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Transcript of Interview with Otis & Tisha Harris, September 15, 2010

Date

2010-09-15

Description

Otis and Tisha Harris detail the businesses that existed in West Las Vegas.

Text

Southern Nevada Historical Society Records

Identifier

MS-00205

Abstract

The Southern Nevada Historical Society Records document the management and development of the Southern Nevada Historical Society (SNHS) as well as various historical projects in Las Vegas and Southern Nevada that the society sponsored from 1948 to 1983. The records include SNHS correspondence (1951-1978), meeting minutes (1958-1983), and accounting information (1959-1980). It also contains copies of the SNHS Backtrails Newsletter, promotional material for events, membership lists, and research materials for various projects related to the history of southern Nevada and Las Vegas.

Archival Collection

Dow Metals, Incorporated Records on the Basic Magnesium Project (BMI)

Identifier

MS-00242

Abstract

The Dow Metals, Incorporated Records on Basic Magnesium, Incorporated (1940-1951) contains reports and photographs pertaining to the Colorado River Commission of the Nevada Basic Magnesium Project, Las Vegas, Nevada.

Archival Collection

David G. Malcolm Papers

Identifier

MS-00252

Abstract

The David G. Malcolm Papers (1942-1971) contains information on Basic Magnesium, Incorporated (BMI), Nevada Gaming laws and regulations, and a motor home organization titled Vegas Vagabonds. Included are correspondence, original papers for the purchase of land for BMI, newspaper clippings, BMI newsletters, statistical data from the Chamber of Commerce, and miscellaneous gaming information.

Archival Collection

Coleen York Wilson oral history interview

Identifier

OH-03272

Abstract

Oral history interview with Coleen York Wilson conducted by Claytee D. White on June 4, 1996 for the African Americans in Las Vegas: a Collaborative Oral History Project. In this interview, Wilson talks about growing up in Fordyce, Arkansas before moving to Las Vegas, Nevada in 1953 at the age of eighteen. She mentions that her parents had moved to Nevada in 1940 to work at Basic Magnesium, Incorporated (BMI), living in a trailer before returning to Fordyce two years later. She then discusses moving to Las Vegas to join an older sister and relates that she did not remember any discrimination in seating or eating meals during her bus trip. After this, Wilson lists the jobs she held in Las Vegas before her retirement in 1984, including work at the Las Vegas Cleaners, serving as a school crossing guard, and working as a housekeeping supervisor at the Stardust Resort Hotel, the Hacienda Resort Hotel, and Circus Circus Hotel and Casino before taking a job at the Nevada Test Site. She also talks about her family, her church activities, and her regret at not attending college.

Archival Collection

J.W. (John) Campbell oral history interview

Identifier

OH-00327

Abstract

Oral history interview with J.W. (John) Campbell (born June 13, 1918 in Pioche, Nevada) conducted by Raymond Haft on February 19, 1979 for the Ralph Roske Oral History Project on Early Las Vegas. This interview covers the history of Nevada, including Mr. Campbell’s personal history. He discusses the Stewart Ranch, the Mormon Fort, swimming pools in Las Vegas, Nevada, and the above ground atomic tests. He also discusses the crash of Carole Lombard’s plane and the building of the Basic Magnesium Plant in Henderson, Nevada.

Archival Collection

Paul Norton oral history interview

Identifier

OH-03287

Abstract

Oral history interview with Paul Norton conducted by Sergio Pellegrino on April 3, 1981 for the Ralph Roske Oral History Project.

In this interview, Paul Norton discusses his life in Henderson, Nevada and Las Vegas, Nevada from 1952 onward. He shares details of his work at Basic Magnesium Inc. (BMI) and at mills around the Valley. Norton talks about his opposition of the MX missile, in contrast to his opinions about atomic testing in Nevada. He also discusses the businesses that operated from 1950 to 1980, how the Las Vegas Strip was constructed, details of Fremont Street and the I-15 freeway, and flooding that was particularly destructive in Henderson.

Archival Collection

Avril "Juanita" Simmons and Fred "Bubba" Simmons oral history interview

Identifier

OH-03385

Abstract

Oral history interview with Avril "Juanita" Simmons and Fred "Bubba" Simmons conducted by Claytee D. White on May 21, 1996 for the UNLV University Libraries Oral History Collection.

In this interview, husband and wife Bubba and Juanita Simmons talk about their separate moves from Fordyce, Arkansas to Las Vegas, Nevada in the 1940s and their impressions of the city after moving. Bubba shares stories of his employment at the Basic Magnesium, Inc. plant in Henderson and his experiences living in tents on the Westside, traveling to work with the help of Red Mitchell, and sharing living spaces with nine to ten other men. Juanita discusses her work as a family's caregiver and speaks to the kinds of occupations Black women obtained in Las Vegas at that time. The couple share stories of city life and the clubs, eateries, and shops that were present in the area.

Archival Collection

Thelma Aiken oral history interview

Identifier

OH-00013

Abstract

Oral history interview with Thelma Aiken (formerly Thelma C. Liggitt b. 1899) conducted by Patrica Gaydosh on April 05, 1976 for the Ralph Roske Oral History Project on Early Las Vegas. Born in Osceola, Iowa, Aiken discusses moving to Henderson in 1942. Aiken also offers in-depth descriptions of housing, schools, early above ground atomic tests, gambling, and the closing down of the Basic Magnesium (BMI) Plant in Nevada.

Archival Collection

John F. Cahlan oral history interview

Identifier

OH-00153

Abstract

Oral history interview with John Cahlan conducted by an unknown interviewer in 1975 for the Ralph Roske Oral History Project on Early Las Vegas. Cahlan discusses the Nevada Test Site and the role of Basic Magnesium for the atomic testing. Cahlan additionally discusses the image of Las Vegas, Nevada as the entertainment capital of the world and the work of journalism in shifting the image to the recreational aspects of the area, such as Lake Mead and Mount Charleston.

Archival Collection