Beatty Days filled with history and high jinks

This past Nevada Day weekend, Beatty Days brought all of the activity and antics of an old-timey, small-town festival to this rural Nye County town, with three days packed full of things to see and do. From its ever-popular games and contests that elicit both laughter and cheers to the array of vendors featuring merchandise to tempt any shopper and all sorts of fun in between, Beatty Days was once again declared a rousing success.

“I personally think it went great!” Beatty Chamber of Commerce Senior Administrator Ginny Faulkner told the Times-Bonanza afterward. As sometimes happens with large-scale community events, Faulkner said there were a few hiccups along the way but overall, the event was an awesome time for everyone who attended.

“Between the three days, I am going to say we had about 600 people come out,” Faulkner detailed. “We had 191 people who took part in the parade!”

Taking on the role of Grand Marshal for the Parade this year was Kelly Carrol and there were all kinds of awards handed out to recognize the best of the procession’s entries. Also taking a starring role in Beatty Days were, of course, Miss Beatty Hailey Helms and Jr. Miss Beatty Kyleigh Cathcart, while Dave Bryan and Dee Crawford reigned as Beatty Days King and Queen.

Throughout the three-day event, attendees were able to enjoy all kinds of entertainment live on stage, along with the skilled creativity of those who entered the 8th Annual Aaron Huisman Desert Art Contest. Two days of International Chili Society-sanctioned Chili Cook-offs attracted plenty of attention, as well, as chili chefs competed for top honors in several categories. The Still Cruisin’ Classic Car Show gave auto-lovers a plethora of vehicles to “ooh” and “ahh” over and for those who love to play cards, the Poker Walk was where to be.

Beatty Days also featured the Tombstone 2K Walk and 5K Run, bed races, tricycle races, a costume contest in celebration of Halloween and an assortment of competitions, including hula-hoop, root beer belching, cornhole, the famed Pickle Liquor Hoot ‘n’ Holler and more.

Though this annual festival is now known as Beatty Days, many may not know that the event’s roots actually go back to Rhyolite, situated just outside of Beatty. Deborah M. Baker put together a history of the event, in which she explains the origins of the Beatty Days celebration.

“Beatty Days did not start out as Beatty Days and had nothing to do with Beatty at all. The thought was put together due to the deterioration of Rhyolite, a small ghost town just five miles from Beatty,” Baker reported.

Rhyolite is one of Nevada’s many boom-and-bust gold rush towns, having grown quickly from its founding in 1904 until its eventual decline, beginning in 1907 and continuing through to 1924 when the place was completely deserted. But its history and still standing structures – namely the famed Bottle House – was a big attraction for tourists, which ultimately led to the formation of the Friends of Rhyolite.

“Due to this interest, a small group consisting of Kari Coughlin, Debbie Stez, Gloria Angelino and Andy Gudas, to name a few, formed the Friends of Rhyolite in 1990, dedicated to preserving the ghost town and the still-standing concrete buildings,” Baker reported.

The Friends of Rhyolite hosted the Rhyolite Festival in 1996 and 1997 but in 1998, attendance had dropped and the group decided to seek out additional help for future years. With a successful Beatty Railroad Days under its belt, the Beatty Museum stepped in to assist, merging that event with Rhyolite Days. The Beatty Chamber of Commerce then got involved and by 2001, was the sole organization of Beatty Days, which the chamber has run ever since. But the history of Rhyolite is still a big part of the event to this day, with guided walking tours a regular part of the annual Beatty Days activities.

For a full list of all of the winners of the various Beatty Days 2025 activities visit BeattyNevada.org

Contact reporter Robin Hebrock at rhebrock@pvtimes.com