Oral history interview with Ronnie Bank conducted by Lael Byrd on November 30, 2014 for the African Americans in Las Vegas: a Collaborative Oral History Project. In this interview, Bank discusses his personal history and growing up in Las Vegas, Nevada. He talks about his employment at the Las Vegas Hilton (currently Westgate Las Vegas Resort and Casino) and Circus Circus Hotel and Casino. Bank then describes nightlife and entertainment on the Strip in the 1980s, discrimination at night clubs, and West Las Vegas entertainment. He goes on to describe the riots following Rodney King’s death, the challenges with interracial relationships, and why families began moving away from the Westside. Lastly, Bank discusses working as a disc jockey (DJ) in Las Vegas, African American radio stations, and the development of the Westside.
Archival Collection
Oral history interview with Stan Armstrong conducted by Megan Laub on December 02, 2014 for the African Americans in Las Vegas: a Collaborative Oral History Project. In this interview, Armstrong discusses his childhood in West Las Vegas, Nevada and describes the neighborhood where he grew up. Armstrong recalls Westside businesses, nightlife, and entertainment that existed on Jackson Street. He then talks about his educational experiences, the racial segregation of schools at the time, and his employment at various stores on the Westside as a teenager. Later, Armstrong discusses the riots that erupted on the Westside in 1969 and shares how it affected the community. He goes on to recall riots that took place at Rancho High School while he was a student there. Lastly, Armstrong talks about his career as a filmmaker and professor at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas (UNLV).
Archival Collection
Oral history interview with Celesta Lowe conducted by Patrick Carlton on February 6, 2002 for the Las Vegas Rotary Club Oral History Project. Lowe begins by discussing her early life in Baker, California and her father’s role as a station agent for the Tonopah Tidewater Railroad during the 1920s and 1930s. Lowe then describes her family moving to Las Vegas, Nevada in the 1940s. Lowe chronicles the process state legislatures took to open Nevada Southern University in 1957 and her role as an administrative assistant in the main office of the school. Lowe recounts her career at Nevada Southern University, the expansion of the campus, and renaming it University of Nevada, Las Vegas. Lastly, Lowe talks about her switch from an administrative assistant to a librarian at UNLV.
Archival Collection
Oral history interview with Lovell Gaines conducted by Claytee D. White on July 01, 2009 for the African Americans in Las Vegas: a Collaborative Oral History Project. In this interview Lovell Gaines discusses his involvement with the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP), becoming president for the Las Vegas, Nevada chapter in 1980, segregation, Freedom Fund banquets, national conventions, police brutality, and housing issues in Las Vegas.
Archival Collection
Oral history interview with Steve Evans conducted by Claytee D. White on June 15, 2010 for the Voices of the Historic John S. Park neighborhood Oral History Project. In this interview Steve Evans discusses living in Henderson, Nevada and owning a home previously owned by Las Vegas assembly person Flora Dugan, who was a mentor of his. He then talks about his efforts to recover information about his John S. Park home. He also talks about the thriving commerce of Fremont Street shifting to Maryland Parkway, the beginning of the Arts District, and the impact of events on the John S. Park neighborhood sense of community.
Archival Collection
Oral history interview with Felicia Campbell conducted by Kendra Gage on June 28, 2012 for the Boyer Early Las Vegas Oral History Project. In this interview, Campbell discusses her career in education and her advocacy for equal pay for women employees of the University of Nevada, Las Vegas. She begins by briefly discussing her family history and her education before moving to Las Vegas, Nevada in 1962 to take a professorship at the newly established University of Nevada, Las Vegas. Campbell describes discovering the disparities between the salaries of female professors and male professors, organizing the women faculty on campus, establishing the Women's Caucus, and the litigation she faced from the University of Nevada, Las Vegas. Campbell also talks about her travels, other issues as they relate to labor and women's rights, and founding the first chapter of the National Organization of Women (NOW) in Las Vegas.
Archival Collection
Oral history interview with John McKay conducted by Donna Malloy on March 03, 1980 for the Ralph Roske Oral History Project on Early Las Vegas. In this interview, McKay talks about his experiences living in Las Vegas, Nevada since the 1950s. McKay begins by speaking about his family history, his career in the electronics and engineering field for aerospace, as well as his experiences in two wars. Moreover, McKay speaks about his hobbies of hunting and fishing and his time as a musician around Las Vegas. McKay also spends time going over how the city of Las Vegas has grown and changed, the increase in crime, and the extreme floods in the 1950s. Lastly, McKay talks about the Nuclear Test Site, how casino gaming chips were used as money around the city, how the city of Las Vegas started and the future of the valley. Digital audio and transcript available.
Archival Collection
Oral history interview with Louise Riley conducted by Bryan Neel on March 27, 1979 for the Ralph Roske Oral History Project on Early Las Vegas. In this interview, Riley discusses her life after moving to Boulder City, Nevada in 1946, and later moving to Las Vegas, Nevada. Riley describes dates with her husband on the Las Vegas Strip, which included visiting clubs or watching Liberace perform. Riley also discusses her husband's job as an accountant at the Hoover (Boulder) Dam, as well as briefly discussing her experiences viewing nuclear weapons tests.
Archival Collection
Oral history interview with Juliana Urtubey conducted by Nathalie Martinez and Barbara Tabach on May 24, 2021 for the Latinx Voices of Southern Nevada Oral History Project.
Born in Colombia, Julia was able to immigrate with her family to the United States when she was six years old. The family lived in Chicago, Illinois and later in Phoenix, Arizona. Juliana moved to Las Vegas in 2013 and taught learners with special education needs at the elementary level. In 2021, she was named the National Teacher of the Year, the first Latina and the only Nevadan to ever hold the distinction. Juliana personally received the award from Dr. Jill Biden.
Subjects discussed include: Colombia, Chicago, Illinois, National Teacher of the Year, and bilingual education.
Archival Collection