Abstract
The El Rancho Vegas Collection (1953-1961) is comprised of materials and memorabilia from the El Rancho Vegas Hotel collected by former hotel controller, Frank Watts. Records include financial documents including endorsed checks to performers at the resort. Other items included unused stationary, copies of the menu, and memorabilia from the hotel. The collection also contains a bathmat, hangers, and a drinking glass from the hotel.
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Scope and Contents Note
The El Rancho Vegas Collection (1953-1961) is comprised of materials and memorabilia from the El Rancho Vegas Hotel collected by former hotel controller, Frank Watts. Records include financial documents including endorsed checks to performers at the resort. Other items included unused stationary, copies of the menu, and memorabilia from the hotel. The collection also contains a bathmat, hangers, and a drinking glass from the hotel.
Publication Rights
Collection is open for research.
Materials in this collection may be protected by copyrights and other rights. See Reproductions and Use on the UNLV Special Collections website for more information about reproductions and permissions to publish.
Arrangement
Materials are arranged by format.
Biographical / Historical Note
The El Rancho Vegas opened in 1941 on Highway 91 (now Las Vegas Boulevard) as the first casino resort on what would become the Las Vegas Strip in Las Vegas, Nevada. Thomas Hull, encouraged by Las Vegas businessman and booster James Cashman, built the El Rancho. Hull had previously built El Rancho motor hotels in Sacramento and Fresno, California. He purchased a parcel of land near the intersection of what is now Sahara Avenue and Las Vegas Boulevard and hired the architectural firm of McAllister and McAllister to design the resort. The El Rancho Vegas opened on April 3, 1941 and featured a showroom, cocktail lounge, casino, steakhouse, and a few stores. Guests stayed in bungalows surrounding the main building.
The resort changed ownership several times in the 1940s before Beldon Katleman took ownership in 1947. Katleman updated the El Rancho Vegas to keep pace with newer Las Vegas resorts such as the Flamingo. He added 220 hotel rooms to the resort and continued to book world class entertainment. On June 17, 1960 the main building of the El Rancho caught fire and was a total loss. The El Rancho Vegas never reopened.
Source:
Burbank, Jeff. "The El Rancho Vegas."
Preferred Citation
El Rancho Vegas Collection, 1953-1961. MS-00194. Special Collections, University Libraries, University of Nevada, Las Vegas. Las Vegas, Nevada.
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Acquisition Note
Materials were donated in 1978 by Frank Watts; accession numbers T120 and 78-100.
Processing Note
Materials were processed by Special Collections staff.
In 2015, as part of a legacy finding aid conversion project, Angela Moor revised and enhanced the collection description to bring it into compliance with current professional standards. In 2017 Joyce Moore added materials and updated the ArchivesSpace finding aid.
Administrative Information
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Separated Materials
Some of the materials in this acquisition were removed from the collection and placed in Promotional and Publicity Material: El Rancho Vegas. HD9999.G254 E45x 1943 Special Collections, University Libraries, University of Nevada, Las Vegas. Las Vegas, Nevada.