The timing of this question is a little weird, since the small unincorporated community of Panaca -- which lies in eastern Lincoln County, on State Route 319, close to the Utah border -- seldom gives much cause to be written about, yet only last weekend hit the headlines (at least locally) when 59-year-old hospital nurse Glenn Franklin Jones committed suicide by detonating two bombs in the home of a couple with whom he worked and then shooting himself in the head. By a miracle, no one else was injured in the blast, and Panaca is now likely looking forward to sliding back into obscurity, while gearing up for its annual Pioneer Day festivities, which will be taking place this Saturday, July 23 and will kick off with the traditional 6 a.m. firing of the cannon.
The fact that this celebration in Panaca coincides with neighboring Utah's annual holiday to commemorate the arrival of the Mormon pioneers in the Salt Lake Valley is no coincidence, and points to the historical roots of Panaca's gambling -- and booze -- prohibition. Founded in 1864, the name "Panaca" is derived from the Paiute word for metal, money, or wealth -- a nod to the Panacker Ledge silver mine founded by one of the Mormon missionaries to the area -- and what today is known as southern Nevada's first permanent settlement was actually originally part of Washington County, Utah. It was Nevada's 1861 split from Utah, and the subsequent congressional redrawing of boundaries in 1866, that shifted Panaca into Nevada.
While the latter, with its mining prosperity, gained statehood in a mere three years, it would take Utah a half-century to achieve the same status, but the residents of Panaca were not thrilled about having their geography and identity messed with. A good proportion of the several-hundred colonizers pulled up stakes and moved back across the border into the Utah Territory; of those who remained, a many refused to pay their taxes for several years in protest. Eventually, the rumblings quieted, but this was in large part due to the remoteness of the community and its residents' stalwart resolution to hold on to their Mormon values, which to this day mean that gambling and liquor are still prohibited (click the "Playing" tab on the Lincoln County official website and it will reveal an upcoming calendar of "Pumpkins in the Park" and "Ice Golf," but no mention of any high-limit slots or upcoming poker tournaments).
