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Oral history interview with Clarence Ray conducted by Eleanor L. Walker in 1991 for the African American in Las Vegas: a Collaborative Oral History Project. In this interview, Ray provides details of his ancestry and upbringing, his education, and race relations in the western United States before 1930. He then moves on to his first visit to Las Vegas, Nevada in 1922, and his movements before settling permanently in the 1940s. He explains that the main source of employment for the relatively small Black population during the 1920s and early 1930s was the railroad, but a number were also in business. Mr. Ray provides thumbnail sketches of many of the early residents, and is particularly informative about "Mammy" Pinkston, Mary Nettles, the Stevens family, and the Ensley family. Systemic racial discrimination against Blacks developed in southern Nevada during the 1930s, and Mr. Ray provides some useful details on this along with his discussion of his career in gaming and his social and political activities.
Archival Collection
The Fred and Maurine Wilson Photograph Collection depicts the Wilson Family, events, and locations in Las Vegas, Nevada and the Southwestern United States from approximately 1860 to 1990. The photographs primarily depict early Las Vegas, including the Mormon Fort and Kiel Ranch; mines, towns, and railroads in Southern Nevada; the construction and planning of the Hoover (Boulder) Dam on the Colorado River; and the Wilson Family. The photographs also include prominent Las Vegas families such as the Park Family, aerial photographs of the city, landmarks on Fremont Street and downtown Las Vegas, and desert landscapes.
Archival Collection
Tecopa Railroad #1 2-6-2T at BLW at Tecopa, California. (interchange with Tonopah & Tidewater). Stamp on the back of the photo reads: "Mallory Hope Ferrell P. O. Box 2837 Peachtree City, GA 30269."
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Tecopa Railroad (1910-1932) #1 2-6-2T BLW 1909 #34089. Noonday Mine, near Tecopa, Calif. Stamp on back of photo: "Mallory Hope Ferrell P. O. Box 2837 Peachtree City, GA 30269."
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Tecopa Railroad #1 2-6-2T. Noonday Mine, Tecopa, California. Stamp on the back of the photo reads: "Mallory Hope Ferrell P. O. Box 2837 Peachtree City, GA 30269."
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