More Than Meets the Eye in Wendover

  On the surface, the town of Wendover doesn’t appear to be a place with much history. But look a little closer and you’ll find plenty of interesting stories.

  Wendover, located on the Nevada-Utah state boundary, can trace its roots to Jedediah Smith, the first non-Native American to visit Nevada. In 1827, Smith is believed to have crossed the nearby Bonneville Salt Flats while returning from an expedition to the future state of California.

  In pre-historic times, the area around Wendover was actually beneath Lake Bonneville, a large inland sea that covered western Utah and Eastern Nevada, according to historian Ronald R. Bateman, who wrote an excellent area history entitled, “Wendover: Winds of Change.”

  In 1833, fur trapper Zenas Leonard journeyed through the area and wrote that he had seen a tall mountain (10,715-feet) covered with snow (now known as Pilot Peak Mountain), which he said stood out because it appeared to be unconnected to any other mountain range.

  Later, many emigrant wagon parties camped in the area during their journey to Oregon and California. Pilot Peak, which has natural springs at its base, served as a guide for those traveling across the barren salt flats.

  The community of Wendover found its footing much later, in the early 20th century, when the Western Pacific Railroad established the town, complete with a roundhouse, depot, water tower and other services in 1907. The first train to reach Wendover arrived two years later.

  For several decades, Wendover was a sleepy hamlet that mostly catered to rail traffic and, starting in the 1920s, to automobile travelers on the Lincoln and Victory highways, which passed through the community.

  In 1914, a man named Teddy Tezlaff drove a Blitzen Benz automobile as fast as he could on the nearby Bonneville Salt Flats, becoming the first person to attempt to establish a land-speed record (his unofficial time was 141.73 miles per hour) on the flats.

  The town’s first travel-related business was established in 1926, when Bill Smith and Herman Eckstein opened the Cobblestone Service Station and put a light bulb on a pole in front that was never turned off. They called it “the light in the desert.”

  In 1932, Smith and Eckstein added a roulette table, becoming the first gaming establishment in Wendover.

  According to Ronald Bateman, the Second World War was a very significant event in the town’s history because in 1940-41, the Wendover Bombing and Gunnery range was opened and over the next few years it grew substantially larger as additional companies of troops were sent to the region for training.

  In 1944, Wendover was selected to be the training ground for the 509th Composite Group, a top-secret contingent of troops that prepared for an atomic bomb mission to Japan. On August 6, 1945, the group’s commander, Colonel Paul Tibbets Jr. piloted the Enola Gay, which dropped an atomic bomb on Hiroshima, Japan, which effectively ended the war.

  An impressive stone and bronze monument has been erected adjacent to the Wendover Visitors Center to commemorate the men who worked on this project and as a monument to peace.

  Additionally, the hills around Wendover have been painted with graffiti, much of which was painted during World War II by airmen and soldiers. In some cases, you can still read the numerical insignias of the various troop companies.

  In recent decades, Wendover has become a destination for thrill-seekers and tourists. The Bonneville Salt Flats, located a few miles from Wendover, has hosted a number of land speed record attempts over the years.

  Additionally, several large resort-casinos were constructed in West Wendover (the Nevada side of the settlement) in the 1980s, which helped transform the town from sleepy last-stop-before-you-leave-Nevada into a popular gaming destination for travelers on Interstate 80.

  One of Wendover’s most recognizable landmarks is Wendover Will, a 64-foot-tall, neon cowboy sign erected adjacent to the Stateline Casino in 1952. In 2005, the big buckaroo was renovated and moved to a new location near the Wendover Visitors Center to serve as the community’s official goodwill ambassador.

  In addition to the hotels, Wendover still has a handful of landmarks that recall its time as an important airbase during World War II. Southeast of the main section of the town is the Wendover airbase. You can still find some of the old hangers that housed the airplanes of the 509th Composite Group during the war.

  Some of the buildings have appeared in several motion pictures including the 1996 science fiction thriller “Independence Day."

  For more information about Wendover, contact the West Wendover Tourism and Convention Bureau, https://www.westwendovercity.com/services/tourism-convention-bureau.

Take a Stroll Through the Las Vegas High School Historic District

 

   While it’s true that Las Vegas doesn’t always show an appreciation for its history, there is a cool walking tour brochure, downloadable online, that spotlights one of the city’s oldest neighborhoods.

   The area, known as the Las Vegas High School Historic District, includes the community’s oldest standing high school, Las Vegas High School, as well as several dozen historic homes built between 1928 and the start of World War II in the neighborhood around the school.

   The district, listed on the National Register of Historic Places since 1990, is roughly bounded by Sixth Street, Clark Avenue, Ninth Street and Gass Avenue.

   Of course, the heart of the district are the Las Vegas High School and Gymnasium, a pair of Art Deco gems built in 1930-31 and designed by noted Reno architects George A. Ferris & Son.

   Ferris and his son, Lehman Ferris, utilized a blend of Art Deco and southwestern motifs in the buildings’ ornamentation. This style has been described as “Aztec Moderne.”

   Interestingly, the two structures at 315 South 7th, were originally thought by many locals to be too large and too far out of town. But two years after its construction the school was filled to capacity because of the influx of children of the workers building Hoover Dam.

   While no longer used as a regular high school, the building are now part of the Las Vegas Academy of International Studies and Performing Arts, a magnet school for specialized studies.

   Following the walking tour, other noteworthy stops along the way include:

   • 408 South 7th is a marvelous example of Spanish Revival architecture. This single-family home was built by developer R. B. Griffith, who developed the Mt. Charleston area and Rancho Circle, who sold it to Charles “Pop” Squires, a pioneering newspaper publisher who is often called “the Father of Las Vegas” because of his promotional moxie.

   • 500 South 7th is a home built in the French Eclectic-style in 1938. It was owned by divorce attorney and Justice of the Peace C.D. Breeze, whose clients included Mrs. Leopold Stokowski (for her divorce action against the famous conductor) and G. Henry Stetson (whose father invented the famous cowboy hat of that name).

   • 624 South 6th is an unusual Spanish Revival-style house, with a round turret, built in 1932 by prominent Las Vegas dentist and civic leader J.D. Smith. The home boasts a basement, which is a feature that is nearly unknown in the Las Vegas area.

   •618 South 7th is a Mission Revival-style house that was built in 1930 for Harry Allen, a pioneer Las Vegas businessman. Allen was a banker and later president of Nevada Power. He lived in the house until the 1950s.

   • 850 Bonneville is a Tudor Bungalow built in 1931. The home was originally owned by a teacher, Florence Burwell, until she married in the 1940s and sold it to Lewis Rowe. The elegant home was originally located on a lot at 602 South 9th and has been extensively remodeled.

   • 704 South 9th is a Spanish Colonial Revival-style home constructed in 1930. Built at a cost of $10,000, it was owned by District Judge A.S. Henderson, who also had served as a Nevada Assemblyman, a State Senator, and as Las Vegas City Attorney.

   To download the walking tour brochure, go to: https://files.lasvegasnevada.gov/planning/LV-High-School-Historic-District.pdf.

The Strange and Unusual Death of Raymond Spilsbury, Owner of the Boulder Dam Hotel

 

  Maybe it’s fated that a place like Boulder City, which has always seemed so typically American with its manicured lawns, tidy houses and neat street grids, would be associated with one of Nevada’s most mysterious deaths.

  The death in question is that of Raymond Spilsbury, one of the original investors and owners of the Boulder Dam Hotel. Spilsbury, who was born into a wealthy Utah ranching family, had spent several decades working in Peru as general manager of a copper mine.

  In 1933, he became an investor in a new Boulder Dam Hotel being constructed in Boulder City. During the next decade, despite becoming a playground for Hollywood celebrities, the hotel experienced financial difficulties. In 1942, Spilsbury acquired full ownership of the property.

  Two years later, Spilsbury retired from the mining business and moved into the hotel with his wife and son. At the time, his brother, G.C. Spilsbury was manager of the elegant Colonial-style lodging house.

  During the 1930s and 40s, the hotel had hosted many famous people. Actress Bette Davis vacationed at the hotel after filming a movie nearby and actor Boris Karloff (“Frankenstein”) lived there while gaining residency for a quickie divorce.

  On January 19, 1945, the then-56-year-old Spilsbury drove out to Emery’s Landing, a fishing camp on the Colorado River to go fishing with its owner, Murl Emery. According to newspaper accounts of the time, Spilsbury never met up with Emery but was seen taking a walk along the river.

  The next day, Emery saw that Spilsbury’s car still parked in the lot at 3 a.m. and the next morning started to look for the owner. According to one account, Emery discovered Spilsbury’s hat and coat about a day later. The latter had been carefully folded and a rock had been placed on both to keep them from being blown away.

  Inside the coat pockets, was a check for $12,352.40, $1,100 in traveler’s checks, $53 in cash, two pairs of glasses and keys to the car and Spilsbury’s hotel room.

  For the next five weeks, searchers combed the river and surrounding area looking for any sign of Spilsbury. Finally on February 27, a group of three fishermen from Los Angeles spotted his body tangled in a clump of bushes about eight miles from Emery’s Landing, near Nelson, Nevada.

  Perhaps the most peculiar aspect, however, was that when Spilsbury’s body was pulled from the river, authorities found that his ankles had been tied together using his own belt and his pockets were filled with heavy stones.

  A few days later, authorities said they believed Spilsbury, who, according to his brother, had been in ill health for several years, was depressed about his health and committed suicide.

  But was it suicide? According to one account, Spilsbury’s wife, Vona, was suspicious of the circumstances surrounding her husband’s death and never completely accepted the determination that her husband had killed himself.

  Ultimately, no other motive—certainly he wasn’t robbed—than suicide could be found and the case was closed.

  But even today some believe there is more to the story. In fact, one theory is that Spilsbury—and perhaps Emery—may have hidden caches of money in the vicinity. But who knows for sure?

  The most complete history of the Boulder Dam Hotel, including Spilsbury mysterious death, can be found in Dennis McBride’s 1993 book, “The Secret Life of the Boulder Dam Hotel.” The story is also investigated in my book, “Nevada Myths and Legends, Second Edition.” Both can be found on Amazon and other online booksellers.

  For more information about the Boulder Dam Hotel, go to: www.boulderdamhotel.com.