Dennis McBride grew up in Boulder City, Nevada, and received both his BA and MA from UNLV. He is well-known as an expert in the history of Hoover Dam and has done several histories of Boulder City. He has chronicled and collected the history of the LGBTQ community in Las Vegas since the late 1970s, and his work culminated in the manuscript "Life in the Neon Closet: A History of Gay Las Vegas" published in 2017.
American photographer Glenn Augustus Davis was born March 22, 1894 in Portland, Oregon. He attended school in Oregon and Washington prior to working in the lumber camps and saw mills of Washington and British Columbia. He served in the US Army from 1915 to 1920. He was a member of the American Expeditionary Forces (AEF) on the Western Front in France during World War I. In the years following the war, Davis returned to the US and worked as a cook, a cotton grower, and a seaman before following his passion for photography.
Phil Tobin with neighbor Jack Summers at an unknown location. Mountains are visible in the background. In 1931, as a freshman Assemblyman, Phil Tobin introduced a bill to legalize gambling in Nevada. A Humboldt County rancher and buckaroo, the 29-year old had no interest in gambling himself. Instead, he correctly believed legalized gambling would benefit the public and especially schools thanks to tax revenues. At the time, illicit gambling houses were thriving in Las Vegas, and with Hoover Dam slated to begin construction 40 miles away, many feared the increased Federal presence associated with the Dam construction effort would lead to a clamp-down. The measure passed. After serving out his term, Tobin returned to ranch life for good.
The William V. Wright Collection of Nevada Postcards contains picture postcards of towns and buildings in Nevada from 1900 to 1975. The postcards primarily depict casinos, hotels, and other attractions in Las Vegas, Nevada and Reno, Nevada. The postcards also depict post offices, landscapes, mines, and the Hoover (Boulder) Dam.
On February 27, 1977, Roger Jablonski interviewed Betty Ham Dokter (born 1922 in Las Vegas, Nevada) about her life in Southern Nevada. Dokter first talks about her upbringing and education in Las Vegas before describing church activity and the first casino properties that were built. She later talks about presidential visits, economic changes in Nevada, the construction of Hoover Dam, and some of the social changes in Las Vegas. The latter part of the interview covers the topics of racial minorities, environmental changes, early grocery stores and movie theaters, and social clubs. The interview concludes with a brief discussion on Mt. Charleston.
On March 12, 1975, Anne Cope interviewed Tropicana Hotel decorator, Lyla Joy Ford (born December 12, 1928 in Las Vegas, Nevada) in her home in Las Vegas. During the interview, Ford discusses social life in Las Vegas in the early days. She mentions the Palace Theatre, which became the Guild and the El Portal Theatre. She recalls Sammy Davis Jr. performing at the El Rancho but states that people of color were not allowed in the audience. She remembers the Helldorado Parade as a big western celebration. Her family used to own the Old Ranch, also known as the Stewart Ranch. She states that the railroad, Hoover Dam, and the Basic Magnesium Plant brought money into Las Vegas. She also recalls the atomic tests and witnessing the city’s gradual transformation from a small farming town to a major gambling city.
Nevada exhibits of the AZ v. CA case before the U. S. Supreme Court. The exhibits include topographic maps, photomaps, excerpts from correspondence and other published documents, and charts.