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From the artesian wells once used by trading parties during the frontier days to its current place as a worldwide tourist destination, Las Vegas history spans Hoover Dam, World War II, the postwar years with the rise of organized crime, Howard Hughes, and the Nevada test site.

LIBRARY CATALOG Books for Adults Fly on the wall by Odessky, Dick. Recollections of Las Vegas´ good old, bad old days   Books for Teens The journal of Douglas Allen Deeds : the Donner Party expedition by Philbrick, W. R From the My Name is America series - Douglas Deeds, a fifteen-year-old orphan, keeps a journal of his travels by wagon train as a member of the ill-fated Donner Party, which became stranded in the Sierra Nevada mountains in the winter of 1846-47.   Books for Older Children Bag of lucky rice : a novel by Reichart, George. Rusty, an old prospector, and Lo Fat and Lee, a Chinese father and son living in the small mining town of Rhyolite, Nevada, become friends and share the excitement of finding gold in the Amargosa Desert.   Books for Younger Children S is for silver : a Nevada alphabet by Coerr, Eleanor With the focus on letters of the alphabet, learn about the state of Nevada.   More books for: Adults Teens Older Children Younger Children   FOR MORE LIBRARY RESOURCES TRY: Las Vegas and History Nevada and History

RESEARCH DATABASES  America the Beautiful Find information about each state including history, geography, economy, culture, government and profiles of major figures in history. Includes images of state flags, bird and seal. Also find out about American presidents, Native American tribes. Search by timeline!  Encyclopedia Americana All the normal encyclopedia stuff, plus biographies, current events, and newspaper and magazine articles  Encyclopedia Americana All the normal encyclopedia stuff, plus biographies, current events, and newspaper and magazine articles  Encyclopedia of the States The facts and details of every state in the U.S., including the District of Columbia and U.S. dependencies. Entries cover the geography, history, politics, economy, and other facts about each state.  General Reference Center Gold Magazines, newspaper articles and almanacs by subject or keyword. Find the articles and information you need on almost any topic!  Historical Statistics of the United States Historical Statistics of the United States makes access to five sorts of US Statistics easy! Find Population, Work and Welfare, Economic Structure and Performance, Economic Sectors, and Governance and International Relations easy!  History Resource Center: US Provides integrated access to over 1,000 primary documents, more than 30,000 reference articles, and over 65 full-text journals covering themes, events, individuals, and periods in U.S. history from pre-Colonial times to the present.  Las Vegas Age Read about early Las Vegas history straight from the source! Full digital images of the Las Vegas Age Newspaper - the original Las Vegas newspaper from 1905 to 1924! Digitized from the print copies from the Special Collections of the Las Vegas-Clark County Library District.  Los Angeles Times 1881-1986 Search for full-text and full-image Los Angeles Times articles from 1881-1986. The collection includes digital reproductions of every page from every issue - cover to cover - in downloadable PDF® files.  Online Nevada Encyclopedia This multimedia encyclopedia offers articles on Nevada's history and peoples, natural history, arts and culture and business and the economy. Also includes the history and growth of gaming in the state.  Sanborn Historical Maps Search more than 660,000 large-scale maps of more than 12,000 American towns and cities. Because these maps are in electronic form, one may easily manipulate the maps, magnify and zoom in on specific locations, as well as layer maps from different years.  zLas Vegas Review Journal Find articles from the Las Vegas Review Journal, back to 12/2/1990! RESOURCES IN YOUR LIBRARY  Jack I Gardner Special Collections Room The Las Vegas history collection includes books, a biographical clipping file, microfilm, maps and a newspaper index. The gaming collection provides an overview of the gaming industry and the casinos.  Jean Ford Collection for Citizen Action and Community Building The Jean Ford Special Collections for Citizen Action and Community Building was established to foster citizen participation in grass roots community and political processes. The collection provides resources to encourage citizen participation and to empower individuals or groups as they develop their agendas. DIGITAL COLLECTIONS  Arborglyphs on Peavine This database, created by arborglyph researcher Joxe Mallea-Olaetxe, documents and interprets 541 arborglyphs carved by 108 sheepherders in five aspen groves on Peavine Mountain in Reno and includes photographs and/or video clips for about half the trees.  Basque Posters A sampling of 41 colorful and interesting posters advertising festivals in the Basque Country and the United States, as well as art exhibits and conferences. Several of the posters depict Basque clothing and customs; all display the creativity and vigorous spirit of Euskaldunak, the Basque people.  Before Gaming : Celebrating Las Vegas' Centennial The UNLV Libraries has designed a concise collection of digital photographs that feature some of the earliest pictures available of Las Vegas. Many of these 37 photographs are from the private collections of families who arrived in Las Vegas around the time of its incorporation in 1905: Helen Stewart, Walter Bracken, William Ferron, Ed Von Tobel, and Fred and Maurine Wilson. A short narrative is provided to assist in browsing the collection, and/or the digital exhibit can be searched by prearranged topics.  Early Las Vegas Digital Collection Pictures and primary source documents, from the UNLV Special Collection  Fourth Ward School Museum and Archives Virginia City Staff and graduates of the school 1876-1936.  Historic Aerial Photographs The 61 images in this collection were taken by Forest Service and Soil Conservation Service photographers who hung their cameras out of planes in consecutive summers in 1938 and 1939 as part of the forest and soil survey work carried out during the siting of the Mount Rose Highway.  History of Medicine These 672 images were selected from 7,000+ photographs that relate to the University of Nevada School of Medicine; the Nevada State Medical Association; and the Reno Surgical Society. They document over 100 years of healthcare for Nevada's citizens, including 19th-century frontier military medicine in the Great Basin.  Images of Lake Tahoe Lake Tahoe has been called the jewel of the Sierra. The 900+ images in this collection represent only a small portion of the photographic images of Lake Tahoe held by the Special Collections Department of the UNR Library.  Just Passin' Through The 170+ images in this collection document places and activities along the Lincoln and Victory highways as they cross Nevada, eastern California and western Utah, as well as Reno's Transcontinental Highways Exposition of 1927 celebrating the completion of the two roads.  La Baskonia La Baskonia or La Vasconia was a Spanish language journal published from 1893 until 1943, that depicted the vitality and creativity of the Basque community in Argentina during the late 19th and early 20th centuries.  Las Vegas Age Read about early Las Vegas history straight from the source! Full digital images of the Las Vegas Age Newspaper - the original Las Vegas newspaper from 1905 to 1924! Digitized from the print copies from the Special Collections of the Las Vegas-Clark County Library District.  Las Vegas and Water in the West The planning and construction of Hoover Dam is the central and defining phenomenon of the history presented by this digital project.  Las Vegas Scrapbook This scrapbook was created by the Las Vegas - Clark County Library.  Local History Projects Henderson Libraries local history project includes photos from Basic Magnesium Industries and St. Rose de Lima Hospital.  Memphis Belle Collection After completing her 25th successful bombing mission, The Memphis Belle and her crew were retired from active service in the European Theatre and sent to the United States for a tour of Army Air Forces establishments. The BMI Plant in Henderson was one of the stops on this tour, as the magnesium produced at the plant was used in the bombs which The Memphis Belle deployed during her bombing missions.  Nevada Agricultural Publications This collection includes more than 1,000 publications of the Agricultural Experiment Station and Nevada Cooperative Extension, and will eventually include a range of materials that highlight the history of agriculture in Nevada. 1888-present  Nevada Architectural Archives The 4 sets of architectural plans in this collection are but a fraction of the hundreds of architectural drawings from significant Nevada architects and architectural firms that are housed in the Special Collections Department of the UNR Library.  Nevada in Maps Historical and contemporary maps presenting topographic, geologic, and mining themes.  Nevada Test Site Oral History Project The Nevada Test Site Oral History Project documents the remembered past of persons affiliated with and affected by the Nevada Test Site during the era of Cold War nuclear testing. Nearly 200 full-text searchable transcripts and audio clips are available in this digital collection.  Oroitzapenak Memories: Basque Oral History Project Rich collection of oral histories of women and men from Idaho, Oregon, and Nevada.  Pomona Public Library Pomona digital collection of photographes searched using the key word "nevada" found 331 items.  Reifschneider Collection This collection contains 275 images of plants and trees taken in northern Nevada and the Lake Tahoe region by botanist and nature writer Olga Reifschneider from the 1940s-70s; it presents an expansive view of the botanical life of this region and is exclusively devoted to native plants.  Sagebrush Vernacular Sagebrush Vernacular is an exhibition of 120 photographs selected from approximately 500 photographs of rural Nevada architecture taken by advanced photography students from the University of Nevada, Reno.  Sheep Industry of Northern Nevada Sheep have always played an important role in the economic history of Nevada. This collection of 539 photos document almost 80 years of the sheep industry in Northern Nevada, and accompanies the Sheepherders of Northern Nevada online exhibit.  Showgirls No other icon epitomizes Las Vegas like the showgirl. While Las Vegas has become known primarily as a gambling resort, in fact its enteritainment is as important to its tourist industry as gambling.  Southern Nevada and Las Vegas History in Maps This is a collection of maps dating from the 17th century to the present, including significant collections concerning the exploration of the American West, the American Southwest, Nevada, and Southern Nevada.  Southern Nevada Maps This collection contains USGS Topographic Maps and US Army Corps of Engineer maps of various locations in Southern Nevada, dating from 1945 to 1984.  Special Collections Photograph Collection The 800+ images in this collection are but a fraction of the more than 200,000 images housed in the Special Collections Department of the UNR Library that document life in Nevada and the surrounding region from the 1860's to the present.  Tahoe Resources The 145 items in this collection are a variety of streaming videos, special reports, historic documents and other locally-held resources intended to complement the content of the Tahoe Research, Scholarship and Outreach website.  The Buckaroos in Paradise Collection The Buckaroos in Paradise Collection presents documentation of a Nevada cattle-ranching community, with a focus on the family-run Ninety-Six Ranch. The documentation was largely the work of the Paradise Valley Folklife Project (1978-1982), a research initiative conducted by the American Folklife Center at the Library of Congress. This collection presents 41 motion pictures and 28 sound recordings that tell the story of life and work on the Ninety-Six Ranch and of its cowboys, known in the region as buckaroos.  The First 100 years A timeline look at the first 100 years 1905-2005 of Las Vegas.  UNR Artwork Collection This collection contains 281 paintings in the Special Collections Department of the UNR Library and features work by Western artists, including Maynard Dixon, Theodore Waddell, Will James, and Lorenzo Latimer, as well as Mildred Lane, Hildegard Herz, and Minerva Pierce, all of whom were founding members of Reno's Latimer Art Club.  UNR Campus Images This collection of over 1,700 images reflect the University of Nevada, Reno's history from its founding in Elko to its present location and growing campus. The collection is the result of a collaboration between various campus entities that have contributed either historical or current images of UNR.  UNR University Archives Documents The 47 historic documents in this collection include the early annual and biennial reports of the Board of Regents, some of which also include reports from the UNR president and its comptroller.  UWM Digital Map Collection Digital maps of Nevada and California  Welcome Home Howard or "Whatever became of the daring aviator?" The exhibit draws from the Howard Hughes collections housed in the UNLV Libraries Special Collections, particularly from the files of Hughes PR director Dick Hannah. The exhibit focuses on Hughes the Aviator popularized in the current Hollywood film by Martin Scorsese. The exhibit also draws on unique unpublished documentation and interviews with Hughes.  White Pines News The paper was printed between 1868-1906. This collection currently covers 1881-1886. WEB SITES  American Association for State and Local History The national organization that provides support and leadership for those who preserve and interpret state and local history.  Central Nevada Emigrant Trail Association The history of the Nevada section of the California Emigrant Trail that went across Nevada near the Humboldt River. Includes maps, photos, and a reading list.  Daily Territorial Enterprise Newspaper CLAN Digital Newspaper Collection  Flicker - Las Vegas Photos Looking for current or vintage photos of Las Vegas? Flicker host over 1.7 million photos.  History of the Las Vegas Strip Scroll down to read a history of the Strip - which hotel was first? What was the first motel?  Springs Preserve The Springs Preserve served as the original source of water for Native Americans living in the Las Vegas Valley thousands of years ago, and later for travelers on the Old Spanish Trail and Mormons who came to settle the west. The site was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1978. The Las Vegas Valley Water District recently opened the Preserve to the public. On of the attractions is the Springs Preserve Library. The Preserve Library houses a small collection of items directly relating to the Southwest (animals, plants, geology, etc.), conservation, culture, and sustainable living. The Springs Preserve Library is not a part of the Las Vegas Clark County Library District, but has contracted with the Las Vegas Clark County Library District, to make their collection visible in the LVCCLD library catalog. The Preserve Library is open to the public, and is free. However, it is not a circulating library. You are welcome to visit the library and use the materials there, but you cannot check their library items out. The Preserve Library is open 7 days a week, from 10 am - 6 pm. When you stop at the entrance to the Preserve, tell them you need a free ticket for the library. The Springs Preserve Library is located at: The Springs Preserve 333 S Valley View Blvd. Las Vegas, NV 89107  The History Channel: Harold Ickes dedicating Hoover Dam Hear the actual speech that "opened" Hoover Dam in 1935!  The US 50 - Nevada The US50 has provided a world class website consisting of concise, important and meaningful information about each of the 50 states in our great country.  Virtual Museum Tours through the Department of Cultural Affairs Discover Nevada History through virtual tours offered through the Department of Cultural Afairs. Features tours of Nevada's lost city museum, Native Nevadans, etc.. LOCAL RESOURCES  Boulder City/ Hoover Dam Museum The Boulder City/Hoover Dam Museum tells the story of the Boulder Canyon Project as it was experienced by the men and women who braved the desolation of the Southern Nevada desert to build Hoover Dam and Boulder City.  Classic Las Vegas History A local organization helping to preserve the 20th Century Las Vegas. Lots of great photos and stories in blog format.  Discover Nevada History The Archives preserve the records of the government of the State of Nevada going back to 1851, including such records as the Historical and Political Data of Carson County, Utah Territory, Nevada Territorial Records, Supreme Court Records, and State Legislative Records.  Friends of the Fort Information on the history and archeology of the Old Las Vegas Mormon Fort, the oldest permanent structure in Las Vegas. The web site gives a detailed history of the Fort, including information about the area prior to the Fort's establishment, the explorations of John C. Fremont in the area, the Mormon settlement, then its uses as a ranch afterwards. The web site is maintained by the Friends of the Fort, a nonprofit organization.  Las Vegas Centennial Official Website Links to all sorts of information about the history of Las Vegas  Local History The story of Las Vegas as told through the pages of thr Las Vegas Sun  Nellis Air Force Base - History and Overview A brief history of the air base  Neon Nights This online virtual tour on the State of Nevada's Division of Museums and History web site presents the history of the neon sign, the important role the neon sign has played in Nevada history and its impact on popular culture.  Nevada "Historical Myth a Month" Website Facing the truth about some of our best but tallest tales by Guy Rocha, Nevada State Archivist. Nevada history books and newspapers all too often tell stories that distort the truth. Occasionally historians make mistakes, sometimes newspaper reporters get the wrong information, and oftentimes advertisers and civic promoters embellish and exaggerate the facts to promote their towns or businesses. Once a story appears in print, it generally gets repeated again and again, making it more and more believable. What’s true? What really happened? How do you know it’s true? You can find out RIGHT HERE.  Nevada Census Information Information from the federal manuscript censuses of 1860, 1870, 1880, 1900, 1910, and 1920.  Nevada Homework Question Help Information to answer all of your "Nevada" homework problems  Nevada Kid's Page Links to everything you need to know about Nevada! A great place to start to work on a Nevada Report!  Nevada Place Names Ever wonder where the name "Caliente" came from? Nevada Place Names can tell you! Find out information about all the wild and wonderful names of places in Nevada.  Nevada State Museum / Las Vegas The Nevada State Museum, Las Vegas, a state agency, is an educational institution whose purpose is to advance the understanding of the history, pre-history, and natural history of Nevada, emphasizing southern Nevada and its relationship with surrounding areas.  Nevada State Museum and Historical Society A museum and library dedicated to advancing the understanding of the history, pre-history, and natural history of Nevada, with a emphasis on Southern Nevada.  Nevada Test Site Historical Foundation The Nevada Test Site Historical Foundation (NTSHF) was founded in 1998 to preserve the Nevada Test Site legacy.  Nevada Yesterdays Public radio's history segment for Nevada. Be sure to support Public Radio!  The History of Las Vegas What the City of Las Vegas has to say about itself, with links to information about Nellis Air Force Base, Hoover Dam, and other information!  The Las Vegas I Remember Public radio's oral history segments for Las Vegas. Be sure to support Public Radio!  This Was Nevada A bi-weekly history column on various topics in Nevada history provided by the Nevada Department of Cultural Affairs. Past columns have covered such topics as "Nevada's First Community" about the Lost City in Overton, "Slavery In Nevada," "Wovoka 'The Ghost Dance Prophet," "Brigham Young & the Deseret Alphabet," and "'Bugsy' Siegel Documents Found."  UNLV Las Vegas and Nevada Resources UNLV Libraries historical resources NATIONAL RESOURCES  The Story of Hoover Dam Stories from the Hoover Dam Guides, and from other sources.  The Thunderbirds The history of the Air Force's stunt flying team, headquartered at Nellis Air Force Base RELATED INFO GUIDES  Finding Government Information  Gaming  Native American Heritage  Women's History