From the Las Vegas: Snapshots of History Photograph Collection (PH-00425)

On March 8, 1981, Beatrice Gillard interviewed Rosemary Cleman (AKA, Rosemary Conner, b. 1926 in New York, New York) about her experiences living in Southern Nevada and her background as a teacher and youth parole counselor. Conner begins by talking about how she ended up in Las Vegas to become a teacher for emotionally disturbed children and how she would eventually assist with the creation of the Nevada Girls Training Center, the first parole program for female juvenile offenders in Nevada. Conner also talks about the development of Las Vegas from when she arrived in 1952, and she discusses the segregation of the African American community in the city as well as her perspectives on the attitudes of the community as they related to it. Conner also mentions her coffee business, her personal interaction with Nevada Supreme Court justices, and her involvement in starting a grant-funded drug treatment program, known as Us, for juveniles. The interview concludes with Conner’s thoughts on the reemergence of mining communities in Nevada and her close interaction with Nevada governors during her roles in social service.