Things to do / Travel Guide
The drawback to a city that is devoted to continually reinventing itself every few years is that very little remains of Las Vegas' 100-year history that hasn't been demolished, flooded, or destroyed by fire. In spite of all the losses, however, a few monuments attesting to the city's great history have escaped the wrecking ball. If you're looking for historical Las Vegas, here's some of what's left:
Mormon Fort - Long before the casinos, the mafia, and mega resort mogul Steve Wynn, Las Vegas was a desert stop on a trail primarily used by settlers and monthly mail runs from Salt Lake City to Los Angeles. A network of natural springs provided water to support the Piute Indians in the area and to rejuvenate travelers along the way. In 1855, the Mormon Church decided the location was perfect for a settlement. The adobe-style Old Mormon Fort is the oldest non-tribal structure found in southern Nevada.
Golden Gate Casino - Located downtown at 1 Fremont Street, the Golden Gate Casino is the oldest hotel and casino still in operation in Las Vegas. The hotel originally opened in January, 1906, under the name Hotel Nevada. Back then, room and board set you back a whopping $1 a day! For the same buck, you can get a shrimp cocktail there today. Over the years, the Golden Gate became the site of a number of Las Vegas firsts, including the first telephone.
Railroad Cottages - These cottages can be found in the national historic district between Second and Fourth streets and Garces and Clark avenues. The cottages were designed in classic bungalow style and were used as living quarters for railroad workers in the early 1910s. Out of the original 64 built, only 12 cottages remain. While in this neighborhood, you can also see a number of Spanish Colonial, Tudor Revival, and bungalow homes built in the 1930s. The Fifth Street School, listed on the National Register of Historical Places, is also located here. One of the original railroad bungalows was relocated to Heritage Street, a re-created and fascinating street where several historic houses have been restored.
El Portal Theater - Opened by former Las Vegas Mayor Ernie Cragin and William Pike in 1928, the theater, located downtown at 310 Fremont Street, was the city's first movie house. The quaint hacienda-style exterior is all that remains of the original historic architecture. The interior of the theater has been completely removed, but, in El Portal's former glory days, it used to include box seats with leather chairs for the more upscale patrons.
Historical Sites in Las Vegas, Lake Mead and the Nevada desert
Historical-Sites
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