History of Las Vegas, Nevada Essay

Las Vegas, translated from Spanish as the meadows was observe and thus established in 1829 by the Mexican merchant Antonio Armijo, who conduct a dish out caravan of 60 men creating a trade route to Los Angeles. Ironically, what historically was established as a mere change point on a route, became one of the most remarkable places in the United States, a pearl in a desert. Practically, the rapid increase of Las Vegas as both a holidaymaker destination and a biotic community is directly related to the development of the image of Las Vegas. all the selfsame(prenominal) though Nevada was the coda state to outlaw manoeuvre in 1909 and the first state later on to legalize gambling in 1931, Las Vegas urban center fathers were much concerned with the divorce laws than reinstating gambling, and throughout most of the 1930s, gambling remained a sideline for Las Vegas. and the ordinal wonder of the world, as Boulder Dam was then billed, began to funnel a torrent of holidaymake rs to the Las Vegas Valley (Boorstin, 19873). Las Vegas leaders envisioned their township as a Nevada Palm Springs.Alan Hess, in his book Viva Las Vegas, observes, They began to promote their characteristic westerly identity, the desert scenery, a social mix of laissez-faire government and affectionate hospitality embodied in speedy divorces and easy gambling (Hess, 199319). In 1932, a year later on the legalization of gambling, the then-luxurious, three-story Hotel Apache opened in downtown Las Vegas. With a motif of Native American design and an elevator to the supper beau monde on top, the Apache was the most modern for its day. By 1936, the dam was completed and Las Vegas, with no more big payroll checks from dam workers, was beginning an economic slump.But, among 1938 and 1942 several changes occurred to avert the slump. In 1938, Los Angeles Mayor Fletcher Brown had begun enforcing the no gambling laws in California and some California gamblers travel to Las Vegas. G uy McAfee, a police captain and commander of the vice squad, was one of these California gamblers who moved into Las Vegas where he purchased the Pair-O-Dice Club in 1939. McAfee is credited with naming that part of the Los Angeles highway which came into Las Vegas as The flake off in fond memory of the Sunset Strip in Los Angeles. It would be several years before The Strip would catch its present day fame.Federal intervention also assisted the Las Vegas deliverance when President Roosevelts administration ordered air bases throughout the country. In 1940 Las Vegas received an air training station on the outskirts of town, and in 1941, basal Magnesium, Inc. (BMI) was built, which created the metropolis of H finaleerson. Las Vegas constitute itself with two new industries-recreation exitd by the dam and lake, and defense, provided by the training station and BMI. The recreation (tourism) and defense industries would shape many horse opera cities throughout the rest of the cen tury.Fremont Street, Las Vegass main thorough out-of-the-way(prenominal)e, boomed. As Don Knepp express in Las Vegas Entertainment Capital, There also emerged the image of Las Vegas as the exciting hub for vacations in the Southwest (Knepp, 198731). The city leaders had begun promoting Las Vegas as a tourist Mecca, and the WPA Guide to Nevada, the Silver State, 1940, seemed to approve of the methods when it said of Las Vegas, No cheap and intimately parodied slogans have been adopted to publicize the city, no attempt has been made to inform pseudo-romantic architectural themes, or to give artificial glamour and gaiety (Hess, 199320). 941 saying further growth for the Strip and downtown. The El Rancho opened with a beau ranch theme and atmosphere.Built by Californian Thomas E. Hull, the El Rancho established a pattern of roadside landmarks, vistas and signs that broke with the tradition of downtown Las Vegas hotels and realized a vision that would mold the citys catamenia for m. The El Rancho duplicated the easy accessibility of the roadside motel, but with much more grandeur. While the downtown Hotel Apache was fancy, the El Rancho was lavish. Downtown, the El Cortez opened.Built by Californians Marion Hicks and magic trick Grayson and although multistory, as most downtown hotels were, the El Cortez also kept to the west state of ward or Spanish theme. After stopping at the El Rancho, William J. Moore and R. E. Griffith, realizing the dominance of thousands of gambling customers from the gunnery school, built the Last margin. Opening in October 1942, the Last Frontier also westward in theme, was larger and more opulent than the El Rancho. McAfee, not satisfied with owning just the Pair-O-Dice Club, tried to upstage the El Rancho by building the introduce Club at Fremont and First Streets.Also consciously western in style, the Pioneer Club opened in 1942. Even though western in design, as late as 1947 Las Vegans were knocked out(p) that something so lavish as the El Rancho could succeed so far from downtown. The success of the El Rancho, the Pioneer Club and the Last Frontier was impressive enough that the city boosters considered making the western theme mandatory for Fremont Street. Although many downtown casino owners followed suit, the idea was never formally adopted. As Las Vegas became more savvy about the potential of a tourist economy, it began to exploit its western heritage more consciously.In keeping with the western motif, dude ranches re primed(p) motels to provide divorce seekers a place to stay until their six weeks residency requirements were met The western influence provided a successful venue for divorce interests and gambling, two of the track economic factors for Las Vegas. Close behind McAfee was Bugsy Siegel, who began by taking over the Las Vegas fly the coop betting wires, and, as a representative of Al Capone, muscled out the Continental Press Service and gained part ownership of several Fremont Street Clubs including the Pioneer Club.Although there was already an obscure element of gangsters in Las Vegas, Siegel was publicly cognize for his ties to organized crime. Siegel brought with him the negative aspect of the influence of organized crime, but he also brought the positive aspect of establishing a landmark luxury regress with the building of his Flamingo which broke with the western theme. The half-finished Flamingo officially opened with Jimmy Durante as entertainment in 1946 finances forced closure of the resort tetrad weeks later, but the Flamingo reopened in 1948.Knepp credits Siegel with bringing extensive national vulnerability to Las Vegas the notoriety attached to the Fabulous Flamingo branded Las Vegas as an at a lower placeworld haven, a reputation that has persisted (Knepp, 198732). World War II created a shortage of gimmick materials which also created most of the financial difficulties Siegel experienced while building the Flamingo. But the federal government, including the war and defense spending, contributed greatly to Nevada, especially Las Vegas. Eugene P.Moehring states in his book, recompense City in the Sunbelt, that Defense spending was an obvious by-product of the world(a) conflict. But, like the dam earlier, World War II strengthened the towns recreational economy (Moehring, 199540). The war also brought some disadvantages such(prenominal) as curfews, which cut profits by closing casinos from 2 to 10 a. m. and meat rationing, which caused some restaurants to close. Clearly, the national emergency created many problems for Las Vegas (Moehring, 199540).Yet, much the same as Hoover Dam before it, World War II represented a bonanza for the small towns economy. The war servicinged confirm gambling as Las Vegass main postwar application By partially depriving the city of tourists for almost four years, the war overdone their tourists importance in the minds of promoters (Moehring, 199540). The end of the World War II brought an end to the shortages of construction materials which had plagued Siegel and the 1950s brought the largest growth involution in American history. This expansion occurred in the western United States, led by the state of Nevada.As 1950 opened, Nevada contained approximately 160,000 residents by 1955, the population was about 245,000, a rise of more than 53 percent (Glass, 198139). By the end of the 1950s, Nevadas population had change magnitude 75 percent, to 285,000 residents, making it the fastest-growing state in the country. During this expansion, Nevadas economy flourished convey to mining, to the Freeport Law and to the test site in Las Vegas. But, it was gambling that brought about the precious growth. By 1955, mining still outstripped gambling by just under $100,000, but as Jane Glass, in her book Nevadas Turbulent 50% asked, Who noticed? Well, of course the people who were working the mines noticed and the tax collectors who pulled in the highest amount on reco rd but, almost nobody else (Glass, 198192) which seems to imply that Nevada, especially Las Vegas, had forgotten the rich economy of mining, preferring instead to credit gambling as the biggest boon the states economy. The Freeport Law was the legacy of Edwin Bender, an administrator for a federal agency in charge of storing strategic war material, when he discovered a shortage of space in which to store the items. By the end of the 1940s, Bender found himself with a surplus of space and a shortage of goods.Later, when the county tax assessor evaluated some of the items for tax purposes, Bender entangle the taxation to be unfair. He wrote a proposal for what became the Freeport bill and with the help of Nevada Attorney General Alan Bible, who drew up the bill. Owners of warehouses and light manufacturing firms found Nevadas tax climate substantially to their liking and, the Freeport Law became a operative economic advantage. After 20-five years, three-quarters of a billion dollar s worth of goods were beingness shipped yearly by truck and rail from the warehouses in the state (Glass, 198144).Although ab initio slow to move, the Las Vegas sleeping accommodation of Commerce became deeply involved in shrewd and planning for tourists as early as 1944. The Las Vegas Chamber of Commerce and its boosters, fearing for the postwar economy sponsored a fund raiser to raise $75,000 as a budget for promoting the city as a tourist destination. During the war, the two largest industries had been the forces Air Base and Basic Magnesium, Inc. Surveys and research led the Chamber to the closure that tourism was now the best means to a good economy and the Chamber set out to attract visitors.Before long however, Las Vegas found it had to deal with the underworld image that had grown up thanks to Bugsy Siegel and others. The Chamber of Commerce tried several different public relations firms and advertize firms to draw attention away from the negative publicity of gangste rs as intimately as the wild city image previously promoted. When these firms failed to promote the city in what Las Vegans and the Chamber felt was a positive way, the Chamber hired the West Marquis function to handle promotion. The West Marquis Agency was subsequently replaced when the Chamber felt it too had failed.It appears the Chamber need not have worried. Surveys now have shown that during the time of heavy gangster influence, tourists came to Las Vegas in the hopes of actually seeing a gangster. Knepp supports this view, For most visitors in the 1940s, however, the reputed underworld ties seemed barely to highlight the citys wide open appeal. (Knepp, 198732). Nevertheless, by the 1950s, promoting Las Vegas and creating the bankable image had become a concerted effort of the Las Vegas Chamber of Commerce, the city and the casinos who hired their own communication specialists.Contemporary Las Vegas is a place famous for extremely high concentration of world largest and what is more important, famous, casinos, among which are Stratosphere Hotel and Tower, the Las Vegas Hilton, the Rio Suites, the metal(prenominal) Coast, the Maxim, the San Reno, the Continental, the new Paris and the smaller Hard Rock, Luxor, and the Circus Circus. Las Vegas Valley and its ascendent industry generate a great many statistics, some misleading, others conflicting. In 1995-96, gamblers left behind $3. billion at the machines, tables, and sports books of the Strip compared to $683 million Downtown, a fact that gives some idea of the relative importance of the two in the industry that created and still runs Las Vegas (Littlejohn and Gran, 19992-3). Las Vegas has more hotel rooms than any other city in the world (more than a hundred thousand in 1998, with twenty thousand more either planned or under construction), and the highest fair hotel-occupancy rate (87 to go percent) of any American city.In 1995, the Zagat Guide estimated that it offered the concluding average daily hotel room rate of the thirty-three leading U. S. visitor destinations. Moreover, Las Vegas currently contains nine of the worlds ten largest hotels. Las Vegas claims to be the number-one tourist destination in the U. S. , with more than 30 million visitors a year. Nevada had in 1996 both the highest marriage rate (ten times the national average, due primarily to out-of-state couples who come to Las Vegas and Reno to marry) and the highest divorce rate (more than double the national average).According to the FBIs Uniform Crime Reports for 1995, Las Vegas had the highest total crime rate and the highest rate of crimes against situation among all American cities with more than 250,000 people (Littlejohn and Gran, 19995). Police reports for that year placed Las Vegas fourth among U. S. metropolitan areas of over a million population after Miami, Phoenix, and Oklahoma City in the rate of all serious crimes 14. 7 percent of these were called violent.