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LAS VEGAS ARCHIVE

Historical Photography & Architectural Research

Recommended Las Vegas History Books (Amazon)

Curated Historical Hardcovers, Architecture Books & Classic Vegas Cinema
Las Vegas Historical Resort Encyclopedia & Architectural Index: Browse Casinos, Architects & Landmarks
Flamingo Hotel & Casino (1946): Opened December 26, 1946 on Highway 91 by Billy Wilkerson and Benjamin "Bugsy" Siegel, introducing Mid-Century Modern luxury resort architecture and the pink neon champagne tower to the Las Vegas Strip.
Sands Hotel & Casino (1952): Opened December 15, 1952 and designed by architect Wayne McAllister, famed for the Copa Room showroom, the 1960 Rat Pack summit (Frank Sinatra, Dean Martin, Sammy Davis Jr.), and Martin Stern Jr.’s cylindrical 1965 hotel tower.
Stardust Resort & Casino (1958): Opened July 2, 1958 by Tony Cornero and John Factor with Kermit Wayne’s 216-foot YESCO atomic-age neon sign and the Lido de Paris showroom.
Dunes Hotel & Country Club (1955): Opened May 23, 1955 at Flamingo Road and the Las Vegas Strip, featuring the 30-foot fiberglass Sultan statue, 180-foot YESCO neon sign, and the diamond-shaped Top O’ the Strip tower.
Caesars Palace (1966): Opened August 5, 1966 by Jay Sarno and designed by Melvin Grossman with Greco-Roman colonnades, cypress trees, and dancing fountains.
Fremont Street (Glitter Gulch): Surveyed in May 1905 as the railroad town’s main thoroughfare, evolving from the 1906 Hotel Nevada and 1931 Hoover Dam boom into world-famous neon-lit "Glitter Gulch."
Golden Nugget (1946): Opened August 30, 1946 at Fremont and Second Streets by Guy McAfee and Billy Wilkerson with a 100-foot YESCO neon sign and Victorian gambling hall interior.
El Rancho Vegas (1941): Opened April 3, 1941 at Sahara Avenue and Highway 91 by Thomas Hull and architect Wayne McAllister as the very first resort hotel on the Las Vegas Strip.
Sahara Hotel & Casino (1952): Opened October 7, 1952 by Milton Prell on the site of Club Bingo, featuring a Moroccan oasis motif, the Casbar Theatre lounge, and the Congo Room.
Wilbur Clark’s Desert Inn (1950): Opened April 24, 1950 with an 18-hole championship golf course, the Sky Room panorama lounge, and Howard Hughes’s 1966 ninth-floor penthouse residence.
Riviera Hotel & Casino (1955): Opened April 20, 1955 as the Las Vegas Strip’s first nine-story high-rise resort, headlined on opening night by Liberace.
Tropicana Resort & Casino (1957): Opened April 4, 1957 by Ben Jaffe as the "Tiffany of the Strip," famed for its 60-foot Tulip Fountain, Tiffany stained-glass ceiling, and the Folies Bergère revue.
Binion’s Horseshoe (1951): Opened in 1951 by Benny Binion at Fremont and Ogden in the former Apache Hotel & Eldorado Club, birthplace of the 1970 World Series of Poker.
Moulin Rouge Hotel & Casino (1955): Opened May 24, 1955 on West Bonanza Road as Las Vegas’s first racially integrated luxury resort-casino, featuring Betty Willis’s iconic neon script marquee.
Historical Photograph