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- 83rd Session (2025)
Senate Joint Resolution No. 9–Senators Titus and Hansen
FILE NUMBER..........
SENATE JOINT RESOLUTION—Urging the Citizens’ Stamp
Advisory Committee and the Postmaster General of the
United States Postal Service for the creation of a postage
stamp commemorating John “Snowshoe” Thompson.
WHEREAS, Jon Torsteinson -Rue, more widely known as John
“Snowshoe” Thompson, was born in Norway in 1827 and arrived in
California in 1851 where he began work as a miner; and
WHEREAS, After his attempts at mining failed, Mr. Thompson
moved to Placerville, California and took up farming; and
WHEREAS, In 1855, Mr. Thompson saw an ad in the Sacramento
Union which read “People Lost to the World: Uncle Sam Needs
Carrier” and began working as a mail carrier; and
WHEREAS, Previous postmen had difficulty traversing the snow-
covered Sierra until Mr. Thompson carved a pair of “ski -skates”
fashioned after the ski -shaped snowshoes he remembered from his
childhood days in Norway and earned the nic kname “Snowshoe”;
and
WHEREAS, Twice a month every winter from 1856 to 1876,
Snowshoe Thompson made the daunting and danger -filled 3 -day
trek from Placerville, California, to Mormon Station, Nevada, later
renamed Genoa, and, upon delivery of his cargo and preparation of
his load for the return journey, would reverse his course and return
to Placerville; and
WHEREAS, Dressed in his Mackinaw jacket and wide -brimmed
hat, Snowshoe Thompson carried no gun, heavy coat or blankets, in
order to focus on the impor tant mail, parcels and life -saving
medicines he carried that often weighed between 80 and 100
pounds; and
WHEREAS, Despite the constantly changing, snow -covered
landscape, where landmarks were often obliterated and only the
stars were available to guide h im when he traveled at night,
Snowshoe Thompson did not use a compass because, as he once
said, “There is no danger of getting lost in a narrow range of
mountains like the Sierra, if a man has his wits about him”; and
WHEREAS, Snowshoe Thompson often rescued prospectors
caught in the snow, and in one instance, his heroic efforts saved the
life of a starving, half-frozen prospector; and
WHEREAS, In the 1860s, Snowshoe Thompson homesteaded in
Diamond Valley, California and married Agnes Singleton, with
whom he had a son, Arthur Thomas; and
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- 83rd Session (2025)
WHEREAS, Although Snowshoe Thompson was never fully
compensated for his efforts as a lifeline between Nevada and
California, he continued his deliveries until his death in 1876; and
WHEREAS, The bicentennial of the birth of Snowshoe
Thompson will be observed on April 30, 2027, and the contributions
and heroic deeds of Snowshoe Thompson should be recognized
through the creation of a commemorative postage stamp; now,
therefore, be it
RESOLVED BY THE SENATE AND ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF
NEVADA, JOINTLY, That the members of the 83rd Session of the
Nevada Legislature hereby urge the Citizens’ Stamp Advisory
Committee and the Postmaster General of the United States Postal
Service to recognize and commemorate the contributio ns of John
“Snowshoe” Thompson through the creation of a postage stamp; and
be it further
RESOLVED, That the Secretary of the Senate prepare and
transmit a copy of this resolution to the Citizens’ Stamp Advisory
Committee and the Postmaster General of the United States Postal
Service; and be it further
RESOLVED, That this resolution becomes effective upon
passage.
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