On March 10, 1981, Rebecca (Beth) Bonenfant interviewed Ruth Gust (born 1905 in Mokane, Missouri) about her life in Nevada. Gust first talks about her original move to Las Vegas in 1947 and some of the first businesses that existed at the time. In this brief interview, she also talks about the first casinos, the culinary union, her employment as a server, and Mt. Charleston.
Men harvesting celery on the Iki ranch near Logandale, Nevada.
Transcribed Notes: Bureau of Reclamation typed notes appended to back of photo: Boulder Canyon Project, Nevada Region 3 "Pickers" at work harvesting celery plants on the IKI Ranch near Logandale, Nevada. Raising celery plants is a relatively new type of irrigated specialty farming in southern Nevada. Water from the Muddy River is used to irrigate the fields. Twenty million celery plants were harvested from the 60 acres planted this season. The plants were shipped to the neighboring western states.
Black and white image of an abandoned steam tractor. Description from Special Collections accompanying image: "According to the story told, this was one of the first three tractors ever built. One was shipped here to Eldorado Canyon to move ore and one was shipped to Death Valley for the Borax works (it is still in Death Valley). The other one was sent to South America to a mine. The one in Death Valley supposedly worked out fairly well being used mostly in sand. This one, it is told, was not too successful. The drive mechanism was by way of teeth on the inside of the big black wheels, driven by a pinion gear at the top. Small stones fell into the wheel and stuck in the grease necessitating frequent stops to remove the stones. The driver stood on a platform at the rear. May 1947."
Black and white image of the following individuals signing official contracts and deeds from the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation to Boulder City: Standing, from left to right: Joe Manix, Thomas White, M.D., Albert Franklin, and Morgan Sweeney; seated, from left to right: Lorraine Kautz, A. B. West, Robert Broadbent, and Milton N. Nathanson.
On April 5, 1976, collector Broderick T. Ackerman interviewed Michael Miller who has lived in Nevada since 1910. In this interview, Mister Miller speaks about his time working on ranches and as a trapper in Northern Nevada. He also speaks about his time running nightclubs in Las Vegas, Nevada, as well as seeing much growth throughout his time living in Las Vegas.
Landscape architect Jack W. Zunino is a Fellow of the American Society of Landscape Architects (ASLA) and president of the Society's local chapter. He has designed many of Southern Nevada's iconic landscapes: the Rio Hotel, the M Resort, the Desert Demonstration Gardens, the gardens at Ethel M. Chocolates, the Cactus Avenue overpass, and most notably, the Springs Preserve. He's also a third-generation Nevadan from Elko, grandson of Italian immigrants who met and married in the Silver State and raised their large family in that Nevada mining town. The product of Elko schools, he graduated from the University of Utah in psychology and Utah State University in landscape architecture while earning his tuition as a road construction laborer. In this interview, Zunino tells of his employment with G.C. Wallace Engineering and JMA architects before founding his own landscape architecture firm in 1989. He speaks to the importance of planners and landscape architects on Southern Nevada's conser
Bonnie (Henley) Gragson was born February 8, 1913, in Mansfield, Arkansas, to James H. Henley and Elizabeth L. Cockrall Henley. She attended school in Mansfield, and married to Oran K. Gragson on December 21, 1934. The couple arrived in Nevada Christmas morning of that year, where Oran was employed in the construction of Hoover Dam. Except for brief periods in the 1930's when Oran was employed in highway construction in nearby Nevada cities, they lived in Las Vegas for more than 70 years.
On March 25, 1981, Brenda Sue Cody interviewed local business owner, Charles Alvin (Todd) Early, Jr. (born in Yerington, Nevada) at his Central Credit office in Las Vegas, Nevada. The interview covers the history of Nevada. During the interview, Charles discusses mining, the building of Boulder (Hoover) Dam, and travelling by train as the central mode of transportation, in the early days. He also discusses a quick and easy divorce process and gambling as the main tourist attractions in Nevada.
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.