Washoe County, Nevada in the context of Washoe County (ship)

Reno (/ˈriːnoʊ/ REE-noh) is a city in the northwest section of the U.S. state of Nevada, along the Nevada–California border. It is the county seat and most populous city of Washoe County. Sitting in the High Eastern Sierra foothills, in the Truckee River valley, on the eastern side of the Sierra Nevada, it is about 23 miles (37 km) northeast of Lake Tahoe. Known as "The Biggest Little City in the World", Reno is the 78th most populous city in the United States, the third most populous city in Nevada, and the most populous in Nevada outside the Las Vegas Valley. The city had a population of 264,165 at the 2020 census.

The city is named after Civil War Union major general Jesse L. Reno, who was killed in action during the American Civil War at the Battle of South Mountain, on Fox's Gap.

Gerlach, Nevada is a census-designated place (CDP) in Washoe County, Nevada, United States. The population was 130 at the 2020 census. It is part of the Reno–Sparks Metropolitan Statistical Area. Prior to 2010, Gerlach was part of the Gerlach–Empire census-designated place. The town of Empire is now a separate CDP. The next nearest town, Nixon, is 60 miles (100 km) to the south on a reservation owned by the Pyramid Lake Paiute Tribe. The Fly Geyser is located near Gerlach.

Verdi (/ˈvɜːrdaɪ/ VUR-dye) is a census-designated place (CDP) in Washoe County, Nevada, United States. It is on the western side of the Reno–Sparks Metropolitan Statistical Area, near Interstate 80 and stretches eastward towards its neighborhood-exclave of Lawton, Nevada surrounded by Reno, Nevada west of Mae Anne Avenue. The CDP of Verdi, California lies immediately adjacent across the state line. Both are in the shadow of California's Verdi Range. In 2010, the population was 1,415. Prior to 2010, the community was listed by the U.S. Census Bureau as part of the Verdi-Mogul CDP.

Sparks is a city in Washoe County, Nevada, United States. It was founded in 1904, incorporated on March 15, 1905, and is located just east of Reno. The 2020 U.S. Census counted 108,445 residents in the city. It is the fifth most populous city in Nevada. It is named after John Sparks, Nevada governor (1903–1908), and a member of the Silver Party.

Sparks is located within the Reno–Sparks metropolitan area.

Gerlach–Empire was a census-designated place (CDP) in Washoe County, Nevada, United States. It was replaced by the separate CDPs of Gerlach and Empire for the 2010 census. The combined population was 499 at the 2000 census. A former company town for United States Gypsum Corporation, Empire was once home to more than 750 people. It is part of the Reno–Sparks Metropolitan Statistical Area. Most of the population lives in the two tiny settlements of Gerlach, a neighboring hamlet with fewer than 200 people that shares its schools with Empire; the rest live on outlying rural ranching properties. The nearest town, Nixon, is 60 miles to the south on a reservation owned by the Pyramid Lake Paiute Tribe.

Empire is an unincorporated community and census-designated place (CDP) in Washoe County, Nevada, with a population estimated at 65 (2021). Prior to the 2010 census it was part of the Gerlach–Empire census-designated place, it is now part of the Reno–Sparks Metropolitan Statistical Area. The nearest town, Nixon, is 60 miles (97 km) to the south on a reservation owned by the Pyramid Lake Paiute Tribe.

For 63 years, from 1948 to 2011, Empire was a company town of the US Gypsum Corporation, a manufacturer of gypsum-based construction sheetrock, and once had a population of more than 750 people. US Gypsum closed the mine and the town in 2011; the mine and town were bought in 2016 by the Empire Mining Company (EMC), a manufacturer of gypsum based agricultural and construction additives. In 2016, the town again became a company town under the new auspices of EMC. Since that date both the town and the mine have been partially reopened by the new owners.

Nixon is a census-designated place (CDP) in Washoe County, Nevada, USA. The population was 374 at the 2010 census. It is part of the Reno–Sparks Metropolitan Statistical Area. It is the seat of tribal government of the Paiute Pyramid Lake Indian Reservation and home to the tribe's Museum and Visitor Center. Nixon lies along State Route 446 which connects the settlement to Sutcliffe and Pyramid Lake.

The Pyramid Lake Paiute Tribe Reservation (Northern Paiute: kuyuuiba) is an Indian Reservation in northwestern Nevada, approximately 35 miles (56 km) northeast of Reno, in Washoe, Storey, and Lyon counties.

It is governed by the federally recognized Pyramid Lake Paiute Tribe, which represents two Northern Paiute bands, the larger Kuyuidökadö (Cui Yui Ticutta) ("Cui-ui-Fish-Eaters") and the smaller Tasiget tuviwarai ("Those who live amidst the mountains"). The reservation lies almost entirely in Washoe County (99.88%), with small amounts of land in the other two counties (at the southern end, near the city of Fernley).