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Historic Districts

Downtown: The corner of Main Street and Fremont marks the point of origin for the whistle-stop village of Las Vegas. Since the railroad auctioned it off in 1905, however, this intersection has become a little too crusted over with signs, facades and multimillion-dollar-canopies-of-lights to have retained much of a “historical” atmosphere. The mission-style Victory Hotel, about a block south on Main Street, can give you a taste of what the entire commercial district once looked like.

Also worth a look, if you’re into such things, is the Woodlawn Cemetery on Las Vegas Boulevard North, where most of the old-timers now reside. It’s the only graveyard in the city with upright gravestones.

We’re also obliged to once again mention the Huntridge Theatre. For many longtime Las Vegas residents, this aqua slice of postwar Deco is a cherished link with their own childhoods, and the surrounding district is filled with postwar Americana and charming little bungalows begging to have their wood floors sanded.

Formyle: Along the 24 miles of Boulder Highway you’ll find a few well-hidden islands of historical significance. The first of these is Formyle, which sits on Dalhart next to the Flamingo wash, just west of the expressway. Nothing more than a dusty outpost in the ’30s, the community achieved notoriety in the ’40s, after President Roosevelt signed the act prohibiting prostitution in Las Vegas. Having nowhere else to go, the citizens of Block 16 picked up their bags, moved four miles down the road and were soon once again hard at work, serving the boys of Nellis Army Airfield. All-night taverns and houses of ill repute sprung up like weeds, and the community received the well-deserved nickname of “Hell Town.”

Eventually, prostitution was banned in Clark County altogether, and Formyle began to fade again into insignificance. One of its brothels, the infamous Roxie’s, held out until 1955, when J. Edgar Hoover decided the county needed a little help enforcing its laws. Roxie was tipped off about the impending raid, however, and her building was empty when the FBI arrived.

Today the community has something of the appearance of a shantytown. Several one-time public houses now serve as residences; others sit boarded up. The long wooden structure that was once Roxie’s can still be seen, behind a barbed-wire fence.

Henderson: Yes, there really is a Henderson in Henderson, an honest-to-God town buried beneath the sea of red tile roofs. It was built as a factory town during the Second World War, housing the workers of the government’s Basic Magnesium plant. While most of this era’s tiny tract houses still survive, it would be a stretch to characterize Henderson’s commercial district as “historical.” Water Street has received a recent facelift and no longer looks anything like it did in the ’40s, but if you’re looking for authentic small-town atmosphere, complete with stores like “Carol’s Canine Castle” and “Calico Corner,” and you’re too lazy to travel the extra ten miles or so to Boulder City, Henderson is your place.

While you’re in the area, check out the Clark County Heritage Museum just south of town. Not an historical site, but a few of the Valley’s best old buildings, including the Boulder City Train Depot, have escaped the bulldozers by being relocated here.

Boulder City and Hoover Dam: Give yourself at least one afternoon in Boulder City (take US-93 southeast, about thirty miles), if only to shake off the yoke of crass materialism. The only city in Nevada without legalized gaming, Boulder was a small gift from the U.S. government to the people who built Hoover Dam. It’s the only part of the metro area you can unequivocally call “charming.” Here, there are giant Spring and Fall outdoor art shows, a tranquil sculpture garden, a huge haunted movie house with a single screen, a ’50s diner that was actually built in the ’50s and a historic hotel has housed Frank Sinatra and Howard Hughes, among others.

The food, drinks and coffee are uniformly good regardless of what restaurant or bar you blow into. Lake Mead is right over the hill, and the hiking trails rimming the lake’s banks are among the best in the state. Don’t miss the old railroad trail; you can practically smell the sulfur from the coal-driven locomotives that once trudged through the giant tunnels, destination Vegas. If haven’t been to Boulder yet, it’s certainly worth a Sunday drive.

While out there, by all means, take the Dam tour. Hoover Dam (named for the U.S. president who supervised its construction) is one of the most ambitious constructions of recent times—one that has stood between Lake Mead and destructive flooding for six decades. Take the tour, half-listen to the tour guide and keep your eyes peeled for the real details: the ’30s Deco interior, the ornate tile work and the other artistic and architectural smarts visible to those who look for them. You’ll catch a whiff of the New-Deal All-Together-for-Uncle-Sam spirit that created this engineering wonder. Plus, the tourist watching couldn’t be better. Just strap on a backpack or Circus-Circus fanny pack, make up your own language and you’ll fit right in.