What is today the oldest and smallest casino on Fremont Street was, more than a century ago, the newest and largest.

Given its prime location across from the rail depot at Fremont and Main Street, it didn’t take long for a hotel to spring up at 1 Fremont St. In January 1906, less than a year after the founding of Las Vegas, the Hotel Nevada opened its doors.

The two-story building towered over the tents and cottages that then dominated Downtown Las Vegas. The year after it opened, the hotel received the first phone in town and was given the appropriate number “1.”

By the time this photograph had been taken in the 1920s, the Hotel Nevada had plenty of concrete and brick company, but it was still a prominent landmark. 

When gambling was legalized in 1931, the Hotel Nevada added a third floor and changed its name to Sal Sagev (Las Vegas spelled backwards). The name was usually pronounced “Sal Sagee.” With the renovations came a casino.

In 1955, the casino changed hands and, since the new owners were from San Francisco, it was renamed the Golden Gate. The new owners added a modernist façade that lasted until 1990, when Mark Brandenburg emerged as the chief ownership figure.  Brandenburg restored the original brick façade and promoted the hotel as a boutique property for those nostalgic for old Las Vegas.

Even though it’s partially covered by the Fremont Street experience canopy today, the Golden Gate is one building that would be recognizable to the first residents of Las Vegas. It is a true piece of living history.

SOURCE: Squires Collection, UNLV Special Collections

David G. Schwartz (www.dieiscast.com), is the Director of the Center for Gaming Research at the University of Nevada Las Vegas.  He is the author of  Roll the Bones: The History of Gambling.

By David Schwartz

David G. Schwartz an Atlantic City native and the director of the Center for Gaming Research at the University of Nevada Las Vegas. He is the author of Roll the Bones: The History of Gambling. His web site can be viewed at www.dieiscast.com.