Virtual Guidebook to Northern and Central Nevada
Wells and Wendover
On Interstate 80, Nevada

Wells might more accurately be named "Springs" because it was named for the gushing springs (artesian wells) that form one of the sources of the Humboldt River. The lush meadows here were a God-send for the covered wagon trains coming across the deserts of Utah, and the river provided a safe route continuing on west.

The old part of Wells, along the railroad tracks, is virtually abandoned now, with a newer section along old Highway 40 barely holding on as yet newer developments at the I-80 interchanges intercept the business.

Wendover is one of those characteristic Nevada towns, crowding the state line for the convenience of gamblers coming from Utah.