Students at the University of Nevada, Reno have researched and created an exhibit called The Tahoe Recreation Experience: Fun at the Lake. This exhibit highlights the history of recreational activities at Lake Tahoe such as boat racing, skiing, hiking and camping as well as the historic environmental impacts on the lake.

The project is part of the University's Shared History Program and will be on display in the Shared History Lab of the University's Mack Social Science in Room 109 starting May 4.

"The exhibit should explain to the public that the lake is a great place to have fun but people also need to be aware about the environment to protect the land and the lake," senior psychology student, Danny Nicolini, said.

The class partnered with the Tahoe Maritime Museum to learn about the rich history of boat racing. The students were originally planning on focusing on the exhibit solely on the history of boat racing at Lake Tahoe but expanded the project to include more activities when it proved hard to get all of the interviews for the project.

"Allowed us to work with both board members from the Tahoe Maritime Museum and to work with academic and public entities," Professor and Coordinator of the Shared History Program, Anita Watson, said.
 
The students conducted personal interviews and use primary and secondary sources for the project.

"I was really fun and really hard," international business student Wahida Neela said. "My project focused on the history of skiing. I researched Snowshoe Thomspson who was a postman and the first person to ski in the Sierras."

The Shared History Program started at the University in 2013 as an initiative from the history department to combine public, oral and digital history. Past year's projects include Memory of a Tragedy: The Assassination of John F. Kennedy, In Class In Uniform: Veterans Project, and Dick Trachok: Memories of a Life in Sports. These projects are housed online at the Shared History Program's website.

"It is always an ongoing project," Watson said. "The students will add the information to the website and may even add things to the display throughout the year."

The exhibit will be on display on the first floor of Mack Social Science for one year. There will be a reception to celebrate the opening of the exhibit and to honor the graduating seniors in the class between 1:45 to 2:15 p.m. Monday, May 4. The public is invited to attend the event.

For more information about the Shared History Program, visit http://sharedhistory.acs.unr.edu.