Nevada Lore Series: The Ormsby House
Submitted by Kelsey Penrose on Wed, 08/22/2018 - 10:59am
In celebration of the coming 20th anniversary of the beginning of the Ormsby’s house renovation — scheduled to be completed on July 4, 2001 — I bring you the history of the fabled and unfortunate but still beloved Ormsby House Hotel and Casino.
The completion of the Ormsby House has been a snarky joke for decades after it has passed numerous hands and still has no real finishing date in sight. At some point the Ormsby Parking Garage — where my friends and I as middle school students would throw water balloons off of the top story — has been fenced, which limits downtown parking for Carsonites.
The original Ormsby House was named for its creator, Major William Ormsby, who built the hotel in 1860 on the corner of 2nd and Carson Street.
The same year it was finished, Major Ormsby was killed in the Pyramid Lake War (also known as the Paiute War, the Washoe Indian War, and the Pah Ute War).
The hotel remained in business until the early 1900s at which point it was purchased by Dominique Laxalt and destroyed.
— In 1972, Dominique’s son, former Governor Paul Laxalt, built a new Ormsby House at the corner of 5th and Carson.
The Laxalts then sold it in 1975 to the Loftin family.
— In 1990, the Ormsby House filed for bankruptcy protection and in 1993 it was foreclosed and shut down.
— In 1995, the Hotel was reopened by a man named Barry Silverton. However, in 1997, it again went into bankruptcy and again was foreclosed.
Bob Cashell, former lieutenant governor and Reno mayor, was appointed as general manager and by 1999 it was back on its feet and sold to Al Fiegehen and Don Lehr, the owners of Cubix Computer Corporation.
They soon after laid off all employees and began the renovation which will be going into its 20th year in 2019.
— As of March 2018, the owners allowed the building permit for renovations to expire, and have said the building will likely be converted into housing and retail.
Despite saying there has been many interested parties in purchasing the long awaited property, no movement has yet been reported.
— The Nevada Lore Series focuses on the legends of Nevada and the surrounding areas that help build our culture, from ancient Washoe stories, to Old West ghostly visions, to modern day urban legends.
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