The University Preparatory School - precursor to the University of Nevada - first opened its doors in Elko to seven students on Oct. 12, 1874. The Nevada State Legislature approved the relocation of the University of Nevada to Reno in 1885, and students were welcomed to classes in Morrill Hall in 1886.

The original school bell made the move to Reno, although was later returned to Elko where it has been on display outside of Elko High School's "old gym" - the original site of the University - on College Avenue since 1974.

Recognizing the timber framework holding the bell was in dire disrepair, members of two Elko Rotary clubs embarked on a project to reconstruct the framework, with a goal to complete the project in Nevada's sesquicentennial celebration year. That goal was met on Oct. 22, 2014, when University of Nevada, Reno President Marc Johnson and other University representatives joined with residents of Elko to dedicate the new structure. The dedication event was designated by the NV150 Commission as one of the Legacy Events commemorating Nevada's sesquicentennial.

Kevin Melcher, Elko resident and member of the Nevada Board of Regents, rings the original University of Nevada bell.

"I think it is just wonderful that we are preserving this monument that is not only the site of the original University of Nevada, but also the site where higher education began in Nevada," Kevin Melcher, Elko resident and member of the Nevada System of Higher Education Board of Regents, said.  "All of Nevada should take pride in this celebration and in the beginning of higher education in Nevada."

Constructed in 1874 of timbers from the historic railroad trestle in Palisade Canyon near Carlin, Nevada, the framework had seen better days. Even its plaque had been removed and stored during prior work to repair the structure.

Today, a new brick structure stands and a steel beam supports the original bell.  

Getting to this point was not easy. Discussions about the project began more than a decade ago. But Melcher and fellow Rotarians persisted and, with donations from Elko's Rotary clubs, Barrick Gold, Newmont Mining Corporation, Ormaza Construction and numerous individuals, the "Nevada Bell Project" came to fruition.

The history of the University and higher education in Nevada is entwined with the history of the state itself. Nevada's Constitution outlined the framework for creation of its first "state university" and Nevada's land-grant university. 

"In March of 1864, Congress passed the Nevada Enabling Act to authorize the Territory of Nevada to move toward writing a state constitution acceptable to it, and President Lincoln was given the power in the act to proclaim Nevada statehood upon receiving such a constitution that had also been approved by the voters of the territory," Bill Rowley, University professor of history, said. 

That fall, voters approved the constitution and President Abraham Lincoln proclaimed Nevada as the nation's 36th state on Oct. 31, 1864.

Staying true to its Constitutional roots, the University continues to provide teaching, research and service in agriculture, mechanic arts (today known as engineering) and mining, and provides for the preparation of teachers.  

For Melcher, a member of the Nevada Board of Regents since 2013, the project has special significance. He began his freshmen year at the University of Nevada, Reno in 1974, a member of what he calls the centennial class. After earning his bachelor's and master's degrees in physical education, he went on to teach and then served as a school administrator for 22 years. He is understandably proud of Elko's place in the history of higher education in Nevada, and notes the northeastern Nevada community was also home to the state's first community college, which is today Great Basin College.

For more on other activities organized by the University community to commemorate Nevada's 150 years, including the upcoming symposium "All for the Union," visit Nevada Today.