On a sunny day in 1946, the train from Shreveport, Louisiana, stopped at The Plaza hotel in downtown Las Vegas like it always did. But on this particular day, Atha Toliver and her only child, twelve-year-old Barbara, stepped off the train and onto the dusty Western street of Fremont. Narrator Barbara Bates Kirkland recalls that event and living in Las Vegas for most of the next seven decades during this 2004 interview. Like many others who migrated from the South, Barbara Kirkland’s mother would find employment as a maid. A friend who already lived in Las Vegas had told her of the good paying jobs as private maid. So Atha who was determined that her daughter would get an education and a finer future saw this as her opportunity to achieve this for her daughter. Later, the entrepreneurial and creative mother opened Eva’s Flower Basket, a floral shop that Barbara operates in her retirement from teaching. Barbara returned to Louisiana for her senior year in high school, attended Southern University in Baton Rouge, and then returned to Las Vegas to teach first grade at Westside School. Barbara was active in the community, was a founding member of Les Femmes Douze, involved with Zion United Methodist Church and was friends with many of the early African American community leaders at the time. She talks about these, describes various neighborhoods where she lived and about raising her own two children in Las Vegas. Barbara was a founding member of Les Femmes Douze. AKA/Akateens.
Oral history interview with UNLV History Professor Michael S. Green conducted by Barbara Tabach on May 25, 2021 for The Great Pause: Las Vegas Chronicles of the COVID-19 Pandemic.
Subjects discussed include: Teaching at UNLV; life habits; medical observations; and adapting to health protocols.
Oral history interview with Burton Cohen conducted by Michael Geeser on November 14, 2005 for the I Remember When: Recollections from Las Vegas Jewish Leaders Oral History Project. He talks about his career as a casino executive, celebrities in Las Vegas, Nevada, the role of organized crime in the city, and about executives of other casinos. He also answers questions from the audience.
Oral history interview with Woodrow Wilson conducted by Gwendolyn Goodloe on February 28, 1975 for the Ralph Roske Oral History Project on Early Las Vegas. In this interview, Woodrow Wilson discusses working at the Basic Magnesium plant and about becoming the first African American elected to the Nevada Assembly in 1966. He also discusses serving as president of the Las Vegas, Nevada chapter of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored Peoples in 1951 and how he was a co-founder of the Westside Federal Credit Union.
Vonna Bajoneta discusses several thing within her interview pertaining to education, the medical field, and nursing. She also discusses her and other students' perspectives on the Distance Learning Program at UNLV.
Oral history interview with Arthur Marshall conducted by Claytee D. White on February 11, 2014 for the Boyer Early Las Vegas Oral History Project. In this interview Arthur Marshall discusses meeting his wife Jayn, moving to Las Vegas, Nevada, and running a clothing store with his brother-in-law. He also discusses serving as President of Temple Beth Sholom, being instrumental in the formation of the Anti-Defamation League, being a member of the American Israel Public Affairs Committee, and spending twelve years on the Nevada Gaming Commission.
Oral history interview with Anne M. Barnes conducted by Blythe Everett on November 23, 2009 for the Public School Principalship Oral History Project. In this interview, Barnes reflects upon her nearly 30-year career as a teacher and administrator with the Clark County School District (CCSD) from the 1970s to the 2000s. She discusses her thirteen years as principal of various elementary and middle schools, and describes her experiences working with magnet programs. She also describes the importance of working relationships between principals and parents, teachers, and students.
Oral history interview with Joe Pursell conducted by Michael Sarabyn on June 24, 2006 for the Public School Principalship Oral History Project. In this interview, Pursell reflects upon his career as a teacher, counselor, and school administrator with Nevada’s Clark County School District (CCSD). He discusses his experiences as a teacher in the 1960s, challenges that he faced, and his approach to education. He also discusses his experiences with school integration, describes his regular responsibilities and challenges, and discusses his working relationship with other teachers and administrators throughout the school district.
Marzette Lewis is an outspoken community activist, especially in the area of local education. She is the founder of the WAAK-UP group. The interview took place over two sessions, session 1 was recorded October 30, 2012 and session 2 was recorded November 14, 2012.
Oral history interview with Susan Molasky conducted by Barbara Tabach on March 11, 2014 for the Southern Nevada Jewish Heritage Project. In this interview, Susan Molasky discusses her childhood and teenage years growing up in London, England where she worked in a fabric store. Molasky also talks about originally coming to Las Vegas, Nevada with her first husband in the late 1950s. She discusses raising her children in Las Vegas, Nevada and her battle with ovarian cancer, which prompted her involvement in Nathan Adelson Hospice. She then discuss her life with second husband, Irwin Molasky, and the causes they are involved in.