Fallon Nevada, home to TOPGUN.

Fallon Nevada was born during the California Gold Rush when exhausted travelers stopped along the Carson River after crossing the 40-Mile Desert, one of the deadliest stretches along the Emigrant Trail. This spot on the river was called "Ragtown" because of the clothes and blankets that were seen drying, hanging from wagons and trees.

Fallon Nevada began to grow rapidly during the Newlands Project at the turn of the century. The plan called for the diversion of water from the Carson and Truckee Rivers to reclaim land from the desert for farms and ranches around Fallon Nevada. The "Heart O' Gold" cantaloupe, prized for its sweet and juicy meat, was shipped all over the country from Fallon Nevada in the early 1920's. It is still grown in the Fallon Nevada valley today.

Farms and ranches in Fallon Nevada remain a vital part of the local economy and contribute to the area's claim as the "Oasis of Nevada." Today in Fallon Nevada, the past meets the future in dramatic fashion as TOPGUN pilots from NAS Fallon, the famed Navy Fighter Weapons School, train in the skies that once saw Pony Express riders galloping east and west.

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Points of Interest in and around Fallon Nevada