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Perhaps the most impressive reminders of the historic Central Nevada mining town of Austin’s past are its three churches, all built between 1866 and 1878.
The oldest is the old St. Augustine’s Catholic Church on the corner of Court and Virginia streets, which held its first services on Christmas Eve of 1866. No longer used for regular religious services, the red brick building is currently being restored for use as a community center.
The interior walls of the Gothic Revival-style church, which is the oldest Catholic Church in Nevada, are painted with religious scenes and figures and many of the original furnishings are still inside.
The Old Methodist Church on Court Street was also built in 1866 and was considered one of the finest churches of its day. The majestic, Gothic Revival structure, now used as community center and lecture hall, is the largest building in town
The church was financed in a unique way. To raise funds for a church, the local minister, The Reverend Trefren, decided to create a business operation, which he named the Methodist Mining Company. The company’s main assets were mining stock certificates that had been donated to the church. Trefren traveled to his home state of New Hampshire, where he proceeded to sell more than $250,000 in company stock. His sales pitch was simple — the Methodist Mining Company would pay dividends in Heaven as well as on Earth.
Unfortunately, the financing scheme collapsed before work on the church was completed. Lander County briefly acquired the church to settle outstanding debts before selling it back to the congregation. In the meantime, the reverend left town for good.
St. George’s Episcopal Church on Main Street was built in 1878 and is the only one of the town’s historic houses of worship that is still used. This lovely church is said to have been financed by a single pass of a collection plate on Easter Sunday of 1877.
The largest donation was a pledge of $9,500 contributed by a local mine superintendent. Two parishioners donated a 900-pound bell for church. The bell was made in New York and contains silver that was mined in Austin (which is said to give the bell a “silvery” tone).
St. George’s still have its original pipe organ, which traveled around horn by ship to San Francisco and was brought to Austin by wagon. A rather unique feature of the church is that the entrance to the bell tower is also a bathroom. A person must stand atop the toilet in order to pull on the rope that rings the bell.
Just west of the main portion of downtown Austin on Main Street is the restored Gridley Store, built in the early 1860s from native stone. Reuel Gridley, owner of the store, gained considerable fame about 125 years ago after he lost an election bet and agreed to carry a 50-pound sack of flour the length of the town.
Following the walk — during which Gridley was accompanied by a band playing “John Brown’s Body” — the sack of flour was returned to the center of town where it was auctioned and the proceeds pledged to the “Sanitary Fund,” a charity founded to relieve suffering by those injured during the Civil War.
The sack was sold many times that day with each buyer returning it to be auctioned again. A total of $6,000 was raised for the fund.
Other communities heard about Gridley’s famous sack of flour and he was invited to conduct similar auctions throughout the west. Over the course of the next year, Gridley raised about $175,000 for the fund, which largely aided Civil War victims. The sack is on display at the Nevada Historical Society in Reno.
Sadly, despite his good works, Gridley lost his store due to inept partners and his frequent absences to conduct charity auctions. He died in poverty.
Another noteworthy place in Austin is the Union Street Lodging B & B at 69 Union Street. Located in an historic house built in the 1870s, the Union Street B & B offers four comfortable rooms (each with an historic local name) and delicious homemade meals that can include pancakes, eggs, biscuits, fruit and other delights.
Austin is located 110 miles east of Fallon via U.S. 50. For more information, including a list of places to stay and eat, and nearby recreational opportunities, go to www.austinnevada.com.
Rich Moreno covers the places and people that make Nevada special.