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Transcript of interview with Agnes Gauger by Coleen Mancini, February 24, 1977

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1977-02-24

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On February 24, 1977, Coleen Mancini interviewed the claims manager for the Culinary Workers and Bartenders Insurance Fund, Agnes Gauger (born Coleen Evans on November 21, 1926 in Arkansas) in her home in Las Vegas, Nevada. Mrs. Gauger’s daughter, Traci Sturdivant was also present during the interview. This interview covers significant changes and growth in Southern Nevada, including gambling and other industries, family life and recreation, and early atomic tests. Mrs. Gauger also discusses housing in the Las Vegas, Howard Hughes, McCarran Airport, medical facilities and education in Southern Nevada.

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OH_00661_transcript

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OH-00661
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Gauger, Agnes Interview, 1977 February 24. OH-00661. [Transcript.] Oral History Research Center, Special Collections & Archives, University Libraries, University of Nevada, Las Vegas. Las Vegas, Nevada.

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This material is made available to facilitate private study, scholarship, or research. It may be protected by copyright, trademark, privacy, publicity rights, or other interests not owned by UNLV. Users are responsible for determining whether permissions are necessary from rights owners for any intended use and for obtaining all required permissions. Acknowledgement of the UNLV University Libraries is requested. For more information, please see the UNLV Special Collections policies on reproduction and use (https://www.library.unlv.edu/speccol/research_and_services/reproductions) or contact us at special.collections@unlv.edu

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Digitized materials: physical originals can be viewed in Special Collections and Archives reading room

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English

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36.17497, -115.13722

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application/pdf

UNLV University Libraries Agnes Gauger i An Interview with Agnes Gauger An Oral History Conducted by Coleen M. Mancini Ralph Roske Oral History Project on Early Las Vegas Special Collections and Archives Oral History Research Center University Libraries University of Nevada, Las Vegas UNLV University Libraries Agnes Gauger ii © Ralph Roske Oral History Project on Early Las Vegas University of Nevada, Las Vegas, 2017 UNLV University Libraries Agnes Gauger iii The Oral History Research Center (OHRC) was formally established by the Board of Regents of the University of Nevada System in September 2003 as an entity of the UNLV University Libraries’ Special Collections Division. The OHRC conducts oral interviews with individuals who are selected for their ability to provide first-hand observations on a variety of historical topics in Las Vegas and Southern Nevada. The OHRC is also home to legacy oral history interviews conducted prior to its establishment including many conducted by UNLV History Professor Ralph Roske and his students. This legacy interview transcript received minimal editing, such as the elimination of fragments, false starts, and repetitions in order to enhance the reader's understanding of the material. All measures have been taken to preserve the style and language of the narrator. The interviewee/narrator was not involved in the editing process. UNLV University Libraries Agnes Gauger iv Abstract On February 24, 1977, Coleen Mancini interviewed the claims manager for the Culinary Workers and Bartenders Insurance Fund, Agnes Gauger (born Coleen Evans on November 21, 1926 in Arkansas) in her home in Las Vegas, Nevada. Mrs. Gauger’s daughter, Traci Sturdivant was also present during the interview. This interview covers significant changes and growth in Southern Nevada, including gambling and other industries, family life and recreation, and early atomic tests. Mrs. Gauger also discusses housing in the Las Vegas, Howard Hughes, McCarran Airport, medical facilities and education in Southern Nevada. UNLV University Libraries Agnes Gauger 1 Nevada History Oral Interview Project for Dr. Roske. Student Coleen Mancini. I’m interviewing Mrs. Agnes Gauger and it is a pleasure for me to interview her. She has lived in Nevada a long time. Um, Mrs. Gauger, were you born in Southern Nevada? No. I was born in Arkansas. Okay. When did you come to Southern Nevada? In 1955. Okay. Mrs. Gauger, why did you come to Southern Nevada? Well, I was living in Reno at the time and my marriage had broken up and the gentleman that I was working for there in the (unintelligible) life insurance company, also had an office in Las Vegas. Mr. Royer also had an office in Las Vegas so I felt I had to get away from Reno so he gave me a job in Las Vegas running his office, and I came here not knowing anyone. It was just myself and two children, in 1955. Okay. You didn’t attend school in Southern Nevada? No. No. Okay. What was your occupation at the time? I was, at the time I was claims adjuster. Claims adjuster. Okay. And at what addresses have you lived in Southern Nevada? Oh dear, I first lived in the Huntridge area, on, oh golly, I can’t even remember the name now, of the street. Saint Francis? No, just Francis Street in the Huntridge area. And then, I lived in North Las Vegas on Salt Lake Street. I lived in the Charleston Heights area on Wisteria Avenue, and I have lived at my present address for the last nine years, as your neighbor. (Laughs) Okay. That’s right! And were you married in Southern Nevada or Las Vegas? I have been married since I have come here. UNLV University Libraries Agnes Gauger 2 Okay. Are you a participant in a church in Las Vegas? Well, I can say, possibly associated with two different churches. The Unity Church of the Desert and my husband and I are presently taking some instruction and lessons with the Latter-day Saints Church. I see and how did you get involved with that church? Oh, with our neighbors, the Andersons who live just across the way. I see. Okay. Are you active in politics in the community? Well, I’m a registered Democrat. Mm-hm. And my husband is a registered Republican. (Laughs) And I do enjoy politics and working with the various community projects. I can’t say that I’m really too active. Mm-hm. I understand you’re a member of a group is it—? I’m—I belong to two different organizations here in Las Vegas. I have been a charter member with the American Business Women’s Association, which has a number of chapters in the Las Vegas area. I belong to the Desert Women’s Chapter and we promote education. I see and how long have you been involved with the business women? Since 19—I’d say approximately 1963, ’64. Mm. I understand. Do you enjoy it? Oh. I surely do. You do? Yes. Good. Have you won any awards or honors? Well, yes. I was selected their woman of the year, for one year, and I think that’s quite an honor. UNLV University Libraries Agnes Gauger 3 Yes. Because this is something to be very proud of, I think, to be selected by other women. (Laughs) And I am also with the Insurance Women of Las Vegas because, since I work in the insurance industry, we have an organization there and we also promote safety, welfare, and education, in this group. I see. Mrs. Gauger what was your impression of Las Vegas and Southern Nevada when you first came down here? Well, (Laughs) when I—(Laughs) when I lived in Reno, I used to hear the weather report in Las Vegas in the summertime. And I’d hear a 115 degrees, 118 degrees, and I just thought you, you never could pay me to live here. However, I was fortunate enough to have arrived in Las Vegas in October, which was the very pleasant time of the year. And naturally I was delighted with the winters here, after living in Reno. Because we always had rain and snow and messy weather and it was just really delightful to be here, and fortunately coming—at that time of the year, I had a chance to become rather acclimated the following year before it got so terribly hot. But I found that I really didn’t mind the weather here nearly as much as I had anticipated. Because naturally we have air-conditioned homes, air-conditioned offices and air-conditioned cars. So I never was really out in it that much. So I find that the weather here year round is just really very delightful. You enjoy the climate? Right. Mm-hm. And what about the city itself? Well, as I look back now, my first memories of Las Vegas was really of a, just a small town, you know. Mm-hm. UNLV University Libraries Agnes Gauger 4 It wasn’t really large at all. You might say the Downtown area and just the beginning of a Strip at that time, and a little outlying communities. It just really wasn’t large at all. I can remember like West Charleston as far as that went, was at Decatur; from there on it was just a dirt road, and it was just really a small town. It was very congenial, everyone was very friendly, and even though I came alone and didn’t know anyone here, it was—everyone was just really extremely nice to me. Mm. Mrs. Gauger, now do you remember any of the community affairs, which took place during the years, the early years you were here? Well, I think probably the biggest event that seemed to take the town by storm at that time was the Helldorado. Mm-hm. Ah, events. It was really, just everyone seemed to just really get out and participate and especially the Elks Lodge. They would sell sponsor buttons to all the banks and all the businesses and offices Downtown and if you didn’t wear your Helldorado button you had to pay a fine and you were put in the jail down on Fremont Street. Uh-huh. And your wife had to get down on her knees and beg to get you out. (Laughs) (Laughs) Or you had to pay a fine or bail or what have you and it was always climaxed by dancing in the streets. Mm-hm. And parades, they had about four days of parades like, I think, probably starting about Thursday in the week. It always would end about the middle of May. UNLV University Libraries Agnes Gauger 5 Mm-hm. Was their big climax. Okay. And they’d have parades on Thursday and I think they’d call that the Old-timers Parade. And then on Friday they had some other parade. I can’t remember—oh, ah, I can’t remember now. And then, on Saturday was always the Children’s Parade downtown and children would either be participating in the parade or they’d either be lined up on the sidewalks watching the parade. And then, Sunday was really the big event and this was called the Beauty Parade. And I can remember they had bleacher seats filled up all along Las Vegas, well, it was Fifth Street, then, it was called Fifth Street then. All down Fifth Street, and then down Fremont Street, and Boy Scouts would even sell tickets to have a special seat on these bleachers. So you could watch the parade and get a good view and the hotels at that time all participated, building beautiful floats and having beautiful girls on the floats and it was just really gorgeous. Even if the weather was 110 degrees. (Laughs) (Laughs) It was just, it was really something everyone turned out to see. Mm-hm. However, I think everyone will agree now that it sort of faded away. Yes. It’s not nearly as important and I think a lot of our other activities have taken over. (Unintelligible) The Helldorado. UNLV University Libraries Agnes Gauger 6 That’s true. Well, what about some of the, the big newsmakers, such as presidential visits, do you remember anything like that? Well, I think probably the most outstanding visit that I remember, as far as the presidential visits, since I’ve been here, I’m sure that the various presidents have made stops over here. Yes. Mm-hm. And speeches here. But the one that I remember the most was I believe in the summer of 1963, when President Kennedy visited here and spoke at the Convention Center. Mm-hm. And I was there with my two children and I remember, you know, naturally watching and watching and watching. And the high school bands, they had several high school bands that came and participated and played the traditional songs that they play for a president. And it was that following November that President Kennedy was assassinated and I think probably this is why—his visit to Las Vegas stands out— Mm-mm. So vividly in my mind— Yes. Is because just in a matter, you know, that few months, if I hadn’t of gone, or hadn’t attended his speech at that time, I would never have gotten to see him in person. Yes. Ah, what were some of the industries that helped to build Las Vegas and Southern Nevada? Well, let’s see, at the time I came here, I remember that they were just beginning to have the Nevada Test Site— Mm-hm. UNLV University Libraries Agnes Gauger 7 You know, it was really beginning to boom. And Mercury, Nevada became a regular little old village and there was also the, had expanded and included the Jackass Flats and it helped to build up Indian Springs and I think I believe there’s a naval, not a naval, but an air strip or whatever. (Laughs) Yes. At Indian Springs, also, and the other industry in the area was the Henderson, the Stafford Chemical Plant in Henderson. Yes. Mm-hm. Which provided a great deal of industry for the area and what else was going on at that time? Well, we had the Nellis Air Force Base, which was training fighter pilots and of course there will always be a tourist industry and the gambling. And—but of course we had to have all the others first before we could have the gambling. Because we had to have people to gamble. Mm-hm. I guess that you’ve seen various hotels being built and the gambling industry boom. How do you feel about this? Well, I, course I’m not a gambler but (Laughs) naturally we see it all around us all the time and that is one of our—well, our biggest industry here. Mm-hm. But when I first came here the hotels were built very low on the ground. They never thought of a skyscraper at that time or even sure, probably two or three stories was as high as the hotels were. Because they just thought it was impossible to build out here on the desert to any height at all. And I think the Riviera was the first hotel that went up to nine stories. And that was really fantastic at that time and most all the hotels were like ranch style, they were just spread out all over. And but once the Riviera started going up, first thing we knew the other hotels, as they UNLV University Libraries Agnes Gauger 8 were building or would enlarge, began going up and up and up. And then, there was the competition of who would be the highest hotel. And I can’t really tell you which one is the highest now because it’s gone back and forth. Mm-hm. I remember at one time the Landmark was considered the highest. And—speaking of the Landmark that was really an eyesore for a number of years before it ever got built. And the, I guess the Thunderbird and the El Rancho Vegas and the Desert Inn and The Flamingo. Naturally, The Flamingo was the first big hotel on the Strip and then the others followed. The El Rancho Vegas was really quite an interesting development. They had the main hotel and casino and then they had all the cottages all around it where you could come and just, I guess people would even live there, or just stay for the week or weekend. But a lot of people even lived there and that’s all been torn away. Well, the El Rancho Vegas eventually burned and it was never rebuilt and they’ve destroyed all the beautiful Spanish-type cottages that were all around the area there. In the Downtown area at that time naturally the Golden Nugget was the casino for many, many years. And then there was the Fremont and the Mint and when the hotels first started going up, these two were in competition as to who could become the highest. And I remember the Pioneer Club had the Vegas Vick, oh, he was about, he was a gentleman that says, “Howdy partner.” That stood on the outside of the Pioneer Hotel and would speak to all of the tourists as they’d go up and down the street. And he was quite a popular tourist attraction until the hotel started building upward and having rooms where people were staying Downtown in the room and it’s rumored that they finally had to cease Vegas Vick’s voice because he was interrupting people’s sleep. (Laughs) (Laughs) UNLV University Libraries Agnes Gauger 9 When they would finally get to bed after gambling all night. Ah, could you tell me how the population has grown in this town, you know? Well— Has it increased? At the time I came here I’d say the population in the mid-fifties was probably around oh, thirty thousand. This is why I considered Las Vegas just a small town—even though I’m a small town girl. (Laughs) But it just really seemed to boom considerably and I think probably by the 1960s it had oh grown, it had tripled itself many times. That was probably around the 1960s, I’d say, probably a hundred thousand by then. And as you know, each decade it’s just doubled itself and it’s probably easily three hundred thousand or more now and still rapidly growing. Okay. Do you know of any famous landmarks around the city area that are no longer here because of the progress in this city? Well, I think starting Downtown we could probably mention the Union Pacific Railroad Station. Mm-hm. That was right at the beginning of Fremont Street and that has been torn down and of course we all know that the Union Plaza is there now and which has as part of its motif, the railroad, oh, cabooses and the little cocktail waitresses that run around in their gamby dancer uniform and with— (Unintelligible) And I think another landmark that the old-timers miss is the Cashman Field and the Helldorado Village that used to be down by the Elks Lodge. When I first came here that’s where they held all the rodeos and the fireworks and of course the Cashman Village and Helldorado Village was UNLV University Libraries Agnes Gauger 10 where they had all the entertainment and the rides and everything for the children and the families during the Helldorado and of course any special events, too, that might come. Mm-hm. I know we always watch the Fourth of July fireworks from the Cashman Field. Mm-hm. And when the Convention Center was built this was all done away with. Mm-hm. And we really missed the quaintness from those old, old days. (Laughs) Mm-hm. Now the rodeos are held and circuses are held in the Convention Center, which is very nice. Mm-hm. And air-conditioned and all that. Yes. But it just doesn’t have the same feeling. Right. As in the olden days. I see. Ah, could you tell me how do you feel about the Las Vegas area as far as the families? Do you feel that family-orientated ah, families close, or not as close as they used to be? Well, I think really, the, when the tourists come here naturally all they see is the Strip and the gambling and the shows. Mm-hm. But as you know, you, your family, and our family, I think we leave the everyday life that could be led in any town anywhere in the United States, we have our social activities our educational UNLV University Libraries Agnes Gauger 11 activities and our recreation activities. There’s lots of things nearby. The community has provided places of entertainment for children. I know there was the Dula Community Center that provided a lot of activities for families and growing children. There’s skating rinks, there’s Mount Charleston nearby, for picnics in the summer and, well, that’s when we enjoy the most, when we can get away from the heat, for a while. Right. And there’s Kyle Canyon in the winter. For skiing, course the winter it’s sort of been a disaster, because we haven’t had any snow. But—and people that do want to go a little bit further and go up like to Brian Head in Utah. But we do have the boating and the skiing at Lake Mead. I have gone fishing there and I’ve tried my luck at waterskiing. (Laughs) But I soon gave that up. And we have oh a number of golf courses here for people who like to golf. Mm-hm. We have our community—our municipal golf courses, as well as, every hotel, not every hotel, but most of the hotels here have their own golf courses and there’s numerous churches here of every faith. And people, like I said, people that come here just for a week and probably don’t even realize that we have such an active community life here. And of course we have our movies and bowling and any recreation we could just enjoy anywhere else and have your close knit family and community life. Okay. As far as personal recreation, you find that everything, you know, you like to do for recreation is here, available to you? Well, I think so. When you’re a working person, naturally, you’re not going to have a lot of time to partake in a lot of outside activities. But I do go bowling and I have fished on Lake Mead and caught my limit a time or two. (Laughs) And of course we have nearby Hoover Dam, which is a UNLV University Libraries Agnes Gauger 12 marvelous attraction. And even though I’ve been there a number of times when we have out of town guests, we always have to take them to see Boulder Dam or Hoover Dam, which is one of the Seven Wonders of the World. Yes. Mm-hm. And have been at the Lake Mead Marina and we even take a little farther trip and visit our famous London Bridge at Havasu, Arizona. Course this isn’t giving Las Vegas any credit but it is one of the things that we have found that our out of town guests do enjoy and we even take in Death Valley and Scotty’s Castle, which is another wonder, too, in the middle of the desert. Anyone could have even survived and built such a— Right. Marvelous edifice as Scotty’s Castle. Mm. Yes. Okay. Could you tell me how some of the streets have changed perhaps like of the main roads. Well, when I first came here I did live in the Huntridge area and there the streets are just extremely narrow. You can’t even park on the side of the street and have room to traverse down the street and um, I even questioned this at one time, and the answer was that those homes were built during World War II to provide homes for families here during the war and they never expected Las Vegas to ever even grow to what it, to the proportion that it has today. So they never expected really to, just for that just more or like temporary residences. And they have in the meantime widened Maryland Parkway and I don’t believe Maryland Parkway was known as Maryland Parkway at that time. And I can’t remember the name of it now but Maryland Parkway has been widened extremely to provide cross town traffic, north and south. And the Fifth Street, which went through Las Vegas and out to the Strip, has been worked on a number of times and UNLV University Libraries Agnes Gauger 13 widened hopefully for the last time. Because they can’t (Laughs) go anywhere else, and that is now known as Las Vegas Boulevard South and of course north going towards North Las Vegas. And I remember that the street going east and west by the Sahara Hotel at that time was known as San Francisco Avenue. Mm. And it has been changed to Sahara Avenue. Mm-hm. And the street that went east and west at the Tropicana Hotel used to be known as Bond Avenue, which was named from one of the old pioneers. Mm-hm. Here in Las Vegas, and there was quite a battle (Laughs) when that street came up to be changed. Because many of the people who lived here didn’t feel that, that pioneer spirit should be taken away from us. Mm-hm. And however the resort industry won over and it was named Tropicana Avenue. I see. Mrs. Gauger do you remember anything about the early above ground atomic tests? Ah, yes. I can remember when they were first, I think the very first one that they had scheduled, it was, everyone was really quite oh, anxious about it. We even would set our alarm clocks so that we could wake up early in the morning in time to get outside and watch the skyline to see if we could see the glow from it and of course we could really feel the—well, quite often they’d have to be postponed because the wind wasn’t right. And they didn’t want it to carry the radioactive material through the air. So sometimes we’d be setting our alarm (Laughs) morning after morning after morning just to try and be a part of the aboveground explosions. UNLV University Libraries Agnes Gauger 14 Mm-hm. And you could really feel quite a tremor. Mm-hm. From here—all the way out there. I really felt sorry for the people that lived closer like in Beatty. Mm. Yes. People had to evacuate the buildings and etcetera, for it, and—but it was really quite a highlight at that time. Then it got—as they continued it got to be old stuff. Mm-hm. And we really didn’t think too much about it. Right. Did you ever feel any trembles out at your own home? Mm-hm. Yes? Oh yes. Did you ever have any damage done or? No. I don’t think so, really, no. Are you familiar at all with the influence that Howard Hughes has had upon Las Vegas? Well, I really haven’t been too familiar with his holdings here. However, I think probably in my work I was associated quite a bit with the hotels. Because our revenue does come from the hotels, in the insurance industry, where I work. But I think it was probably in about oh 1967, ’68, somewhere in there, when Howard Hughes probably came to Las Vegas and I’m sure that there are several stories (unintelligible) on how he did arrive in Las Vegas in Hughes’s usual secretive way. And the one that I’m most familiar with was that he arrived, I think it was by train and the train stopped out in the desert and was met by an ambulance and the ambulance transported him UNLV University Libraries Agnes Gauger 15 to the Desert Inn Hotel and the story goes that a person was transported into the hotel on a stretcher and of course everyone’s attention was directed to the stretcher and everyone knew that Howard Hughes was coming to town. So they were thinking, “That there is Howard Hughes. That’s Howard Hughes.” But supposedly, while all the attention was being directed to the Bonnie Bean rode in on the stretcher (unintelligible) person (Laughs) Howard Hughes supposedly strolled in himself and into the elevator and up to his suite without being noticed at all. And how much this is true I don’t really know but that (Laughs) that’s my version of it. Mm-hm. But I know that he did cause a great deal of concern in the city and the state. Because he started buying up various hotels and taking over the gambling and it was thought for a while that he might try to monopolize. Mm-hm. The entire gambling in the city of Las Vegas and possibly with his money it would have been—he could have done it. But I’m sure that the Gaming Commission stepped in, when they felt it appropriate. Right. I see. And prohibited his, you know, really taking over. He lived at the Desert Inn I know for quite a while and he was supposedly to be evicted from the Desert Inn. And he just wasn’t about ready to move. So he went out and bought the hotel and then from there— (Tape ends) This is a side two of the interview with Mrs. Agnes Gauger, ah, for Nevada History class at the University of Nevada Las Vegas. The date is February 24th, 1977. Mrs. Gauger, would you like to talk about Howard Hughes some more? UNLV University Libraries Agnes Gauger 16 Well, (Laughs) now that he’s um, dead and gone, there’s really as much discussion inferior going on as there ever was, especially about his will. And of course, no one ever saw him when he was here or it was at least very few people did and—but he’s just as much (unintelligible) now, with all of the discussion going on as he ever was before and when he was living so secretively. And I think there’s probably been thirty-eight or so wills produced and of course everyone is saying they’re all frauds. Because they felt the (unintelligible) corporation is really holding the legal will. Mm-hm. And no one can understand why it is not being brought forth. Mm-hm. And—however, we had, our family had an amazing incident from the—one of the wills that was produced. My husband is a cab driver and he drives for Yellow Cab and some cab driver here in town, I’m not sure which company it was but also produced a will, which he said he’d found under the seat of his cab and in this will it left all of the cab drivers in Las Vegas I think a thousand dollars. Mm-hm. So, I don’t even remember now what it was but we really did get a laugh out of that. Oh yes. Now whether he’ll be—whether this stickler cab driver will be punished later for producing a fraudulent will or not, we don’t know. Mm-hm. But it’s really been quite amusing—and we probably, I don’t know if we’ll ever even see the final settle—settlement. UNLV University Libraries Agnes Gauger 17 Mm-hm. Of the will, and what it will do to the economic conditions of Las Vegas, well, it will be left to be seen. But I don’t really, I don’t know, I don’t really feel it will hurt really because hotels are changing hands constantly and someone will, if the (unintelligible) head all the operations I’m sure someone— Mm-hm. Yes. Else will be willing to take over and carry on. And (unintelligible) okay. Ah, what type of housing is available in the Las Vegas area? Well, I believe really you could have just about any type of home to retire here. Because of our mild winters. Mm-hm. You don’t have to worry too much about any particular type of home. The insulation is—of course has to be adequate for the heat in the summer as well as the comfort in the winter. But many of our people that have lived here I know for many, many years, they’ve been ready to retire and I find that they’re going into the economy in which it relieves them of upkeep and working in the yard. Mm-hm. And having to worry about the watering and the lawn mowing and trimming the shrubbery and etcetera and also the mobile home parks are becoming a great way of life here. And we really do have some lovely, lovely parks, and they provide great conveniences for the retiring people. They have their clubhouses which have the recreational facility, a pool and you could probably, you know, have dancing parties or wedding receptions, whatever, in your recreation rooms. They UNLV University Libraries Agnes Gauger 18 have tennis courts and sauna baths, laundry facilities and it’s just, they’re just really lovely places for— Mm-hm. People that don’t want to have to be out a lot. (Unintelligible) They do have to maintain your own space and keep it attractive and within the requirements of the— Mm-hm. The park that they’re in. And most parks I think will probably allow you to have one pet. Mm-hm. This is what I’ve heard but— I see. But some parks probably would exclude pets altogether and I do know that there are parks that are divided. They have like adult housing. Mm-hm. Or areas where people, older people don’t want to be bothered with the noise of children, playing outside or running up and down the streets. Right. And have to be worried about you know, striking a child when you’re driving through the park. And then, other parks are exclusively for children. But most of the more modern parks are strictly adults, I believe. Because it is provided for the retired. Yes. I see. Mm-hm. UNLV University Libraries Agnes Gauger 19 Retirement people. And we even have some of our people that have their cabins up at Mt. Charleston. Oh. And they like to commute back and forth, and—cause they evidently like the trees and the rocks and the mountains and the (unintelligible) Mm-hm. Of the country life. Okay. And they do have some lovely cabins up there too. (Laughs) Oh, I bet. Aright. Since coming to Las Vegas have you just lived in residential homes or apartments or? I did live in an apartment for a while. However, I prefer a home. Mm-hm. I don’t think I’ll ever be one of those that’ll retire to a mobile home. No. (Laughs) Or even a condominium. We even have our own garden space in our backyard Uh-huh. And it’s really nice to enjoy your own— Yes. Vegetables in the summer. Even though, I don’t know what the water situations going to be this year. Ah, I was wondering, could you tell me something about the McCarren International Airport? UNLV University Libraries Agnes Gauger 20 Okay. The airport was really very small in the beginning. It was the old McCarran Airport. Mm-hm. Out on the—I guess it would be the Los Angeles Highway, just out past the Hacienda Hotel. And of course, that’s our—as people traveled in and out of Las Vegas more and our traffic became international and of course growing more into a convention city, we needed a larger airport and it was moved over onto, well, just off of Paradise, out past, hmm, I guess the Tropicana. And you now it (Laughs) took a while for me to get used to having a new airport. And a couple times I found myself trying to depart from the old one without realizing we’ve made the change. ‘Cause I don’t travel that often and they had made the change just right under my nose. But even already they have expanded and enlarged the new airport, but even already we’re needing more space for the bigger planes that are coming in and the more advanced travel and more people that are using the air travel as their new transportation. And I think that it’ll probably be very shortly that we will be having to continue to enlarge. Mm-hm. But we do have a beautiful facility here and I know that we are very proud of it. But the old, I would like to mention, too, that the old airport is still in operation for people who have their private planes and they park from there and they also they have the scenic tours. Planes who belong to the scenic tourists that provide flights over Grand Canyon or to Grand Canyon. Mm-hm. You can either just fly over the area and view it or you can take an all day trip and go to Grand Canyon, land there and have a guided tour. Mm-hm. And lunch and I think sometimes we even have champagne flights. UNLV University Libraries Agnes Gauger 21 (Laughs) (Laughs) But that is really—I know of people who have taken this flight and they say it’s the best money they ever spent. Mm. They simply do have beautiful scenery. And this is on Scenic Airlines? Mm-hm. Okay. Mm-hm. And just, they have a lovely restaurant out there, too. We even like to just go out and have lunch. Okay. Mm-hm. And watch the planes, the small planes take off and come in and you can also view the new McCarran Airport just across the way and watch the big planes coming and take off. And can you remember the amount of people,