Washoe County, Nevada

Washoe County, Nevada
County
Washoe County
Washoe County Courthouse
Seal
Location in the U.S. state of Nevada
Nevada's location in the U.S.
Founded	November 25, 1861
Named for	Washoe people
Seat	Reno
Largest city	Reno
Area
• Total	6,542 sq mi (16,944 km2)
Population (est.)
• (2015)	446,903
• Density	67/sq mi (26/km²)
Congressional district	2nd
Time zone	Pacific: UTC-8/-7
Website	washoecounty.us

Washoe County is a county located in the U.S. state of Nevada. As of the 2010 census, the population was 421,407, making it the second-most populous county in Nevada. Its county seat is Reno.

Washoe County is included in the Reno, NV Metropolitan Statistical Area.

Washoe County was created on November 25, 1861, as one of the original nine counties of the Nevada Territory. It is named after the Washoe people who originally inhabited the area. It was consolidated with Roop County in 1864. Washoe City was the first county seat in 1861 and was replaced by Reno in 1871.

Washoe County is the setting of the 1965 episode "The Wild West's Biggest Train Holdup" of the syndicated western television series, Death Valley Days. In the story line, deputy Jim Brand (Charles Bateman) places a locked chain on a Central Pacific Railroad engine until the company agrees to pay its tax assessment. Roy Barcroft played the aging Sheriff Jackson with Pat Priest as his daughter, Nora, who is romantically interested in Brand.

In 1911, a small group of Bannock under a leader named "Shoshone Mike" killed four ranchers in Washoe County. A posse was formed, and on February 26, 1911, they caught up with the band, and eight of them were killed, along with one member of the posse, Ed Hogle. Three children and a woman who survived the battle were captured. The remains of some of the members of the band were repatriated from the Smithsonian Institution to the Fort Hall Idaho Shoshone-Bannock Tribe in 1994.