The bright red bird owes its name to the equally bright red-robed officials of the Catholic church. They started wearing their distinctive red robes in the thirteenth century when Pope Innocent IV proposed they wear the red cloaks and red hats as a symbol of their willingness to shed blood for their faith. It's only the male cardinal that is brilliantly red. The female is a much duller-looking reddish brown. When you see a male cardinal, look hard and you'll probably be able to find the female too.
Cardinals tend to mate for life and stay together year-round.
Actually, the town that was just over the border from California, already existed before this date. It was first settled by the Washoe Indians who used the area for festivals and ceremonies. Then, as settlers moved in, it was known as Fuller's Ferry, and later, as Lake's Crossing. In the mid 1800s, Reno was just another settlement of silver miners. When the Comstock Lode was discovered in the Virginia City area, intrigued fortune hunters throughout the world came to the area to strike it rich.