Q:
Reading the response to Friday's question about the gas station, and looking at the 1968 photograph, I'm wondering what was on the site previously of each of the current Strip hotels? For example, what hotels are now on the site of the old Desert Inn, Frontier, or Dunes hotels? It might even be interesting to go off-Strip a little. Thanks for the nostalgia.
A:
Once we started this, we realized the enormity of the task in hand... It's a great question, however, so we persevered, with help from a number of sources, including lvstriphistory.com, UNLV's Special Collections, Wikipedia, and Anthony Curtis' Bargain City.
So, taking first the east side of Las Vegas Boulevard and then the west, and starting at the north and working our way south, here's what we believe is the answer to your question; if we missed anything or made any mistakes, feel free to drop us a line. The current hotel-casino is listed first in bold, with previous incarnations following, working backward chronologically.
East Side of the Strip:
- Sahara (closed): Club Bingo
- Fountainebleau (unfinished): El Rancho; Silverbird; Thunderbird
- Riviera: no previous casino/hotel
- Encore no previous casino/hotel
- Wynn: Desert Inn
- Palazzo: Tam O'Shanter (motel)
- Venetian: Sands
- Casino Royale: Nob Hill Casino; Joey's New Yorker Night Club; Frank Musso's Restaurant
- Harrah's: Holiday Casino; Pyramids Motel; Tumbleweed Motel
- Imperial Palace: Flamingo Capri
- O'Sheas: no previous casino
- Flamingo: no previous casino/hotel
- Bill's Gamblin' Hall & Saloon: Barbary Coast; Desert Villa
- Bally's: Bally Grand; MGM Grand; New Bonanza Hotel and Casino, Three Coins Motel; Bonanza Hotel and Casino
- Paris: Little Caesar's; Galaxy Motel
- Planet Hollywood: Aladdin (two incarnations); King's Crown; Tally-Ho
- MGM Grand: Marina Hotel & Casino
- Tropicana: no previous casino/hotel
West Side of the Strip:
- Circus Circus: no previous casino/hotel
- Slots A Fun: no previous casino/hotel
- Echelon (unfinished): Stardust
- Treasure Island: no previous casino/hotel
- Mirage: Castaways; San Souci; Gracie Hayes Lodge; The Rendezvous; The Patio; Hi Ho Club; Red Rooster (and many other incarnations, too numerous to mention)
- Caesars Palace: no previous casino/hotel
- Bellagio: Dunes
- The Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas: no previous casino/hotel
- CityCenter: Boardwalk; Holiday Inn; Holiday Queen
- Monte Carlo: Desert Rose Motel
- New York-New York: Roadway Inn/Lone Palm Motel
- Excalibur: no previous casino/hotel
- Luxor: no previous casino/hotel
- Mandalay Bay: Hacienda
Off-Strip Notables:
- Stratosphere: Vegas World
- Palace Station: Bingo Palace
- Clarion: Greek Isles; Debbie Reynolds Hollywood Hotel; Paddlewheel; Royal Americana
- Las Vegas Hilton: International; Las Vegas Race Track
- Westin Casuarina: Maxim Hotel and Casino
- Hooters: Hotel San Remo; Pacifica Polyesian; Treasury; 20th Century Hotel; Ho Jo Paradise; Howard Johnson Hotel
- Wild Wild West: King 8 Motel
- Silverton: Boomtown
Images appear courtesy of UNLV Special Collections and the Las Vegas Historical Society.
Strip map 1950
Strip map 1960
Strip '68
Strip '70s
Strip '80s
Update 16 August 2011
As a couple of readers have correctly pointed out, we goofed on one entry on today's list. The unfinished Fontainebleau resort-casino is on the site of the former El Rancho, not Wet 'n Wild, as we first listed. Sorry! Just checking to see if you were paying attention : )
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