Oral history interview with Patricia Mulroy conducted by Claytee D. White on November 18, 2013 for the Boyer Early Las Vegas Oral History Project. Mulroy discusses her arrival in Las Vegas, Nevada as a University of Nevada, Las Vegas student. She also discusses water conservation for the Las Vegas Valley, becoming the general manager of the Las Vegas Valley Water District from 1989 to 2014 and the general manager of the Southern Nevada Water Authority from 1993 to 2014.
Archival Collection
Oral history interview with Ron Donoho conducted by Craig Brenner on February 28, 1978 for the Ralph Roske Oral History Project on Early Las Vegas. Donoho discusses the history of sheriffs in the Clark County Sheriff’s Office and the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department. Donoho mentions various sheriffs that were his colleagues and the political dynamics during their leaderships. He also recalls a list of Southern Nevada police officers killed in the line of duty.
Archival Collection
Oral history interview with Betsy Rhodes conducted by Melinda McGeorge Thompson on February 24, 2011 for the Boyer Early Las Vegas Oral History Project.
Betsy Rhodes shares a brief personal history before discussing her move to Las Vegas with her husband Leonard in 1958. She talks about her husband's dental profession, her children, and life in the early 1960s in Las Vegas. Rhodes shares details of her volunteering work with the Junior League and Assistance League of Las Vegas, detailing the groups' evolving missions, member counts, and trials faced to raise funds.
Archival Collection
Oral history interview with Dayvid Figler conducted by Claytee White on July 28, 2010 for the Voices of the Historic John S. Park Neighborhood Oral History Project. In this interview, Figler discusses moving with his family to Las Vegas, Nevada as a toddler and growing up in an apartment near the Las Vegas Convention Center. After graduating law school in Arizona, Figler returned to Las Vegas and, in 2000, purchased a home in the John S. Park neighborhood. Figler talks about the ownership history of the house, neighbors including casino owner Bob Stupak and Nevada senator Bob Coffin, and the growth and development of the John S. Park Historic District.
Archival Collection
Oral history interview with Mahlon Brown conducted by Claytee D. White on December 16, 2003 and January 13, 2004 for the Boyer Early Las Vegas Oral History Project. Brown discusses his career as a policeman in Washington, D.C., during the 1960s, an attorney in Las Vegas, Nevada along with Jack Anderson in the Las Vegas Welfare Rights Movement, and as a Justice of the Peace.
Archival Collection
Oral history interview with Abraham Gomez conducted by Elsa Lopez on December 06, 2019 for the Latinx Voices of Southern Nevada Oral History Project. In this interview, Gomez discusses growing up in Las Vegas, Nevada and explains why his parents decided to settle in Las Vegas. He talks about attending Saint Christopher Catholic School, Bishop Gorman High School, and College of Southern Nevada (CSN). Gomez recalls transferring to the University of Nevada, Reno, becoming an ambassador for the GEAR UP program at Nevada State College (NSC), and explains the importance of programs like GEAR UP for first generation low-income students. Later, Gomez describes his involvement with the Nevada Partnership of Homeless Youth (NPHY) and his work as a member of the Men of Color subcommittee at NSC. Lastly, Gomez talks about his position as College Navigator for the Nevada Treasurer’s Office.
Archival Collection
Oral history interview with Manley Sorensen conducted by Michael Kelser on March 02, 1977 for the Ralph Roske Oral History Project on Early Las Vegas. In this interview, Sorensen discusses the history of Las Vegas, Nevada. Sorensen discusses how Las Vegas has changed since 1936, including how the casinos in the city have changed and the disappearance of water springs around Las Vegas. Sorensen also discusses the El Rancho Hotel fire, prospecting for recreation, environmental changes, nuclear weapons tests, and flooding in Las Vegas.
Archival Collection
Oral history interview with Mary Orduno conducted by Rachel Masek on March 14, 1978 for the Ralph Roske Oral History Project on Early Las Vegas. In this interview, Orduno discusses her job experience as a cocktail waitress at the Last Frontier Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas, Nevada, and the types of entertainment available to people in Las Vegas at the time. Orduno discusses her time as president of the Las Vegas City Council, when she held a fashion show for mental health awareness in which Wayne Newton performed. Orduno goes on to discuss her involvement with the Beta Sigma Phi sorority on the campus of the University of Nevada, Las Vegas.
Archival Collection
Oral history interview with Marie Wakefield conducted by Ashley Hardison on November 30, 2008 for the Public School Principalship Oral History Project. In this interview, Wakefield reflects upon her career as an administrator with Nevada’s Clark County School District. She describes her experience as principal of Myrtle Tate Elementary School, her regular job responsibilities, and challenges that she faced. She also describes her experience as an African American woman, and the importance of student and faculty diversity within schools.
Archival Collection
Oral history interview with Margarita Rebollal conducted by Marcela Rodriguez-Campo and Barbara Tabach on February 28, 2019 for the Latinx Voices of Southern Nevada Oral History Project. Margarita Rebollal is a lifelong community organizer and advocate for Latinx civic engagement and rights. She shares what it was like to grow up in Ponce, Puerto Rico and shares her childhood memories growing up on the island with her siblings. Rebollal also discusses the death of her father and the eventual move of her family to New York City, New York. She also recalls her education and teen years. Later, she would move to California, and eventually find her way to Las Vegas, Nevada in 1996. Rebollal discusses her passion for civic engagement and the many years serving the community, being most well-known for her role in founding the Puerto Rican Association of Las Vegas and the Hispanic International Day Parade of Nevada. Rebollal also discusses her campaign for the Ward 1 Las Vegas City Council seat.
Archival Collection