Herman Jimerson and his younger sister Ruth Jimerson-Carter, along with her husband Leon Carter Jr., gathered on March 3, 2021, to talk about their memories and experiences growing up in West Las Vegas—the Westside.
OH-03746 contains additional interviews with the Carter family that are not transcribed in this document. Contact special.collections@unlv.edu for more information.
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From the Ralph Roske Oral History Project on Early Las Vegas, OH-01017. On February 26, 1980, collector Steven McKenzy interviewed Clark County Community College coordinator of rehabilitation, Autumn Keyes Ita (born December 8th, 1936 in Port-au-Prince, Haiti) at the Clark County Community College. This interview offers a personal historical account on home and family life in Las Vegas, Nevada. Autumn also discusses entertainers such as Wayne Newton and Sammy Davis, Jr., and the role that entertainment played in the development of Southern Nevada.
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In 1943, Cleophis Hill Williams was a teenager visiting her mother who had moved to Las Vegas. For most of her young life she had lived with her parents in Muskogee, Oklahoma and Paul Spur/Douglas, Arizona. The same year that she visited Las Vegas, she met her future husband Tom Williams, with whom she had nine children, all born and raised on the Westside. Tom worked construction and built their first home on G Street. For Cleophis, she focused her life on raising her children and, whenever possible, finding some precious time to read.
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Interview with Nathaniel Whaley by John Grygo on March 6 and March 8, 2013. Whaley talks about growing up in Las Vegas and his adult life on the Westside. Nathaniel had a successful high school career as an accomplished athlete and Eagle Scout in the first black Boy Scout troop in the area. Nathaniel would go on to have a fruitful career as a mason and contractor, literally helping build the city of Las Vegas.
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Photographer's notations: Easter Parade at Rubens '65, L.T. Mason at Doolittle & Malvern, Bunny Hop at El Moroco '65 by Mens ?, Mr. & Mrs. Simmons 308 Jackson, Girls dying eggs at Doolittle '65.
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Groom and Bride, Q. B. and Elouise join guests at their wedding reception at the New Town Tavern. Annotation: "1957, Elouise and Q. B.'s wedding reception in the New Town Tavern".
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Interview with Stella Parson and Reverend Claude H. Parson conducted by Maurice R. Page on February 26, 1977. Stella came as a child to Las Vegas in 1942, while Claude arrived in 1952 at Nellis Air Force Base. As educators, the Parsons discuss the integration of schools in Las Vegas.
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Melvin Sanders talks about growing up on the Westside as the son of a pastor/auto detailing business owner. He recalls tensions and the joy of his upbringing during the 1960s. He tells a story about working for State Gaming Board at age 16, going to college on a football scholarship, and an encounter with Sonny Liston. Sanders and his brothers inherited his father's auto detailing business.
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Black and white photograph of Carver House Hotel and Casino, featuring a view of the marquees, circa 1961.
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