschool support. Its approach blends classical learning, hands-on experiences, and discussion-based exploration designed to help students develop critical thinking skills and a lifelong love of learning.

Hope Academy emphasizes bringing history, literature, and ideas to life for students. Rooted in a Christian worldview, the academy seeks to nurture both intellectual growth and character formation, encouraging students to pursue truth, goodness, and beauty while engaging meaningfully with their community.
Cost: Free

Chautauqua Showcase - "William Clark: American Explorer"
2026-07-25 18:00 - 19:30 | Festival Tent
“They Made America”
Featuring Master of Ceremonies – Kim Harris
William Clark was an American explorer, soldier, Indian agent, and territorial governor. A native of Virginia, he grew up in pre-statehood Kentucky before later settling in what became the state of Missouri. Along with Meriwether Lewis, Clark led the Lewis and Clark Expedition of 1804–1806 across the Louisiana Purchase to the Pacific Ocean, the first major effort to explore and map much of what is now the Western United States and to assert American claims to the Pacific Northwest.
Doug Mishler has been a Chautauquan since 1993 when he first portrayed P. T. Barnum. Mishler has made over eight hundred presentations of over thirty historical figures including Henry Ford, Jackson Pollock, and recently added Chuck Yeager, Gene Roddenberry, and Earl Warren. He is also the founder and Managing Artistic Director of Restless Artists’ Theatre in Reno and has taught American Cultural History for over twenty-three years.
Cost: $15 for everyone 17 years and older. No member discount as this is a special Chautauqua fundraising event.

Chautauqua Showcase - "Abigail Adams: Second First Lady and Advocate for Women's Rights"
2026-07-26 18:00 - 19:30 | Festival Tent
“They Made America”

Featuring Master of Ceremonies – Doug Mishler

Abigail Adams was the wife of John Adams, the second president of the United States, and an early advocate for women’s rights. She is well-known for her correspondence with her husband, where she famously urged him to “remember the ladies” in the new laws of the nation.

Leslie Goddard is an award-winning actress and scholar who has been presenting history programs for more than fifteen years. Goddard holds a Ph. D. from Northwestern University specializing in American studies and U.S. history as well as a master’s degree in theater. Leslie has performed Amelia Earhart and Lucille Ball at Dangberg Historic Park.
Cost: $15 for everyone 17 years and older. No member discount as this is a special Chautauqua fundraising event.

Chautauqua - "The Notorious Mrs. Lee: Gold Rush Madam"
2026-07-29 18:00 - 19:30 | Festival Tent
“Celebrating the American Spirit”

She is recorded in history books as “the notorious Mrs. Lee.” She was probably a procurer, in other words, she brought girls from China to the United States. So in essence, she was part of human trafficking at the turn of the 20th century.

Her story is the story of the Chinese during the Gold Rush and the building of the railroads. It is a story about early Chinatowns and the Chinese as a labor force that helped to build the West. But primarily, it is the story of the horrendously difficult life, including the prejudice, racism, social inequity, and exclusion, of the Chinese in America.

The story of Bowen Lee’s great great grandmother Lee, is a story that includes girl infanticide, foot binding, being sold into slavery, and casting women into the street to die when they are no longer needed.

Bowen Lyam Lee has been on the stage of national and international storytelling events, conducts workshops for educators, and performs virtually with national, international, and regional programs. She has won numerous national story slams and been a National Storytelling Network Grand Slam winner. She is a Chautauqua scholar who has performed Asian women of history, including Junko Tabei and Bowen’s great grandmother, who was born and raised in the Chinese fishing village of Monterey.
Cost: $15, 16 years and younger – Free
The Ranch House will be open 3:30 – 5:30 pm for event guests.

Concert - Reno Philharmonic Ensemble
2026-07-30 18:00 - 19:30 | NV
Members of the Reno Philharmonic Orchestra will share classical music in a fun and exciting way, with the beautiful Sierra as a concert backdrop!
Cost: $20, 16 years and younger – Free
The Ranch House will be open 3:30 – 5:30 pm for event guests.

Chautauqua - "Agnes and Percy Train"
2026-07-31 10:00 - 11:00 | Festival Tent
“Made in Nevada”
On June 7, 1928, Agnes, age 23, and Percy, age 52, hiked up Lone Mountain near Lovelock, Nevada, where they were married at sunrise. The couple would go on to spend much of the next 11 years collecting fossils, minerals and plants in the remote areas of Nevada and Death Valley.
On August 2, 1928, the Trains had passed through Genoa on the day of Judge Daniel Webster Virgin’s funeral where they glimpsed the Virgin house that would become their home in April 1939. Purchased with all of the Virgin/Finnegan family possessions — such as furniture, clothing, housewares, trunks, saddle, papers, books, portraits and records — the house was restored to its original pink color in July 1941 and was known once again as the “Pink House.”
Kathy and Dave Pierson, both active volunteers of the Nevada State Museum – Carson City, living history docents and accomplished Chautauquans, are dedicated to preserving and sharing the history of the great state of Nevada.
Cost: Free
The Ranch House will be open 11 am – 1 pm for event guests.

Speaker - "Ghosts from the Past: the History of Northern Nevada Pioneer Cemeteries"
2026-08-01 10:00 - 11:00 | Festival Tent
Since a very young age, Jay Dickey has been a graveyard enthusiast, and has visited hundreds of cemeteries throughout the United States. Since moving to Nevada, he has explored a number of pioneer cemeteries, and has researched the histories of many of them. His talk will provide an overview of some of the leading pioneers who came to Northern Nevada, and founded the cities and towns that fueled the growth of Northern Nevada. The cemeteries of Northern Nevada contain the ghosts of many of the men and women who helped create the great state of Nevada, and who live on in our memories.
Jay Dickey is an author and lecturer on a wide range of subjects related to early American history. He is the President of American Heritage Partners, a 501(c)(3) non-profit that hosts educational programs in collaboration with leading American heritage and historical societies, educational institutions, and community groups. Jay is also a member of the Oregon-California Trails Association, the Nevada Historical Society, and a number of other historical and heritage societies. A graduate of Harvard College and the University of Michigan Law School, Jay retired from the practice of law in 2017. He currently lives in Dayton, Nevada with his wife, Angela.
Cost: Free
