John F. Cahlan - University of Nevada, Reno

4 John F. Cahlangrandfather drove the first team into VirginiaCity with a load of flour, and the man he wasdoing business with was unable to pay him.But he told my grandfather that he would givehim the deed to some lots in Reno. But mygrandfather told him that he didn’t have toworry about it. He’d pick it up the next timehe came around. I’m not sure, but I don’t thinkmy grandfather ever got paid for the flour.But the lots that the man offered to deed tomy grandfather were on Virginia Street fromthe Truckee River on the west side of VirginiaStreet, from the Truckee River to SecondStreet, from Second Street to Sierra Street,and back down to the river which now is theheart of the city of Reno. So that’s how closewe came to be landed property owners.But anyway, my mother’s father,Frank Marion Edmunds, was a hoistingengineer in Virginia City, and my mother’smother, Gertrude Barron Edmunds, was aschoolteacher. Both of them had come outfrom New Hampshire, and they had livedwithin a few miles of each other in NewHampshire and didn’t know each other. Hewas born in Andover and she in Concord. Andwhen they got to Virginia City, my grandfathercourted my grandmother, and married her.My mother was born October 30, 1875in Virginia City. As I say, her father was ahoisting engineer and was on duty the nightthat they had the tragic Savage fire in whichseveral people lost their lives. My mother saidthat she could remember the night when thefire broke out. It was about sundown, andshe saw this red haze or red glow off to theleft of their front window, and she called herfather’s attention to it, and he said, “Oh, myGod, the—there’s a mine fire!” so he wentdown and stayed on the job for, as my mothersaid, I think it was forty-eight hours withoutrest, doing rescue work, and other things thatcould be done.In the Edmunds family, there were twoother daughters. My mother, Marion, was theoldest; Alice Edmunds, who later became Mrs.Will Sauer—her husband was a rancher in theWashoe Valley; and the third daughter, AmyEdmunds, who never married and taughtschool in Butte, Montana, and Minneapolis,Minnesota. She returned to Nevada about ayear before she died. So that about takes careof the family.My grandfather had two other daughters.My father’s mother, Charlotte Farley Cahlan,died when he was about five years old.And my grandfather married another wife,Charlotte Warren Cahlan, and they had twodaughters, Mrs. R. Hyrum Browne (GenevaCahlan), who now lives in California, andMrs. Arthur Mathews (Lena Cahlan), whoalso lives in California. As I say, both mybrother and I were both born in Reno. Ihave a daughter, Virginia Cahlan Otero,who was born in Las Vegas. My brother hasa daughter, Ruth Marion Henderson, whowas born in Elko, and a son, John ForestCahlan, who was born in Las Vegas. The sonhas three sons, Albert Edmunds Cahlan II,John Forest Cahlan, Jr., and Stephen BradfordCahlan, all of whom were born in Las Vegas.Their mother was the former Jean Garner.The only “foreigners” in the family are myniece’s children, all of whom were born in Mt.Ayr, Iowa. They are Miss Susan Henderson,Bruce Henderson, David Lee Henderson, andPatrick Henderson. Their father is MiltonHenderson of Mt. Ayr, Iowa.Now I’ll get back up to Carson City. Itwas a very interesting era for me because ofbeing a young kid, and doing the things thatyoung kids used to do. I can recall playing inthe capitol building, and one of the favoritesports was to go up to the second floor andslide down the banister, and I have had mybackside bumped on many occasions by the