The Gridley Store, at 247 Water St. in the "Upper Austin" area of

Austin, Nevada Austin is an unincorporated small town in, and former county seat of, Lander County, Nevada, United States. In 2020, the census-designated place of Austin had a population of 167. It is located on the western slopes of the Toiyabe Range at an ...

, is a historic building built in 1863 but with significance dating to 1864, during the

American Civil War The American Civil War (April 12, 1861 – May 26, 1865; also known by other names) was a civil war in the United States. It was fought between the Union ("the North") and the Confederacy ("the South"), the latter formed by states th ...

. It is associated with

Reuel Colt Gridley Reuel Colt Gridley (January 23, 1829 – November 24, 1870) was an American storekeeper who gained nationwide attention in 1864, when he repeatedly auctioned a plain flour sack, sack of flour and raised over for the United States Sanitary Commiss ...

, who reportedly lost a bet and had to carry a sack of flour throughout the town. The flour was sold as a benefit to raise money for the

U.S. Sanitary Commission The United States Sanitary Commission (USSC) was a private relief agency created by federal legislation on June 18, 1861, to support sick and wounded soldiers of the United States Army (Federal / Northern / Union Army) during the American Civil Wa ...

, which aided wounded Union soldiers. The single sack was sold and resold, raising considerable funds initially in Austin, then more broadly in Nevada, and later still in the East, in a campaign supported by

Mark Twain Samuel Langhorne Clemens (November 30, 1835 – April 21, 1910), known by his pen name Mark Twain, was an American writer, humorist, entrepreneur, publisher, and lecturer. He was praised as the "greatest humorist the United States has p ...

. The fundraiser eventually earned over The building is a one-story granite stone building. Also known as Gridley & Hobart Store and as Gridley Store Museum, it was listed on the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic v ...

in 2003. and Its current exterior appearance dates from it being renovated in c.1985. In 2003, it was operated as a museum by the Austin Historical Society.

References

{{Nevada State Historic Places/Lander Commercial buildings on the National Register of Historic Places in Nevada Commercial buildings completed in 1863 Buildings and structures in Lander County, Nevada National Register of Historic Places in Lander County, Nevada Austin, Nevada United States Sanitary Commission Nevada in the American Civil War