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John Grayson oral history interview
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Oral history interview with John Grayson conducted by Elizabeth N. Patrick on May 23, 1983 for the Ralph Roske Oral History Project on Early Las Vegas. The interview covers Grayson’s experience with gaming in Arizona, California, and Nevada. Also present during John Grayson’s interview is Billy H. Gray, a longtime gaming associate of his, who helps Grayson go into greater detail about key events.
Archival Collection
DeRuyter Butler oral history interview
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Oral history interview with DeRuyter O. Butler conducted by Stefani Evans and Claytee D. White on September 15, 2016 for the Building Las Vegas Oral History Project. Butler begins with discussing his early life and joining Steve Wynn's Atlandia Design in Atlantic City, New Jersey in 1982. He then talks about moving to Las Vegas, Nevada in 1986. The interview focuses on the design and development of various Las Vegas casinos.
Archival Collection
John H. Pappas oral history interview
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Oral history interview with John H. Pappas conducted by James Greene on October 04, 1974 for the Ralph Roske Oral History Project on Early Las Vegas. In this interview, Pappas describes coming to the United States during the early twentieth century, eventually making his way to Nevada in 1904. Pappas discusses working for the San Pedro, Los Angeles & Salt Lake Railroad Company helping to build the railroad from Caliente, Nevada to Las Vegas, Nevada. Pappas later discusses leaving Nevada, then returning to help build the Hoover (Boulder) Dam, before leaving due to the extreme heat. Pappas describes his personal history in Las Vegas, the city's changes, and opening his own restaurant.
Archival Collection
Charlotte M. Kelly oral history interview
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Oral history interview with Charlotte M. Kelly conducted by Terri Lynn Truesdell on April 4, 1976 for the Ralph Roske Oral History Project on Early Las Vegas. Kelly discusses local history that she experienced as well as her reasons for moving to Las Vegas, Nevada. She also talks about Las Vegas' population growth and Nellis Air Force Base.
Archival Collection
M. Jeri Rarick oral history interview
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Oral history interview with M. Jeri Rarick conducted by Richard J. Travers on March 06, 1975 for the Ralph Roske Oral History Project on Early Las Vegas. In this interview, Rarick discusses moving to Boulder City, Nevada with her family in 1931. Rarick goes on to discuss settling in Las Vegas, Nevada as a young adult. Rarick discusses her experiences in Las Vegas including her various jobs, ranging from waitress to Union Pacific dispatcher.
Archival Collection
Rick Tilman oral history interview
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Oral history interview with Rick Tilman conducted by Nicholas Christie on February 28, 1979 for the Ralph Roske Oral History Project on Early Las Vegas. In this interview, Tilman discusses his personal history and his educational background. Tilman then describes changes in Las Vegas, Nevada and how gambling helped the Las Vegas economy grow. He later recalls atomic bomb testing, local politics, and the rise of crime throughout Las Vegas.
Archival Collection
Jonce T. Clement oral history interview
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Oral history interview with Jonce T. Clement conducted by Terrance L. Fairchild on March 07, 1975 for the Ralph Roske Oral History Project on Early Las Vegas. Clement discusses social and economic changes in Las Vegas, Nevada. Clement then shares the development of the Las Vegas Strip and the first casinos to begin operating.
Archival Collection
John Edmond oral history interview
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Oral history interviews with John Edmond conducted by Claytee D. White on February 19 and 25, 2013 for the African Americans in Las Vegas: a Collaborative Oral History Project. Edmond discusses his family history in Tallulah, Louisiana and moving to Las Vegas, Nevada before Basic Magnesium, Inc. drew many African Americans to the region. He recalls working as a young boy at the local bowling alley and later attending college in Seattle, Washington. After college, Edmond returned to Las Vegas and became the first Black baccarat dealer at the Stardust Hotel working for Frank Rosenthal. He discusses later owning the largest shopping center in the city.
Archival Collection
Kaweeda Adams oral history interview
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Oral history interview with Kaweeda Adams conducted by Kim Kershaw on March 05, 2004 for the Public School Principalship Oral History Project. In this interview, Adams reflects upon her career as a teacher in Louisiana from the 1980s to the 1990s, and as a teacher and administrator with Nevada’s Clark County School District (CCSD) from the 1990s to the early 2000s. She discusses her upbringing, and how her upbringing influenced her pursuit of education. She describes the process by which she became a teacher and eventually administrator, and compares her experiences working in Louisiana and Nevada. She discusses how these experiences shaped her philosophy of education, as well as changes that she has observed in the students over time. She describes her regular job duties, as well as challenges that she faced as a school administrator such as teacher dismissal and evaluations.
Archival Collection
Bill Richardson oral history interview
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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