The Southern Nevada Gem and Mineral Society Records (1950-2024) contain the records of the Clark County Gem Collectors, Las Vegas Gem Collectors, and the current Southern Nevada Gem and Mineral Society. The collection contains articles of incorporation, by-laws, membership directories, meeting minutes, correspondence, financial records, show paperwork, and award certificates. Also included are photographs of the organizations since the 1970s and digital scans of Gem Times and The Polished Slab newsletters.
The Harry Hayden Whiteley Architectural Records are comprised of architectural records (1931-1970) created and/or maintained by the American architect Harry Hayden Whiteley and/or his architectural firm, known as Harry Hayden Whiteley and Associates. This collection includes 30.21 linear feet of materials including 45 items from over 30 projects. The collection focuses on his work in the Las Vegas and Reno, Nevada areas. The materials feature both architectural drawings and project files. Architectural drawings include pencil and ink on tracing paper preliminary sketches and mounted artist’s renderings used for presentations and promotional materials. Project files include project correspondence, photographs, and structural calculations. The drawings also contain work from the architect Paul Revere Williams. The collection includes architectural drawings for hotels, shopping plazas, residential developments, and office buildings.
The Hank Greenspun Papers date from 1962 to 1966 and are comprised of draft manuscripts of the books Where I Stand: Records of a Reckless Man written by Hank Greenspun and Alex Pelle, and drafts of the manuscript Rebel with Many Causes, originally entitled Idol Smasher, a biography written about Hank Greenspun by Ed Reid.
The Squires Family Photographs document the Squires Family and the development of the Las Vegas Valley in Nevada from approximately 1860 to 1980, with a bulk of the photographs depicting people and events from 1900 to 1950. The photographs depict the Euro-American settlement and growth of Las Vegas, Nevada; traveling and exploration of Southern Nevada and the Southwestern United States; the Hoover (Boulder) Dam and the Colorado River; clubs and social groups; and the Squires Family, especially prominent newspaper editor and publisher Charles Pember (C. P. or “Pop”) Squires, Delphine “Mom” Anderson Squires, and their children.
The Leon Rockwell Photograph Collection (approximately 1850-1979) contains black-and-white photographic prints, negatives, and slides, as well as postcards and tintypes. The images portray the lives of the Rockwell family in southern Nevada, their travels throughout New York and the western United States, and their immediate and extended family members. Also included are images of the volunteer and early firefighters of Las Vegas, Nevada, the Rockwell's family cabin at Mount Charleston, Nevada, and the Rockwell family home in Las Vegas. Portions of the images are from the Rockwell family travels across Nevada, Utah, New Mexico, Arizona, and California and depict historic locations such as Cove Fort, Utah; Rhyolite, Nevada; and Pueblo Grande de Nevada.
Benny Binion seated at poker table with his hands folded and facing camera. The photograph being taken during Horseshoe World Series of Poker circa 1980.
Chill Wills (center) and Benny Binion (right) standing on Fremont street in front of the Horseshoe Hotel & Casino. (1968) . Stamp on back of photo: "Allen Photographers. Inc. Post Office Box 4253 Las Vegas, Nevada 89106". Date stamped "April 17, 1968".
Gus Mancuso (Ronald Bernard Mancuso), a talented impresario, was born in Spangler, Pennsylvania in 1933. Gus grew up in Hastings, Pennsylvania as the youngest of nine children. His father, an immigrant from Italy, Joseph Mancuso, owned multiple businesses and his mother, Josephine Ceranni toiled as a stay at home mother. Despite his father’s businesses, the family struggled financially. By the eighth grade Gus moved to Rochester, New York, where his mother joined him, after his parents separated.