Las Vegas: A Centennial History (Wilber S. Shepperson Series in Nevada History)

The meteoric rise of Las Vegas from Mormon outpost to international entertainment center. Since Las Vegas was founded on May 15, 1905, when the Union Pacific auctioned off land around its new railroad shops, the city has grown from a ramshackle village to a sprawling metropolitan area of well over a million people. Las Vegas: A Centennial History offers a detailed and deeply knowledgeable account of the growth of this unique city, the impact of politics and of wars, and the city’s struggle to establish diversified economy. The authors’ scope extends chronologically from the first Paiute people who settled around the artesian springs that gave the city its name, right up to the construction of the latest megaresort, and geographically far beyond the original township to include the several municipalities that make up the metropolitan Las Vegas area. Las Vegas: A Centennial History celebrates the city’s unparalleled growth in the brief century of its existence. It also offers fresh insight into the process of city building in the American West, where urban needs and aspirations must contend with water scarcity, isolation, erratic economies, highly diverse populations, and the rocky relationship between the need for civic order and the Western spirit of independence. Its story will engage residents and visitors alike, as well as all readers interested in the history and workings of an American city.