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J.W. (John) Campbell oral history interview

Identifier

OH-00327

Abstract

Oral history interview with J.W. (John) Campbell (born June 13, 1918 in Pioche, Nevada) conducted by Raymond Haft on February 19, 1979 for the Ralph Roske Oral History Project on Early Las Vegas. This interview covers the history of Nevada, including Mr. Campbell’s personal history. He discusses the Stewart Ranch, the Mormon Fort, swimming pools in Las Vegas, Nevada, and the above ground atomic tests. He also discusses the crash of Carole Lombard’s plane and the building of the Basic Magnesium Plant in Henderson, Nevada.

Archival Collection

Louis La Porta oral history interview

Identifier

OH-02890

Abstract

Oral history interview with Louis La Porta conducted by Stefani Evans and Claytee D. White on November 4, 2016 for the Building Las Vegas Oral History Project. La Porta first discusses arriving at Las Vegas Air Force Base in 1944 and going to work at the Basic Magnesium plant, which soon closed down. He then talks about how he and his wife became involved in the growth of Henderson, Nevada. La Porta also recalls his service for two terms on the first Henderson city council (1954-1960) and then serving on the Clark County Commission (1960-1969).

Archival Collection

Thalia Dondero oral history interview

Identifier

OH-00478

Abstract

Oral history interview with Thalia Dondero conducted by Claytee D. White on 2014 March 6 and April 2 for the Boyer Early Las Vegas Oral History Project. In her interview Dondero discusses community organizing in early Las Vegas, Nevada during the 1960s. Dondero also talks about her time in the state legislature.

Archival Collection

Helen Mott Cecil oral history interview

Identifier

OH-00356

Abstract

Oral history interview with Helen Mott Cecil conducted by Claytee D. White on April 24, 2007 for the Boyer Early Las Vegas Oral History Project. Helen Mott Cecil discusses growing up in Las Vegas, Nevada on the Westside, including seeing the Helldorado parades and Hoover (Boulder Dam). She also discusses working for Farmers Home Association and in the medical care and entertainment industry during the 1930s. She then discusses her divorce and other topics like the atomic bomb testing, the bus system, and downtown Las Vegas.

Archival Collection

Betty Kramer oral history interview

Identifier

OH-03259

Abstract

Oral history interview with Betty Kramer conducted by Kathy Wheat on March 02, 1973 for the Ralph Roske Oral History Project on Early Las Vegas. Kramer talks about the development of Henderson, Nevada and shares the significance of the Basic Magnesium Inc. (BMI) to the Las Vegas, Nevada community. Kramer also talks about the societal change in Las Vegas, Nevada when gambling became legal, and the growth of the city at large.

Archival Collection

Joan Swift oral history interviews

Identifier

OH-01796

Abstract

Oral history interviews with Joan Swift conducted by Sue Peterson on March 18, 2004, March 25, 2004, and June 22, 2004 for the Boyer Early Las Vegas Oral History Project. In this interview, Swift discusses life in Las Vegas, Nevada during the 1940s and 1950s. Swift begins the interview by describing her upbringing in the Basic townsite and Boulder City, Nevada, attending Basic High School, and life in Southern Nevada during World War II. She then discusses working in the Clark County Recorder's office, explaining her job duties and what function the office served for the county. Swift continues, talking about recreation activities at the time, including visiting the casinos on the Las Vegas Strip and the Helldorado Parades. Swift discusses nuclear weapons testing at the Nevada Test Site and her career as the Clark County recorder. Lastly, she describes her thoughts on the future of Las Vegas, Nevada.

Archival Collection

Jennilee Thayer oral history interview

Identifier

OH-02631

Abstract

Oral history interview with Jennilee Thayer conducted by Claytee D. White on August 12, 2009 for the Boyer Early Las Vegas Oral History Project. In this interview, Thayer discusses arriving to Las Vegas, Nevada in 1936 when it was still a mining town. She describes early Henderson, Nevada, attending Basic High School, and recalls her father’s employment at the Basic Magnesium Plant. Lastly, Thayer discusses her employment in show production, atomic bomb testing, and changes in Las Vegas.

Archival Collection

Victor Kunkel Photograph Collection

Identifier

PH-00072

Abstract

The Victor Kunkel Photograph Collection (approximately 1890-1943) consists of black-and-white photographic prints and negatives, dating primarily between 1940 and 1943. The majority of the images depict the construction of Basic Magnesium, Inc. (BMI), in Henderson, Nevada; the remaining images depict a variety of locations and events in Kunkel's birthplace, Winslow, Arizona.

Archival Collection

Coleen York Wilson oral history interview

Identifier

OH-03272

Abstract

Oral history interview with Coleen York Wilson conducted by Claytee D. White on June 4, 1996 for the African Americans in Las Vegas: a Collaborative Oral History Project. In this interview, Wilson talks about growing up in Fordyce, Arkansas before moving to Las Vegas, Nevada in 1953 at the age of eighteen. She mentions that her parents had moved to Nevada in 1940 to work at Basic Magnesium, Incorporated (BMI), living in a trailer before returning to Fordyce two years later. She then discusses moving to Las Vegas to join an older sister and relates that she did not remember any discrimination in seating or eating meals during her bus trip. After this, Wilson lists the jobs she held in Las Vegas before her retirement in 1984, including work at the Las Vegas Cleaners, serving as a school crossing guard, and working as a housekeeping supervisor at the Stardust Resort Hotel, the Hacienda Resort Hotel, and Circus Circus Hotel and Casino before taking a job at the Nevada Test Site. She also talks about her family, her church activities, and her regret at not attending college.

Archival Collection

Judith L. Hamblin oral history interview

Identifier

OH-00775

Abstract

Oral history interview with Judith L. Hamblin conducted by Margaret Stambro on March 30, 1976 for the Ralph Roske Oral History Project on Early Las Vegas. Hamblin covers the history of Henderson, Nevada, local schools, teachers, and Helldorado. Hamblin also discusses her fondness for Lake Mead, the Basic Magnesium Plant, Nellis Air Force Base, and the early aboveground atomic blasts.

Archival Collection