Oral history interview with Viola Johnson conducted by Claytee D. White on March 03, 1996 for the Women's Research Institute of Nevada (WRIN) Las Vegas Women Oral History Project. Johnson discusses leaving Fordyce, Arkansas in 1942 to join her parents in Las Vegas, Nevada where her first home was a tent. Johnson goes on to discuss life with her parents in Las Vegas including their work and church activities. Johnson also describes her work at the Flamingo Hilton and Sands Hotel and Casino as a maid, and at the Riviera Hotel and Casino making sandwiches. Finally, Johnson talks about labor conditions and the Culinary Union during the early years of the Las Vegas Strip casino development.
Discussion of the necessity of public education in the Moapa and Virgin valleys in regards to irrigation, drainage, water storage, domestic water, and flood control. Report was written October 10, 1945, attached application was dated February 3, 1945.
The Pittman Family Photographs depict members of the Pittman and Brewington families in Nevada from 1922 to 1989. The photographs primarily depict Nevada Governor Vail Pittman and his wife Ida Louise “Liz” Brewington Pittman at political campaign and fundraising events, including the Helldorado Parade in Las Vegas, Nevada and at the Governor’s Mansion in Carson City, Nevada. The photographs also depict Governor Pittman with President Harry S. Truman, Jim Cashman, and family members. The photographs also include a group photograph of U.S. Senator Key Pittman with business executives representing the Union Pacific Railroad and the San Pedro Railroad. Lastly, the collection also contains family photographs of Ann Brewington, Ida Brewington Pittman's sister.
The Peg and George E. Crockett Family Photographs (approximately 1940-2008) are comprised of aerial photographs of Alamo Airport (later McCarran International Airport) and the surrounding Las Vegas Valley in the 1940s and 1950s. Photographs of the interior, exterior, and airfield at Alamo Airport document the early stages of what is now one of the busiest international airports in the United States. The collection also contains audiovisual material, which depict events including the Miss Rodeo America pageant and the Sahara Cup boat races on Lake Mead, and locations including Fremont Street in downtown Las Vegas, Nevada and Hoover Dam. A significant portion of the collection consists of photographs of the Crockett family at various events, on family vacations, and their home in Las Vegas, Nevada.
Interviewed by Laurents Bañuelos-Benitez. Nery Martinez was born in El Salvador, he describes his childhood as one filled with war and violence. When Martinez was five years old, the small country of El Salvador erupted in civil war. Martinez describes the panic that he saw growing up, never being certain when violence could occurred. The 12 year war took up the entirety of Martinez's childhood. After the war, the country was left in runes, seeing little hope for recovery, Martinez left El Salvador for Las Vegas where his brothers had fled earlier during the war. In Las Vegas, Martinez was able to find work in the service industry, at the same time attending English classes at night. Martinez is currently working as a bartender within the Culinary Union. Interview conducted in Spanish.
The Cork Proctor Photograph Collection (1960s-1980s) primarily contains black-and-white photographic reproductions of early Las Vegas, Nevada; the Cal-Neva Lodge at Lake Tahoe, Nevada; and various celebrities. The collection also includes black-and-white photographic prints of the Helldorado Parade. Cork Proctor was a comedian who performed throughout Nevada and the United States.