Building Las Vegas Summer Speaker Series conducted by Claytee D. White and Stefani Evans on June 30, 2017, August 13, 2017, and September 17, 2017 for the Building Las Vegas Oral History Project. Panel 1: Reimagining Downtown: This panel of experts examined past and present plans for the redevelopment of Downtown Las Vegas as a tourist and entertainment destination and as an urban residential neighborhood. Panel 2: A Woman's Place Is...: This panel of high-achieving women shared their experiences in shaping the growth and development of Las Vegas. Panel 3: Turning the Tide: Water In The Desert: Leaders discussed how the supply, quality, and management of water has affected the Southern Nevada region’s growth and development.
Archival Collection
Oral history interview with Dr. Robert Aalberts conducted by Claytee D. White on November 16, 2006 for the UNLV @ 50 Oral History Project. In this interview Aalberts speaks about how he was encouraged to come to the University of Nevada, Las Vegas (UNLV) in 1991 by a friend who worked there. He described how when he first arrived there was no law school, and that he taught legal business and real estate courses. He became editor in chief of the Real Estate Law Journal in 1992. He also speaks about how he continues to teach, write, edit, do research in the new law library, and serve on various committees.
Archival Collection
Oral history interview with Geraldine Kirk-Hughes conducted by Claytee D. White on April 28, 2011 for the Boyer Early Las Vegas Oral History Project.
In this interview, Geraldine Kirk-Hughes discusses her educational background, previous occupations, and her decision to attend law school in Reno, Nevada in 1984. Kirk-Hughes shares details of passing the bar exam in 1988, opening her one-woman law firm shortly thereafter, and her affiliation with the National Bar Association (NBA). She recalls how she met Charles Kellar, various cases she represented, and her experiences with racism both directed at herself and her clients of color.
Archival Collection
The MacDonald Ranch Development Records (1972-2010) contain correspondence, maps, land assessments and investigations, master plans, and architectural, civil engineering, and landscape drawings primarily detailing the community development process of MacDonald Ranch, a master-planned community in southwest Henderson, Nevada.
Archival Collection
The Crockett Family Photographs (approximately 1940-2008) are comprised of aerial photographs of Alamo Airport (later Harry Reid International Airport) and the surrounding Las Vegas Valley in the 1940s and 1950s. Photographs of the interior, exterior, and airfield at Alamo Airport document the early stages of what is now one of the busiest international airports in the United States. The collection also contains audiovisual material, which depict events including the Miss Rodeo America pageant and the Sahara Cup boat races on Lake Mead, and locations including Fremont Street in downtown Las Vegas, Nevada and Hoover Dam. A significant portion of the collection consists of photographs of the Crockett family at various events, on family vacations, and their home in Las Vegas, Nevada.
Archival Collection
Oral history interview with Catherine "Caty" Crockett conducted by Claytee D. White on December 3, 2024 for the Boyer Early Las Vegas Oral History Project. In this interview, Crockett recalls her parents' history living in Las Vegas, Nevada and starting a guest ranch, Hidden Wells, and later the Crockett/Alamo Airfield airport, and the Lazy Flying C Ranch. Crockett recalls growing up on the airport, riding horses, and interacting with celebrities and entertainers, including Howard Hughes. After graduating from Valley High School, she worked at the Sahara Hotel and Casino, Saks Fifth Avenue, and then at Valley Bank. She describes meeting many leading figures in Las Vegas history through her banking job, including Parry Thomas, the Mack family, Kirk Kerkorian, and others. Crockett describes later jobs, including owning an art gallery, and being one of the first women to join the Rotary Club.
Archival Collection
Oral history interview with Larry Cooper conducted by Claytee D. White on March 05, 2018 for the African Americans in Las Vegas: a Collaborative Oral History Project. In this interview, Cooper discusses his early life in Las Vegas, Nevada and growing up in the Westside. He talks about his educational experiences in Las Vegas, attending the Arkansas Agricultural, Mechanical and Normal College (now University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff), and teaching mathematics. Cooper recalls his employment at Southwestern Bell Telephone Company, becoming Vice President of Emerging Markets, and relocating around the United States for work. He remembers moving back to Las Vegas in the mid-2000s, his friendship with civil rights leader Jimmy Gay, and the contributions Gay made for the African American community. Cooper describes Westside businesses, and casinos on Jackson Street. Lastly, Cooper discusses the future of the Westside.
Archival Collection
Oral history interview with Allard Roen conducted by David G. Schwartz on October 31, 2003 for the UNLV University Libraries Oral History Collection. In this interview, Roen talks about the history of the Desert Inn Hotel, the Desert Inn Country Club, and the Desert Inn Golf Course and Tournament of Champions. He shares numerous stories and anecdotes about Las Vegas, Nevada casino-hotel figures, including Cecil Simmons, Morris "Moe" Dalitz, Wilbur Clark, and Howard Hughes. He also talks about the formation of the Nevada Resort Association, property development, and negotiating with labor unions and construction companies, including his 1960 work with the NAACP's James McMillan to eliminate racial segregation at the Desert Inn and Stardust hotels.
Archival Collection
Oral history interview with Dr. Javier A. Rodríguez conducted by Elsa Lopez and Barbara Tabach on December 19, 2019 for the Latinx Voices of Southern Nevada Oral History Project.
Dr. Javier Rodríguez, Biology Professor at the University of Nevada Las Vegas, talks of his personal and educational history that led him to UNLV. He discusses his migration from Puerto Rico to California where he received his PhD from the University of California Berkley and became a biological museum curator for various animal specimens. He later moved to Las Vegas to teach at UNLV where he has now been for nearly two decades; Dr. Rodríguez shares how UNLV has changed since he first started working here, including the university's increased interest in faculty research to become a Top Tier institution. Subjects discussed include: Puerto Rico; University of California Berkley; University funding; Tier 1 research institutions.
Archival Collection
The Aaron Williams Photograph Collection (approximately 1968 to 1983) consists of three black-and-white photographic prints. Two of the images are of the groundbreaking ceremony of the Senior Citizens’ Center with Las Vegas, Nevada Mayor Oran Gragson, and the third of three unidentified individuals.
Archival Collection