Oral history interview with Helen E. La Plant conducted by Claytee D. White on October 08, 2003 for the Boyer Early Las Vegas Oral History Project. La Plant begins by discussing her early life in Minneapolis, Minnesota during the 1920s and 1930s and joining the United States Army at the age of twenty-one. La Plant then describes serving in Okinawa, Japan after World War II as a photographer for the Signal Corps. La Plant describes her return from Japan and decision to attend photography school in New York City, New York. La Plant then chronicles her experiences moving to Las Vegas, Nevada in the late 1950s to work at the Nevada Test Site as a photographer. She then recounts the shift from aboveground atomic testing to underground testing and her role as head of the photography department at the Nevada Test Site. Lastly, La Plant talks about entertainment during the 1960s in Las Vegas.
Archival Collection
Archival Collection
Oral history interview with Susanne E. Morrow conducted by Dennis McBride on September 29, 2000 for the Las Vegas Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual and Transgender Archives Oral History Project. Morrow begins by discussing her childhood in a military family, her marriage and children, and her move to Genoa, Nevada in 1961. She then talks about her move to Carson City, Nevada in 1962 and her twenty-nine year career as a journalist and city editor for the Nevada Appeal newspaper. The remainder of the interview focuses on Morrow's memories of the 1965 assault on then Chief Justice of the Nevada Supreme Court, Frank McManee, and the subsequent judicial actions and court decisions that reflected attitudes toward homosexuality prevalent in society at the time.
Archival Collection
Oral history interview with Bill Richardson conducted by Gretchen Schroeder on May 10, 2008 for the History of Blue Diamond Village in Nevada Oral History Project. In this interview, Richardson discusses living in Nelson, Nevada and later moving to Blue Diamond Village, Nevada where his father worked in the mines. He describes education in the Village and the homes that were built there. Later, Richardson talks about his father’s lumberyard, which received lumber from Mount Charleston, and Las Vegas, Nevada in the 1940s. Lastly, he describes his employment at the Nevada Test Site as a forklift operator.
Archival Collection
Oral history interview with Charles Rozaire conducted by Claytee D. White on November 25, 2013 for the Boyer Early Las Vegas Oral History Project. Rozaire begins by giving a comprehensive family history, discussing family who have lived in Virginia City, Nevada, his grandfather that lived in Canada who moved to Los Angeles, California to pursue a career as a painter, and explaining how his mother and father met. He continues, describing his upbringing in California and attending University of California, Los Angeles to pursue a degree in anthropology based off of his interest in Native American history. He also talks about his work as an assistant with the Southwest Museum of the American Indian. Rozaire then discusses his participation in the archaeological studies done in Tule Springs, Nevada during the 1950s. Helen Mortenson, Stephen M. Rowland, Claude N. Warren, and Elizabeth Warren were also present during the interview.
Archival Collection
Oral history interview with Oscar Schwartz conducted by Claytee D. White on January 25, 2013 for the Boyer Early Las Vegas Oral History Project. In this interview, Schwartz discusses his personal history and life in Las Vegas, Nevada during the 1980s. Schwartz describes being a casino dealer before becoming a comedy magician and the transition of ownership of casinos from organized crime to corporations. He talks about his career in property and real estate appraisal in Las Vegas and the methods he would use to determine the value of different possessions and estates. Schwartz also discusses his opinion on the spending of the University of Nevada, Las Vegas on a new stadium, the development east of Fremont Street, and casinos wanting to build Ferris wheels.
Archival Collection
Oral history interview with Mozella Sheds Scott conducted by Claytee D. White on November 30, 2010 for the Boyer Early Las Vegas Oral History Project. Scott discusses her childhood in Friars Point, Mississippi, and aspects of rural life. She then described moving to Las Vegas, Nevada in 1965 and taking a job as a laundry presser and distributor. Scott compares life in Mississippi to the Westside of Las Vegas, describing the Bonanza Village area, employment of the black population, and churches in the area. She also discusses her employment while attending Nevada Southern University, now University of Nevada, Las Vegas, as well as her first position in education and libraries. Additionally, Scott discusses racial discrimination her husband faced in his job at a titanium plant. She concludes by describing her work to improve literacy and education in her community with organizations including, Upward Bound, Community Adult Learning in Libraries (CALL), Parent-In-Charge, and Word on a Rock.
Archival Collection
Oral history interview with Sarah Serna conducted by Dennis McBride on December 04, 1998 for the Las Vegas Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual and Transgender Archives Oral History Project. Serna opens her interview by discussing her move to Las Vegas, Nevada in 1993, and her first assignment as a Methodist minister to a small congregation in North Las Vegas. Serna then explains how she became involved in LGBT social justice issues after witnessing expressions of homophobia and prejudice within her church. She discusses her involvement with the Las Vegas LGBT community and the development of a pastoral care outreach program, the development of the World AIDS Day prayer vigil, and the foundation of the Community Counseling Center, later renamed Lighthouse Ministry. Serna then talks about her decision to transition from the Methodist Church to the Episcopalian Church and becoming the first Episcopalian priest in Las Vegas to bless same-sex marriages. She also discusses the development of a transitional housing program, changes in the LGBT community in Las Vegas, and many individuals involved in LGBT social justice programs in Las Vegas.
Archival Collection