Oral history interview with Dave Pugsley conducted by Stefani Evans and Claytee D. White on October 21, 2016 for the Building Las Vegas Oral History Project. In this interview, Pugsley discusses his early life in Salt Lake City, Utah and moving to Las Vegas, Nevada in 1963. He talks about his father’s employment with Young Electric Sign Company (YESCO) and the Nevada Test Site. Pugsley recalls his initial interest in architecture, drawing a construction document for the Home Builders Association while in high school, and attending the University of Utah for a degree in architecture. Pugsley then talks about building planning for schools in Clark County, the process of designing a school, and the challenges that arise. Lastly, Pugsley discusses building planning for Lied Library and the William S. Boyd School of Law at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas (UNLV).
Archival Collection
Oral history interview with Jim Shaffer conducted by Gary L. Mynatt on June 20, 1972 for the Ralph Roske Oral History Project on Early Las Vegas. In this interview, Shaffer discusses living in Las Vegas, Nevada and his career in banking. Shaffer describes the positions he has held in the banking industry, where he has lived in Las Vegas, his family life, and his affiliations with different social and professional organizations. He also discusses how nuclear weapons tests at the Nevada Test Site affected the city economically, how Las Vegas has changed and expanded, and credit ratings in Las Vegas.
Archival Collection
Archival Component
Oral history interview with Louis Baluyut conducted by Kyle Baluyut in November 2021 for the Reflections: The Las Vegas Asian American and Pacific Islander Oral History Project. In this interview, Baluyut discusses his early life in the Philippines, immigrating to the United States by enlisting in the U.S. Navy. He recalls his experiences travelling around the country and internationally, and how life in other places compares to Las Vegas, Nevada.
Archival Collection
Oral history interview with Stella Fleming conducted by Suzanne Wright on February 24, 1979 for the Ralph Roske Oral History Project on Early Las Vegas. Fleming first talks about some of her work in welfare specifically, the early practices of the welfare administration. She also discusses her work with the Works Progress Administration, the American Red Cross, and the Nevada Emergency Relief Program. Fleming also discusses atomic testing, specific landmarks and locations, and the development of the city.
Archival Collection
Oral history interview with Mayer Jacob (Chic) Hecht conducted by Julie Sefman on April 02, 1976 for the Ralph Roske Oral History Project on Early Las Vegas. In this interview Chic Hecht discusses moving to Las Vegas, Nevada in 1945. He also talks about the retail business world, being a state senator, being a U.S. senator, and being an ambassador to the island nation of the Bahamas.
Archival Collection
Oral history interview with Tom Ehlen conducted by Lisa Gioia-Acres on January 10, 2008 for the All That Jazz Oral History Project. Ehlen recalls his career as a professional trumpet player including playing with the Glenn Miller Orchestra, Frank Sinatra, Burt Bacharach, and others. He also discusses playing in the bands of various casinos on the Las Vegas, Nevada Strip.
Archival Collection
Oral history interview with Ralph Daly conducted by Charles Malkowshi on Febuary 25, 1977 for the Ralph Roske Oral History Project on Early Las Vegas. Ralph Daly (born in Texas in 1903) discusses his experience of moving to Las Vegas, Nevada during its early growth. Daly talks specifically about Block 16 and the Arizona Club and the extent of gambling and prostitution that took place there in the early 1900s. Daly also talks about moving to Las Vegas to make his living on gambling, how the construction of Hoover (Boulder) Dam attracted many migrant workers, and how, after World War II, Las Vegas attracted tourists and became more of a gambling town as more casinos were built.
Archival Collection
Oral history interview with Cathrine Abrigo conducted by Cecilia Winchell and Stefani Evans on July 20, 2022 for the Reflections: the Las Vegas Asian American and Pacific Islander Oral History Project. In this interview, Abrigo describes her early life in the Philippines, where she attended Catholic school and briefly studied medical technology in college. She describes immigrating to Las Vegas, Nevada with her husband and the difficulty of leaving her immediate family behind. She discusses working for the Cosmopolitan in 2011 and becoming deeply involved with the Culinary Workers Union Local 226. Throughout the interview, Abrigo talks about religion, food, and her activism with the Culinary Union.
Archival Collection
Oral history interview with Irene Tabor conducted by Claytee D. White on July 03, 2014 for the West Charleston Neighborhoods: an Oral History Project of Ward 1. In this interview, Tabor discusses growing up in Honolulu, Hawaii, her father’s employment with the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), and moving to Las Vegas, Nevada in 1947. She talks about being a teenager in Las Vegas, attending Las Vegas High School, and the businesses on Fifth Street. Tabor recalls her employment at the Dunes Hotel and Casino as a wardrobe artist for showgirls. Lastly, Tabor discusses activities she participated in as part of the Girl Scouts, her involvement in the sorority Beta Sigma Phi, and changes in Las Vegas.
Archival Collection