Fallon, Nevada#Cancer Cluster

The community was first populated during the California Gold Rush, because multiple would-be Forty-niners stopped after crossing the Carson River.{{Cite web|title=Fallon {{!}} Loneliest Road in America, Nevada's Highway 50|url=https://loneliestroad.us/fallon/|language=en-US|access-date=2020-05-28}}

The town and post office were established on July 24, 1896, in a little shack belonging to Michael Fallon and Eliza Fallon,{{cite book|last1=Carlson|first1=Helen S.|title=Nevada place names : a geographical dictionary|date=1985|publisher=University of Nevada Press|location=Reno|isbn=978-0-87417-094-8|page=111}} who operated a ranch at the site.{{cite book | url=http://dwgateway.library.unr.edu/keck/histtopoNV/Origin_of_Place_Names_Files/1941NevadaOriginofNames-pt1.pdf |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180409171723/http://dwgateway.library.unr.edu/keck/histtopoNV/Origin_of_Place_Names_Files/1941NevadaOriginofNames-pt1.pdf |archive-date=2018-04-09 |url-status=live | title=Origin of Place Names: Nevada | publisher=W.P.A. | author=Federal Writers' Project | year=1941 | pages=11}} Shortly afterwards, Jim Richards later operated a store near the post office.{{Cite web|title=All About Fallon!|url=https://www.fallonchamber.com/about/fallon/|website=Fallon Chamber of Commerce|language=en-US|access-date=2020-05-28}}

The town was officially incorporated in 1908.

Lincoln Highway, the first transcontinental thoroughfare, passes through Fallon from east to west, following the original Pony Express trail. Today it is designated U.S. Highway 50, and eastward from Fallon is popularly known as The Loneliest Road in America, as it passes through only two towns and one small city between Fallon and the Utah state line, over 400 miles distant.

When U.S. Highway 95 (stretching between the U.S. borders with Canada and Mexico) was laid out in the 1930s, the highway north of town met Highway 50 at the northern end of what was then the town center (Maine Street). To avoid forcing traffic through town, there is a four-block "dogleg" on Highway 50 separating the north and south legs of Highway 95.

While the city has expanded greatly over the years, the "old town" area is several blocks of Maine Street. Many of the buildings here date back to the early 20th century, including the historic Fallon Theater, which is still in operation as of 2023.

Naval Air Station Fallon, built in 1942, is southeast of the city center. Since 1996, NAS Fallon has been home to the U.S. Navy's Navy Fighter Weapons School (popularly known as TOPGUN), using several flight training areas and practice ranges in the area.

On June 16, 2019, downtown (Maine Street) Fallon was listed in the National Register of Historic Places.{{Cite web|last=Resources|first=Department of Conservation and Natural|title=Downtown Fallon listed in the National Register of Historic Places|url=https://www.nevadaappeal.com/news/lahontan-valley/downtown-fallon-listed-in-the-national-register-of-historic-places/|access-date=2020-05-29|website=www.nevadaappeal.com|language=en-US|archive-date=2019-07-17|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190717155140/https://www.nevadaappeal.com/news/lahontan-valley/downtown-fallon-listed-in-the-national-register-of-historic-places/|url-status=dead}}

Fallon is located in western Churchill County at the geographic coordinates {{Coord|39|28|22|N|118|46|44|W|type:city}} (39.472792, −118.778826).{{cite web|url=https://www.census.gov/geographies/reference-files/time-series/geo/gazetteer-files.html|publisher=United States Census Bureau|access-date=2011-04-23|date=February 12, 2011|title=US Gazetteer files: 2010, 2000, and 1990}} It is in the Lahontan Valley, a former lakebed into which flows the Carson River, which passes north of the city.

According to the United States Census Bureau, Fallon has a total area of {{convert|9.45|km2|order=flip}}, of which {{convert|9.41|km2|order=flip}} is land and {{convert|0.05|km2|order=flip|2}}, or 0.49%, is water.{{cite web| url=http://factfinder.census.gov/bkmk/table/1.0/en/DEC/10_DP/G001/1600000US3224100| archive-url=https://archive.today/20200212191838/http://factfinder.census.gov/bkmk/table/1.0/en/DEC/10_DP/G001/1600000US3224100| url-status=dead| archive-date=February 12, 2020| title=Geographic Identifiers: 2010 Demographic Profile Data (G001): Fallon city, Nevada| publisher=U.S. Census Bureau, American actfinder| access-date=October 15, 2014}}

{{US Census population

|1900= 741

|1910= 1753

|1920= 1758

|1930= 1911

|1940= 2400

|1950= 2734

|1960= 2959

|1970= 4262

|1980= 6438

|1990= 7536

|2000= 8606

|2010= 8606

|2020= 9327

|footnote=U.S. Decennial Census{{cite web|url=https://www.census.gov/programs-surveys/decennial-census.html|title=Census of Population and Housing|publisher=Census.gov|access-date=June 4, 2015}}

}}

As of the census{{cite web|title=U.S. Census website|url=https://www.census.gov|publisher=United States Census Bureau|access-date=2008-01-31}} of 2000, there were 7,536 people, 3,004 households, and 1,877 families residing in the city. The population density was {{convert|2,474.1|PD/sqmi|PD/km2|sp=us|adj=off}}. There were 3,336 housing units at an average density of {{convert|1,095.2|/sqmi|/km2|sp=us|adj=off}}. The racial makeup of the city was 76.5% White, 2.0% African American, 3.0% Native American, 4.7% Asian, 0.3% Pacific Islander, 0.3% from other races, and 3.3% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 9.9% of the population.

There were 3,004 households, out of which 35.4% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 42.7% were married couples living together, 15.3% had a female householder with no husband present, and 37.5% were non-families. 30.7% of all households were made up of individuals, and 11.4% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.45 and the average family size was 3.06.

In the city, the population was spread out, with 28.4% under the age of 18, 10.3% from 18 to 24, 29.7% from 25 to 44, 19.4% from 45 to 64, and 12.2% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 32 years. For every 100 females, there were 95.7 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 91.5 males.

The median income for a household in the city was $35,935, and the median income for a family was $41,433. Males had a median income of $35,356 versus $22,818 for females. The per capita income for the city was $16,919. About 9.5% of families and 12.6% of the population were below the poverty line, including 15.6% of those under age 18 and 10.3% of those age 65 or over.

Between 1997 and 2003, the Fallon community experienced an unusually high incidence of childhood leukemia.Francis, Stephen S., Steve Selvin, Wei Yang, et al. "[https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3839794/ Unusual space-time patterning of the Fallon, Nevada leukemia cluster: Evidence of an infectious etiology]," in Journal of Chemico-Biological Interactions, Vol. 196, Issue 3, April 5, 2012, pp. 102–109. In response, the U.S. Senate held the Field Hearing Before the Committee on Environment and Public Works during the winter of 2001. Nevada Assemblywoman Merle A. Berman was a participant. According to the minutes of that hearing, on February 14, Berman pressed for answers to ascertain why certain individuals, but not others were selected for the panel of experts chosen to investigate the leukemia clusters and "why the Federal Government was not involved in the testing." And on April 12, Berman obtained this testimony from one of the medical experts in attendance:Minutes of the [https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/CHRG-107shrg78069/html/CHRG-107shrg78069.htm Field Hearing Before the Committee on Environment and Public Works], in "Senate Hearing 107 – 318." Washington, DC: U.S. Government Printing Office, 2002 (retrieved online June 13, 2021).

[Dr. Thomas Sinks, the associate director for science at the National Center for Environmental Health at the Centers for Disease Control] clarified that nobody ever developed cancer because of chances. There was always a cause, and the challenge in Fallon would be to discover the common denominator among the 11 children. The unifying cause was not yet known, but eventually science would identify the commonality. The probability of the Fallon cluster being a chance event was described by Dr. Sinks as being unlikely.

In 2011, epidemiologists at the University of California, Berkeley theorized that the "space-time patterning" of the leukemia cluster was "consistent with the involvement of an infectious disease," and that a "possible mode of transmission" was "by means of a vector" since mosquitoes were "abundant in Churchill County outside of the urban area of Fallon."Francis and Selvin, et al. "Unusual space-time patterning of the Fallon, Nevada leukemia cluster: Evidence of an infectious etiology, Journal of Chemico-Biological Interactions, Vol. 196, Issue 3, 2012.

The city is served by the Churchill County School District. Churchill County High School is the main high school and also caters to students in rural areas outside the city. Western Nevada College has a campus in Fallon.

There is a charter school, Oasis Academy.{{cite web|url=https://nces.ed.gov/ccd/schoolsearch/school_detail.asp?ID=320000100817|title=Oasis Academy|publisher=National Center for Education Statistics|accessdate=2023-04-14}}

Fallon has a public library, the Churchill County Library.{{cite web|title=Nevada Public Libraries|url=https://publiclibraries.com/state/nevada/|publisher=PublicLibraries.com|access-date=June 14, 2019}}

Fallon experiences a cold desert climate, with hot summers and cold winters. Due to Fallon's elevation and aridity, the diurnal temperature variation is quite substantial, especially in the summer months. Fallon's climate is quite dry, due to its location in the Rain Shadow of the Sierra Nevada. Summer days can be hot, but temperatures are cooler than in deserts such as the Mojave, Sonoran, and Chihuahuan deserts, due to Fallon's altitude and higher latitude north of the equator. In the winter, daytime temperatures are usually above freezing, but nights can be bitterly cold. Fallon can experience heavy fog in winter, known as pogonip.

{{Weather box

|location = Fallon, Nevada, 1991–2020 normals, extremes 1903–present

|single line = Yes

|collapsed = yes

|Jan record high F = 71

|Feb record high F = 78

|Mar record high F = 84

|Apr record high F = 90

|May record high F = 102

|Jun record high F = 106

|Jul record high F = 108

|Aug record high F = 105

|Sep record high F = 106

|Oct record high F = 92

|Nov record high F = 81

|Dec record high F = 72

|Jan avg record high F = 60.1

|Feb avg record high F = 65.8

|Mar avg record high F = 75.2

|Apr avg record high F = 81.8

|May avg record high F = 90.2

|Jun avg record high F = 97.3

|Jul avg record high F = 101.9

|Aug avg record high F = 99.4

|Sep avg record high F = 95.1

|Oct avg record high F = 84.8

|Nov avg record high F = 71.2

|Dec avg record high F = 61.8

|year avg record high F = 102.7

|Jan high F = 46.0

|Feb high F = 52.4

|Mar high F = 60.7

|Apr high F = 66.1

|May high F = 74.8

|Jun high F = 85.1

|Jul high F = 94.2

|Aug high F = 91.8

|Sep high F = 83.3

|Oct high F = 69.8

|Nov high F = 55.9

|Dec high F = 45.2

|year high F =

|Jan mean F = 33.0

|Feb mean F = 37.8

|Mar mean F = 44.6

|Apr mean F = 49.8

|May mean F = 58.4

|Jun mean F = 66.9

|Jul mean F = 74.7

|Aug mean F = 72.0

|Sep mean F = 63.6

|Oct mean F = 51.9

|Nov mean F = 40.2

|Dec mean F = 32.1

|year mean F =

|Jan low F = 20.0

|Feb low F = 23.3

|Mar low F = 28.5

|Apr low F = 33.5

|May low F = 41.9

|Jun low F = 48.7

|Jul low F = 55.3

|Aug low F = 52.3

|Sep low F = 43.9

|Oct low F = 34.0

|Nov low F = 24.5

|Dec low F = 19.0

|year low F =

|Jan avg record low F = 6.9

|Feb avg record low F = 11.7

|Mar avg record low F = 15.6

|Apr avg record low F = 21.8

|May avg record low F = 30.0

|Jun avg record low F = 36.1

|Jul avg record low F = 46.0

|Aug avg record low F = 43.5

|Sep avg record low F = 33.8

|Oct avg record low F = 20.9

|Nov avg record low F = 12.7

|Dec avg record low F = 6.1

|year avg record low F = 1.9

|Jan record low F = -25

|Feb record low F = -27

|Mar record low F = 1

|Apr record low F = 13

|May record low F = 20

|Jun record low F = 27

|Jul record low F = 35

|Aug record low F = 33

|Sep record low F = 21

|Oct record low F = 6

|Nov record low F = -1

|Dec record low F = -21

|precipitation colour = green

|Jan precipitation inch = 0.63

|Feb precipitation inch = 0.47

|Mar precipitation inch = 0.50

|Apr precipitation inch = 0.45

|May precipitation inch = 0.68

|Jun precipitation inch = 0.36

|Jul precipitation inch = 0.12

|Aug precipitation inch = 0.15

|Sep precipitation inch = 0.19

|Oct precipitation inch = 0.40

|Nov precipitation inch = 0.43

|Dec precipitation inch = 0.39

|year precipitation inch =

|Jan snow inch = 1.8

|Feb snow inch = 0.7

|Mar snow inch = 0.3

|Apr snow inch = 0.0

|May snow inch = 0.0

|Jun snow inch = 0.0

|Jul snow inch = 0.0

|Aug snow inch = 0.0

|Sep snow inch = 0.0

|Oct snow inch = 0.0

|Nov snow inch = 0.3

|Dec snow inch = 1.4

|year snow inch =

|unit precipitation days = 0.01 in

|Jan precipitation days = 5.0

|Feb precipitation days = 4.4

|Mar precipitation days = 3.7

|Apr precipitation days = 3.4

|May precipitation days = 4.3

|Jun precipitation days = 2.6

|Jul precipitation days = 1.5

|Aug precipitation days = 1.3

|Sep precipitation days = 1.6

|Oct precipitation days = 2.8

|Nov precipitation days = 2.8

|Dec precipitation days = 4.1

|unit snow days = 0.1 in

|Jan snow days = 1.0

|Feb snow days = 0.5

|Mar snow days = 0.3

|Apr snow days = 0.1

|May snow days = 0.0

|Jun snow days = 0.0

|Jul snow days = 0.0

|Aug snow days = 0.0

|Sep snow days = 0.0

|Oct snow days = 0.0

|Nov snow days = 0.1

|Dec snow days = 0.8

|source 1 = NOAA

{{cite web

|url = https://www.ncei.noaa.gov/access/services/data/v1?dataset=normals-monthly-1991-2020&stations=USC00262780&format=pdf&dataTypes=MLY-TMAX-NORMAL,MLY-TMIN-NORMAL,MLY-TAVG-NORMAL,MLY-PRCP-NORMAL,MLY-SNOW-NORMAL

|publisher = National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

|title = U.S. Climate Normals Quick Access

}}

Retrieved on September 7, 2022.

|source 2 = WRCC

{{cite web

|url = https://wrcc.dri.edu/cgi-bin/cliMAIN.pl?nv2780

|publisher = Western Regional Climate Center

|title = Period of Record Monthly Climate Summary

}}

Retrieved on September 7, 2022

}}

Los Alamos National Laboratory, in conjunction with the Department of Defense, conducted an underground nuclear test {{convert|28|mi}} southeast of Fallon at 5 p.m. on October 26, 1963. Named Project Shoal, the 12.5-kiloton detonation was part of the Vela Uniform program. The device exploded at a depth of {{convert|1205|ft}} below ground surface.{{cite web | title = Remediation Project Shoal Area, Nevada Division of Environmental Protection | url = http://ndep.nv.gov/shoal/SHOAL1.HTM | url-status = dead | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20090323064846/http://ndep.nv.gov/shoal/SHOAL1.HTM | archive-date = March 23, 2009 }} The site is located in Gote Flat in the Sand Springs Range.

Access to the Project Shoal Area is unrestricted. Access to the area is by Highway 50, Nevada Highway 839, then to an improved gravel road to the site.

• The Go-Getter, starring Zooey Deschanel and Jena Malone, mentions Fallon many times and even brings up Fallon's annual Heart 'O Gold Cantaloupe Festival. Malone's character lives in Fallon, and parts of the movie were filmed in and around Fallon.[https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0479289/ imdb.com]

• John C. Carpenter, rancher, businessman, and politician, was born in Fallon.'Former Assemblyman John Carpenter Dies,' Elko Daily Free Press, Marianne Kobak McKown, November 21, 2016
• Harvey Dahl, St. Louis Rams a former offensive lineman, was born in Fallon.{{cite web | url=http://deadspin.com/5869146/st-louis-lineman-called-for-holding-yells-thats-not-fucking-holding-into-refs-open-mic-and-then-it-got-weird | title=St. Louis Lineman Called for Holding Yells, "That's Not Fucking Holding!" into Ref's Open Mic, and then It Gets Weird| date=December 18, 2011}}
• Luella Kirkbride Drumm, former member of the Nevada AssemblyCorkill, Bunny. "[https://www.nevadawomen.org/research-center/biographies-alphabetical/luella-kirkbride-drumm/ Luella Kirkbride Drumm]." Reno, Nevada: Nevada Women's History Project, retrieved online June 19, 2021.Louella Drumm, in “[https://www.newspapers.com/newspage/79178585/ Legislature]." Reno, Nevada: Nevada State Journal, February 11, 1939, p. 2.
• Wuzzie George, Northern Paiute craftswoman and recorder of indigenous lifeways
• Martin Heinrich, U.S. Senator from New Mexico since 2013, born in Fallon but raised in Columbia, Missouri.
• Meaghan Martin, actress.
• Joshua Mauga, a Fallon native, played for the Kansas City Chiefs.

Fallon is twinned with the following towns:

• Vani, Georgia

{{Portal|United States|Nevada}}

• Fallon Municipal Airport
• Salmon Creek Railroad
• Spirit Cave mummy
• Federal Building and Post Office (Fallon, Nevada)

{{Reflist}}

• Steinmaus, C., M. Lu, R.L. Todd, A.H. Smith. [https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1241974/ Probability estimates for the unique childhood leukemia cluster in Fallon, Nevada, and risks near other U.S. military aviation facilities.] Environmental Health Perspectives. 112(6): 766–771. May 2004.

{{Commons category}}

• [http://www.cityoffallon.com City of Fallon official website]
• [http://www.fallonchamber.com Fallon Chamber of Commerce]
• [http://www.fallonnv.com Fallon business]
• [http://www.americantrails.org/nationalrecreationtrails/blm/grimespoint-nv.html Grimes Point Trail] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20061206142144/http://www.americantrails.org/nationalrecreationtrails/blm/grimespoint-nv.html |date=December 6, 2006 }} (Bureau of Land Management), with pictures of the carvings

{{Fallon, Nevada}}

{{Churchill County, Nevada}}

{{Nevada}}

{{Nevada county seats}}

{{authority control}}

Category:1896 establishments in Nevada

Category:Cities in Churchill County, Nevada

Category:County seats in Nevada

Category:Micropolitan areas of Nevada

Category:Nevada State Register of Historic Places

Category:Populated places established in 1896

Category:Cities in Nevada