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Jean McColl oral history interview

Identifier

OH-01238

Abstract

Oral history interview with Jean McColl conducted by Sam C. Melchiome Jr. on March 01, 1977 for the Ralph Roske Oral History Project on Early Las Vegas. In the interview, McColl discusses her childhood and family in Searchlight, Nevada and her eventual move to Las Vegas, Nevada in 1944. McColl also discusses her education, Boulder (Hoover) Dam, Mount Charleston, Lee Canyon, atomic testing, Las Vegas entertainment, and juvenile delinquency.

Archival Collection

Lawrence Murray oral history interview

Identifier

OH-03154

Abstract

Oral history interview with Lawrence Murray conducted by Claytee D. White on March 13, 2017 for the African Americans in Las Vegas: a Collaborative Oral History Project. In this interview, Murray discusses his early life in Altheimer, Arkansas. He talks about moving to Las Vegas, Nevada in 1960, living in the Westside, and his time serving in the military. Murray recalls being a member of the Carpenters Local Union 1780, completing a four-year educational program offered by the Union, and his employment at J.A. Tiberti Construction Company. Later, Murray discusses his religious life, being involved in church activities, and remembers African American spiritual leaders in the Westside. He describes becoming the Pastor for Living World Ministry Church of God in Christ, and his efforts to change Las Vegas cultural stereotypes. Lastly, Murray talks about the significance of the church in the African American community, and the important role that women have in churches.

Archival Collection

Lubertha Johnson oral history interview

Identifier

OH-00955

Abstract

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

Marge Conley oral history interviews

Identifier

OH-03168

Abstract

Oral history interviews with Marge Conley conducted by Claytee White on May 06, 1998 and July 09, 1998 for the Women's Research Institute of Nevada (WRIN) Las Vegas Women Oral History Project. Conley opens her interviews discussing her childhood in Chicago, Illinois during the Great Depression including her experience working at a young age to help her family. She discusses her experiences with unions throughout the country and using her union traveling card to transfer from Chicago to Las Vegas, Nevada. Conely talks about her career as a server at the Desert Inn and Caesars Palace including topics about staffing, wages, and working conditions. She describes her association with the Culinary Workers Union Local 226, how strikes were organized, and the union's efforts to improve others' lives. She also talks about how the local Culinary Union helped promote women and African Americans into leadership positions. Conley ends her interview discussing the importance of unions and the need to continue them in the future.

Archival Collection

Jennifer Lanahan oral history interview

Identifier

OH-03392

Abstract

Oral history interview with Jennifer Lanahan conducted by Jerwin Tiu on September 11, 2023 for Reflections: the Las Vegas Asian American and Pacific Islander Oral History Project. Born in Daegu, South Korea, Jennifer Lanahan fondly remembers her childhood growing up in Green Bay, Wisconsin. Lanahan had been adopted at a young age and grew up aware of this fact, but never felt different from her family because of it. Her father, with Irish roots, was a retired military sergeant for the U.S. Air Force. While her mother, with German roots, spent her time volunteering at veterans hospitals. Lanahan spent a majority of her life in Green Bay, eventually obtaining a degree at the University of Wisconsin, Green Bay in Spanish with a minor in linguistics. Shortly after, Lanahan moved to Hawaii to obtain a masters degree in Spanish but pivoted to earning a degree in legal studies at Arizona State University. Growing up in a predominately white community, Lanahan recalls having complex feelings about her Asian heritage. However, after moving to Hawaii for a year and then eventually Las Vegas, Nevada in 2012, she began to embrace her Asian heritage and engage more in different aspects of her Korean culture. After obtaining her law degree from the Boyd School of Law at UNLV, Lanahan went on to work as a litigation attorney for a few years. She now works as a lobbyist and serves as a board member for the Las Vegas AAPI Chamber of Commerce.

Archival Collection

Hazel Martin oral history interview

Identifier

OH-01203

Archival Collection

Astrid Silva oral history interview

Identifier

OH-03709

Abstract

Oral history interview with Astrid Silva conducted by Monserrath Hernández and Barbara Tabach on April 22, 2019 for the Latinx Voices of Southern Nevada Oral History Project. Astrid Silva was born in Gomez Palacio, Durango in 1988. She immigrated with her mother to the United States in 1992, where they were met by her father before flying to Los Angeles. She recounts her first impression of the United States and her families eventual move to Las Vegas, where she describes her time living in Las Vegas’ west side and struggles she faced being an undocumented student living in Las Vegas. She describes her first meeting with Senator Harry Reid and the friendship that developed afterwards. She has spoken at the Democratic National Convention and has been vocal about her status as a Dreamer. She is currently the Executive Director for DREAM Big Nevada which was established in 2017 in order to provide aid to Nevada’s immigrant families. She writes about her hopes for Dreamers and her continued work in expanding the ways that immigrant families can be helped in an always changing political climate. Subjects discussed include: DACA, Dreamers, Immigrant Rights, and Higher Education.

Archival Collection

Sasha Semenoff oral history interview

Identifier

OH-02609

Abstract

Oral history interview with Sasha Semenoff conducted by Claytee D. White on April 29, 2009 for the Boyer Early Las Vegas Oral History Project. Semenoff begins the interview by discussing his early life in Latvia and learning to play the violin as a child before the Nazi invasion. He describes being a Jewish Holocaust survivor, surviving the ghettos and concentration camp where he was held, and explaining how he immigrated to the United States after he was liberated. Semenoff then discusses moving to New York City, New York, where he joined the musician's union before moving to Las Vegas, Nevada in 1959. He details his career as a prominent lounge and big band violinist in Las Vegas, where he played at several different casinos, including the Desert Inn Lounge, the Dunes Hotel and Casino, and the MGM Grand Hotel. Semenoff also talks about the musicians he has played with, such as Frank Sinatra and Dean Martin, his work at the time of the interview, and the presence of organized crime in Las Vegas.

Archival Collection

Kenny Bayless oral history interview

Identifier

OH-02195

Abstract

Oral history interview with Kenny Bayless conducted by Eric Billington on November 20, 2014 for the African Americans in Las Vegas: a Collaborative Oral History Project. Bayless begins the interview by talking about his childhood in California and his religious upbringing. He then discusses moving to Las Vegas, Nevada in 1972 in order to pursue a career in teaching and coaching track. Bayless discusses his views of Las Vegas upon his arrival, namely the perceptions towards black people in the area. He then details his life as a teacher for the Clark County School District (CCSD), and teaching at the juvenile detention center after his retirement from CCSD. Bayless also discusses the night life in Las Vegas from the 1970s to the present, he talks about the exclusion of black people from certain establishments and the Moulin Rouge Hotel as a respite for black night life in West Las Vegas.

Archival Collection

Siegfried Haderly oral history interview

Identifier

OH-03929

Abstract

Oral history interview with Siegfried Haderly conducted by Stefani Evans on October 30, 2024 for Reflections: the Las Vegas Asian American and Pacific Islander Oral History Project. In this interview, Haderly recalls his childhood in Manila, Philippines until his parents separated, his mother's move to the United States, and Haderly's move to join her in Las Vegas, Nevada after graduating high school. He describes working first as a dishwasher, and then as a busboy for various hotel/casinos including the Sahara, Desert Inn, and Sands. He then was hired as a bartender and joined the Bartenders Union Local 165 and has been a union member ever since. He shares his experience serving two years in the United States Army during the Vietnam War, and then moving to St. Paul, Minnesota and starting a family. Haderly describes his eventual return to Las Vegas in the 1990s, retiring, and his year-long trips back to the Philippines, and working part-time for family members. At the time of his 2024 interview, Siegfried Haderly was employed as a canvasser for Culinary Workers Union Local 226.

Archival Collection