Idlewild Park hosted the Transcontinental Highways Exposition.
Magic descends on Reno’s Idlewild Park, especially on summer nights. It’s lit by the diverse vendors at Food Truck Fridays, and on other nights, the park may host the Reno Night Market or Western Lights Festival. Daytime brings farmers’ markets and the Earth Day celebration. It’s a festive place to gather, eat, drink, and be merry.
What few realize is that about 100 years ago, the park was first created as the gathering spot for a giant festival, the Transcontinental Highways Exposition. A large swath of land along the Truckee River was transformed into Idlewild Park to prepare for Reno’s first festival, promoting the completion of the Lincoln and Victory highways. A slogan of that time was “All roads lead to Reno,” and the exposition heralded the start of automobile-based tourism — still an important financial driving force in our state. The exhibits touted the industry, agriculture, resources, and food of the region.
Picnics and Recreation…