36 years ago this month

Mankins Corner, a landmark at the junction of Highways 16 and 52 in Pahrump Valley, will move to a new location just south of the Charlotta Inn, on Highway 16.

Les Mankins, a 17-year resident of Pahrump Valley who is a regional distributor for Texaco products, will construct a new Texaco station, a semi-automated car wash, package liquor store and small grocery store on the north half of a 13-acre site named Commercial Center.

Tim Hafen, long-time Valley rancher and realtor, is the owner of the south half of the development. He plans to construct an office-retail building. No start date has been announced.

Movie makers came to Pahrump Valley last month. A couple days of hard work involving actress Tuesday Weld and a crew of about a dozen people is expected to end up as about 20 seconds of screen time. The movie is titled "Play It as It Lays."

"It's a story about making movies. These scenes will show the girl driving to Las Vegas, shooting at sign posts along the way" said director Frank Perry. In the movie Weld is filmed driving a corvette in Pahrump Valley at the Tecopa turnoff.

30 years ago this week

A record turnout of contestants and spectators is expected for the second annual Pahrump Valley High School Rodeo at the rodeo arena.

Advisor Herb Barris reported that the new chutes have arrived; several men are working to install the new equipment, and should be ready in time. Rodeo participants from throughout Southern Nevada and other parts of the state continue to send in their registration forms.

Barris expects to have over 100 contestants.

Applications for 110 library cards were received in the first few weeks since the Pahrump Community Library began issuing cards.

Well over 300 books, periodicals and pamphlets have been processed since the library opened its doors. "We have a large selection of new pamphlets and are adding to the book selection daily," said Library Board Chairman Doris Shirky. "We have just received the 1978 Encyclopedia Americana and a set of Encyclopedia Britannica."

20 years ago this week

A $20 million bond issue that could pay for new high schools in Pahrump Valley, Tonopah and Beatty will be presented for public approval by the Nye County School Board. Superintendent Joaquin G. Johnson presented his recommendations to the board prior to the unanimous vote.

Johnson proposed a new high school for Pahrump Valley on a new site if the school could not be accommodated on present district property.

Unlike its sudden clamorous birth, Bullfrog County will officially expire without fanfare this month.

The Legislative Commission decided to desert the gasping legislative toad, even though they had the right to appeal the ruling made last month by Judge David Zenoff.

Zenoff's ruling held the county unconstitutional. The 144 acres of land atop Yucca Mountain will return to the ownership of Nye County.

To replace Bullfrog, one idea is to create a special taxation district out of Yucca Mountain so that if the high-level nuclear repository comes there, the state can soak the federal government for the most money possible.

Don Simpson of Round Mountain Gold Corp. told the school board that Echo Bay Mines hopes to turn a $1.3 million school over to it.

Simpson said the construction contract had been let but that an unsuccessful bidder had gotten a temporary injunction halting all work. The bidder believed the project was not advertised properly.

The school is being built by Echo Bay Mines on private property and there is no contract with the school district. Simpson said housing development is proceeding at the Hadley Subdivision and by the time the school is finished, a pool and other recreation facilities will also be completed.

10 years ago this week

There may soon be a medical transport helicopter stationed at the Arcon Pahrump Center for Healthcare full time.

Still up in the air is just whose helicopter that might be. Members of the Pahrump Community Hospital District board will hear presentations from two medical flight services, San Diego's Critical Air and Valley Hospital's Flight for Life. Both want to assign a helicopter to the Pahrump area.

Beatty was jolted by a distant earthquake which measured 5.3 on the Richter scale at its epicenter, about 30 miles north of Ridgecrest, Calif.

According to Bill Smith, a U.S. Geological Survey geophysicist with the National Earthquake Information Service at Golden, Colo., reports of the temblor were made to the NEIS from as far away as Beatty, a distance of around 80 miles.

While a magnitude 5 earthquake can cause considerable damage, the area where it occurred was very remote and no damage or injuries have been reported.

According to Town Manager Mike Cosgrove, the state fire marshal's office is in dire financial straits and has informed him it doesn't have the manpower to conduct fire code inspections for the numerous commercial buildings currently under construction in the valley.

Fire Chief Vern Long is helping out by performing the inspections himself. Cosgrove strongly disagrees with the state's position, since the fire marshal's office collects the fees.

Six spaces at Pahrump Valley Junction have been leased, and negotiations are continuing for the other seven, a consultant for World Premier Investments said.

The shopping center on Highway 160 and Basin Avenue will be anchored by a Lucky food store and Sav-On Drugs scheduled to open April 1.

Opening at a later date will be two restaurants, a jewelry store, a book store, a rental store and a health food store.

The new tenants will include Port-of-Subs, Read More Books, Roundtable Pizza, and Canyon Rentals. The jewelry store and health food store have not yet been named.

Wyatt Ehrp will gun for his third straight win in the street stock main event, and the dwarf cars will make their season debut at the Pahrump Valley Speedway Sunday.

IMCA races will also be held at the quarter-mile dirt track.

Ehrp, a former track promoter, leads the street stock standings after taking the checkered flag in the first two races of the season. Steve Taylor is second in standings, followed by defending track champ Michael Hildebrand in third.