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From the Ralph Roske Oral History Project on Early Las Vegas collection OH-00897. On February 27, 1977, collector Michael K. Ericksen interviewed his uncle, schoolteacher, Jack E. Howard, (born June 18th, 1920 in Dewey, Oklahoma) in his home in Overton, Nevada. This interview covers Mr. Howard’s personal experiences and recollections about Southern Nevada. Mr. Howard’s wife, Mrs. Helen Howard, is also present during this interview, which offers a thirty year local overview.
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On March 8, 1975, John Neal interviews Ruth Hazard (birthdate unknown, 67 years old) in her home about her memory of how Southern Nevada has changed economically. Hazard goes in-depth about her knowledge of municipal politics and her husband’s friendships with a number of Nevadan politicians. Hazard also briefly talks about her fascination with the above-ground atomic tests, speakeasies during Prohibition, and local anxieties about Las Vegas “losing its identity.”
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Oral history interview with Margarita Rebollal conducted by Marcela Rodriguez-Campo and Barbara Tabach on February 28, 2019 for the Latinx Voices of Southern Nevada Oral History Project. Margarita Rebollal is a lifelong community organizer and advocate for Latinx civic engagement and rights. She shares what it was like to grow up in Ponce, Puerto Rico and shares her childhood memories growing up on the island with her siblings. Rebollal also discusses the death of her father and the eventual move of her family to New York City, New York. She also recalls her education and teen years. Later, she would move to California, and eventually find her way to Las Vegas, Nevada in 1996. Rebollal discusses her passion for civic engagement and the many years serving the community, being most well-known for her role in founding the Puerto Rican Association of Las Vegas and the Hispanic International Day Parade of Nevada. Rebollal also discusses her campaign for the Ward 1 Las Vegas City Council seat.
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With the explosive growth of the Las Vegas Valley over the past 30 years, it is rare to find someone who has deep battle born roots that go back to the early mining days of Nevada. Nancy Cummings-Schmidt is an example of that rare kind of gem. As a fourth generation Nevadan, her family came to the state in the 1800s form Ireland and England. Looking to capitalize off of the mining boom in Virginia City, they transitioned to ranching. She spent her first years in Reno and when her father went off to fight in the Second World War, her mother moved to Herlong, California and sent her to live with her grandparents. Upon moving to Vegas for fourth grade, her mother remarried and worked for the Las Vegas Sun while Nancy attended the Fifth Street Grammar School and later became a member Las Vegas High School’s first graduating class in 1956. After graduating from high school, Nancy invested in the spirit of wanderlust as it carried her to study theatre at Texas Christian University (which sh
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In business since 1980, Henry Sanchez, owner-operator of Diamond Metal Works, a sheetmetal fabrications and welding shop, is reflective of many young Hispanics who each year are starting their own businesses. Born in Cheyenne, Wyoming, Sanchez graduated from Basic High School in Henderson and served his 4-year apprenticeship with Sheetmetal Local 88 in Las Vegas.
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