Oral history interview with Larry Henley conducted by Laura Plowman on May 23, 2007 for the UNLV @ 50 Oral History Project. In this interview Larry Henley discusses moving to Las Vegas, Nevada, attending the University of Nevada, Las Vegas, working at UNLV as a stagehand, getting a professional staff position in 1988, and about working as the director of artistic programming and production at the UNLV Performing Arts Center.
Archival Collection
Oral history interview with Walter V. Long conducted by Patricia Truman on October 19, 1972 for the Ralph Roske Oral History Project on Early Las Vegas. In the interview, Long discusses early buildings and communities around Las Vegas High School, as well as his experiences as a teacher and principal in Las Vegas, Nevada. Long also discusses his early life before coming to Las Vegas, family, education, politics, Boulder (Hoover) Dam, and the Old Las Vegas Mormon Fort.
Archival Collection
Oral history interview with Carl F. Kelley conducted by James M. Greene on May 02, 1972 for the Ralph Roske Oral History Project on Early Las Vegas. Kelley discusses moving to Nevada and describes living in Boulder City, Nevada, Las Vegas, Nevada and Henderson, Nevada. The interview concludes with an in-depth discussion of the Civilian Conservation Corps activities in Boulder City.
Archival Collection
Oral history interview with Lorraine Longhi conducted by Stefani Evans on March 31, 2023 for the Reflections: the Las Vegas Asian American and Pacific Islander Oral History Project. Longhi recalls growing up in Las Vegas, Nevada through eigth grade until she moved to Arizona. After graduating from high school and Arizona State University's Walter Cronkite School of Journalism & Mass Communication, Longhi worked for the Arizona Republic newspaper, where she covered education and city government. Longhi identifes as mixed race and speaks of a Las Vegas childhood punctuated with annual visits to her father's family in Yonkers, New York, and her mother's Taiwanese family in Taipei. In this interview, she discusses favorite Taiwanese and Italian foods she remembers from her childhood, and memories of cultural festivals at Chinatown Plaza. She also recalls first experiencing questions about her personal identity in Arizona, remarking in retrospect on the diversity of her childhood in Las Vegas. Longhi returned to Las Vegas in March 2022 to begin work as assistant city editor at the Las Vegas Review-Journal.
Archival Collection
Oral history interview with Virginia Houser conducted by Karen Reed on March 20, 1978 for the Ralph Roske Oral History Project on Early Las Vegas. Houser discusses her move to Las Vegas, Nevada in 1954 and the developments and changes that she has observed in the city. Houser also discusses the entertainment that Las Vegas, Nevada offered at the time, and surrounding areas, including Lake Mead and Mount Charleston, Nevada. Houser then discusses some of the first casinos that opened on the Las Vegas Strip and on Fremont Street.
Archival Collection
Oral history interview with Lubertha Johnson conducted by Larry Buckner on February 10, 1978 for the Ralph Roske Oral History Project on Early Las Vegas. In this interview Lubertha Johnson discusses her family background, work experience, civic activity, and philosophy. She talks about discrimination in the workplace for Black people, segregation in Las Vegas, Nevada, and her forty year membership in the National Association for the Advancement of Colored Peoples (NAACP). She also discusses the historic Westside neighborhood and its schools, the prejudice Black performers faced in the 1950s and 1960s, and how she feels disappointed in President Jimmy Carter.
Archival Collection
Oral history interview with Irene Doty conducted by Jackie Ogden on March 20, 1977 for the Ralph Roske Oral History Project on Early Las Vegas. Doty discusses the first casino properties and restaurants in Las Vegas, Nevada. She also describes her experiences as a justice of the peace, living conditions during World War II, her experiences in Goodsprings, Nevada, and being a juror in several murder trials.
Archival Collection
Oral history interview with Barbara Brents conducted by Claytee D. White on January 12, 2010 for the Voices of the Historic John S. Park Neighborhood Oral History Project. In this interview, Brents talks about why she moved to Las Vegas, Nevada in 1987, her experience in the historic John S. Park Neighborhood, some history of Las Vegas, and politics.
Archival Collection
Oral history interview with Earl Preston conducted by Melanie Viola on February 13, 1980 for the Ralph Roske Oral History Project on Early Las Vegas. In this interview, Preston discusses his life experiences in Las Vegas, Nevada. He talks about working for the Union Pacific Railroad Company, ownership of Frontier Cable Company, and his musical activities, including his experience as a member of the Helldorado Hillbilly Band. He also talks about his religious background.
Archival Collection
Oral history interview with Gaelan Felt conducted by Perry Kaufman in approximately 1975 for the Ralph Roske Oral History Project on Early Las Vegas. In this interview, Felt describes working at the Nevada Test Site and the effect the site had on Las Vegas, Nevada. Felt explains why Nevada was chosen as the location for the site, how they tested nuclear weapons, and how the local residents responded to the tests with varying levels of concern. He also talks about other aspects of the test site's history, such as workers' housing, and how Las Vegas has developed and changed.
Archival Collection