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 Mary K. Rymer conducted by Mary Fitzgerald on May 04, 1977 for the Ralph Roske Oral History Project on Early Las Vegas. In this interview, Rymer discusses her career as a nurse in Las Vegas, Nevada, which began at Clark County Hospital. Rymer tells several anecdotes of her experiences during her career, and discusses how hospitals have changed and evolved in Las Vegas. Rymer goes on to discuss her short retirement from nursing, before returning to the profession after being hired as a nurse for the Culinary Workers Union Local 226 in Las Vegas.
Archival Collection
Oral history interview with Patsy Leavitt conducted by Elizabeth Neumann on March 17, 1976 for the Ralph Roske Oral History Project on Early Las Vegas. In this interview Leavitt discusses her maternal grandmother, who brought her mother and uncle to Las Vegas, Nevada in 1931, and explains how her grandmother opened a boardinghouse that she ran until her death in 1948. She then discusses her father's family, who arrived in Las Vegas in the late 1920s and established a sand and gravel business. She discusses her education and marriage, and reflects on Las Vegas in the 1950s.
Archival Collection
Oral history interview with Walter V. Long conducted by Brenda Baechle on February 19, 1979 for the Ralph Roske Oral History Project on Early Las Vegas. In the interview, Long discusses his arrival to Las Vegas, Nevada from Tonopah, Nevada in 1930. Long also discusses his experiences as a teacher and principal in various Las Vegas schools. Other subjects Long discusses include his education, the Boulder (Hoover) Dam's construction, laws for obtaining a teaching certificate during the 1930s, his experiences with Las Vegas High School, and his early life in Tonopah.
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 John Perazzo conducted by Claytee D. White on June 16, 2016 for the Building Las Vegas Oral History Project. In this interview, Perazzo discusses his upbringing in Las Vegas, Nevada. He talks about attending Westmont College in Santa Barbara, California to obtain a degree mathematics and computer science. Perazzo then recalls his father's work in architecture and his father's employment at the Nevada Test Site. Later, Perazzo discusses becoming a card dealer at the El Cortez Hotel and Casino and describes the challenges in working at casinos. Lastly, Perazzo talks about the development of Fremont Street.
Archival Collection
Oral history interview with Janice Haupt Allen conducted by Barbara Tabach on November 27, 2017 for the Boyer Early Las Vegas Oral History Project. In this interview, Allen discusses her early life and arriving to Las Vegas, Nevada in 1947. She talks about her involvement in the Las Vegas community, becoming a news reporter with the
Archival Collection
Oral history interview with Saul Willis conducted by Claytee D. White on January 14, 2014 for the African Americans in Las Vegas: a Collaborative Oral History Project. In this interview, Willis discusses his personal history and moving from Sondheimer, Louisiana to Las Vegas, Nevada in 1968. He talks about living in West Las Vegas, nightlife entertainment in the area, and community leaders at the time. He then recalls the increase of drug use in the Westside, being incarcerated for a year, and starting an automobile mechanic business. Lastly, Willis discusses his experience with the Las Vegas court system and the continued development of the Westside.
Archival Collection
Oral history interview with Martin A. Sherman conducted by his daughter, Marta Sherman, on March 17, 1978 for the Ralph Roske Oral History Project on Early Las Vegas. In this interview, Sherman discusses his personal history and moving to Las Vegas, Nevada from Wichita, Kansas in 1957. Sherman discusses jobs he had, including police officer with the Henderson Police Department and as a locksmith. He also describes involvement with the United Commercial Travelers of America organization. Sherman also discusses how Las Vegas has changed and his own aspirations for himself and his business.
Archival Collection
Oral history interview with Byron Shutt conducted by Jack Andrews on March 09, 1976 for the Ralph Roske Oral History Project on Early Las Vegas. In this interview, Shutt discusses the history of Henderson, Nevada after moving there from Missouri in 1949. Shutt describes hitchhiking his way to Las Vegas, Nevada from Missouri, meeting Jim Thorpe in Thorpe's Henderson supper club, and the legalization of gambling in Henderson. Shutt also discusses mining operations in Henderson, chemical plants in Henderson such as the Pacific Engineering and Production Company of Nevada plant, housing, and the Henderson school system.
Archival Collection