Las Vegas Sun

March 28, 2024

EDITORIAL:

Las Vegas history museum need not be limited by official city limits

Old Fremont

LOUIS J. OAKES / Nevada State Museum / Nevada State Museum - Las Vegas

Two Las Vegas residents loiter around Fremont Street in this photo from the early 1920s. The Las Vegas Hotel and the Atherton Whisky can be seen in the background.

Under the idea that hope springs eternal, we offer this suggestion to proponents of a budding proposal to build a Las Vegas history museum: This is one where the various local governments of the valley should work together.

The governments don’t always play well together — the city of Las Vegas and Clark County are particularly prone to engaging in pointless turf battles — but they’d serve the community well by letting down their guards and joining forces to explore the museum concept.

The idea, which came up during a recent meeting of the Las Vegas Centennial Commission, is to fill a gap in the city’s museum offerings by building one specifically focusing on Las Vegas. As is, the valley is home to a Clark County museum, a Nevada natural history museum, the Mob Museum, the Neon Museum and others, but lacks one devoted to the city.

The proposal is certainly worth discussing — the more cultural offerings we can provide to local residents and visitors, the better. To their credit, Las Vegas Mayor Carolyn Goodman and City Councilman Cedric Crear, in a recent interview on KNPR, both committed to building a high-quality, world-class facility that would be a fitting attraction for Las Vegas.

Toward that goal, though, it would be a shame if the museum confined itself only to the portion of our history that played out within Las Vegas’ city limits. To present a full view, the scope should be broadened to the entire valley.

After all, the pasts of the county and cities are tightly interwoven, and each played an important role in shaping the valley into the vibrant, world-renowned community it has become. The gaming industry in Las Vegas gave rise to the Strip resorts of Clark County, which in turn created a symbiotic relationship that boosted the tourism industry of both. North Las Vegas provided an industrial base and helped the valley grow in the 1940s when Nellis Air Force Base went from a dusty outpost to a key defense installation. Boulder City was a godsend to the area in the Great Depression, as construction of Boulder Dam provided a vital infusion of jobs and economic activity. Henderson started as a mostly industrial area but grew into one of Nevada’s largest cities. And all of what we know today began with the natural springs that made the valley a prime area for Indigenous Americans and served as the starting point for our community’s journey from a spring-fed oasis in the desert to a global tourism destination.

If we want to build a serious museum, all of these facets need to be presented. It’s also critical to focus on the various ethnic communities that have combined to create the rich cultural diversity we enjoy here — indigenous peoples, the Historic Westside, Hispanic and Asian immigrants, etc.

Putting all of this history under one roof is a lot to bite off, no question. But doing it as an overview of the valley is the proper way to go in informing outsiders about our community and educating younger generations about their heritage.

Visitors to Las Vegas would certainly appreciate a 360-degree look. Most of them don’t see our community as a county and four municipalities operating as siloed units — they see the entire valley as “Las Vegas.” It would make little sense to present them with a view that encompassed just one of those entities.

Without a doubt, the potential for this venture is invigorating. We applaud the community leaders who brought forth the idea and we encourage them to keep talking.

We also urge them to bring the entire valley to the table, and for all involved to put provincial biases aside. If that happens, we can create a museum that the entire valley can be proud of.