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🎰 The Neon Diary of Las Vegas: A Timeline

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🌵 Pre-1900s: The Desert Whispers

“Before the lights, there was only wind and sand.”

• 1829: Spanish explorer Rafael Rivera becomes the first non-Native American to set foot in what would become Las Vegas. He names the area Las Vegas, Spanish for “The Meadows,” because of its spring-fed green patches amid the Mojave Desert.
• 1855: Mormon missionaries arrive and build a fort. It lasts only a few years before being abandoned—too hot, too dry, too wild.

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🚂 1905: The Tracks Are Laid

“I was born with the scream of a steam engine.”

• May 15, 1905: The San Pedro, Los Angeles & Salt Lake Railroad auctioned off land in what is now downtown. This date is considered Las Vegas’s true birthday.
• A dusty tent town sprouts around the depot, full of hopes, hustlers, and a hint of sin.

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🏜️ 1911–1930: A Town of Thirst and Trouble

“They tried to tame me, but I was always thirsty.”

• 1911: Las Vegas is officially incorporated.
• 1910s–20s: Nevada bans gambling in 1910 (it didn’t stick). Meanwhile, Las Vegas becomes a pitstop for railroad workers and miners—home to speakeasies and brothels during Prohibition.

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🚧 1931: Hoover Dam and the Legalization of Vice

“This is when the real me showed up—bold, brash, unapologetic.”

• Gambling is re-legalized in Nevada to combat the Great Depression.
• Construction begins on Hoover Dam, drawing thousands of workers. Las Vegas booms with bars, casinos, and entertainment to serve them.
• The first casinos like the Northern Club get official gambling licenses. This is the seed of the Strip.

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🕴️ 1940s–1950s: The Mob and the Mirage

“They dressed me in silk and sin, and called it paradise.”

• 1941: The El Rancho Vegas, the first resort-style hotel on what would become the Strip, opens.
• 1946: Bugsy Siegel opens the Flamingo Hotel, a glamorous new standard. It’s mob money with Hollywood flair.
• Vegas becomes known as the “Atomic City” as nuclear testing begins nearby—tourists sip cocktails while watching mushroom clouds on the horizon.

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💃 1960s–1970s: Rat Pack & Reinvention

“I learned to sing, to swing, to sparkle under spotlight.”

• 1960s: The Rat Pack (Frank Sinatra, Dean Martin, Sammy Davis Jr.) makes the Sands Hotel their playground. Vegas becomes America’s playground too.
• 1966: Billionaire Howard Hughes checks into the Desert Inn and never leaves—literally. His corporate takeover begins a shift from mob rule to corporate rule.

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🧨 1980s–1990s: Mega-Resorts and Mirage Dreams

“I grew taller, louder, shinier. I became a world unto myself.”

• 1989: The Mirage, built by Steve Wynn, ushers in the era of mega-resorts with themed extravagance: volcanoes, pyramids, castles.
• 1993: The MGM Grand opens, the largest hotel in the world at the time.
• The Strip transforms into a family-friendly fantasy land—some call it a “Disneyland for adults.”

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🌀 2000s–2010s: Reinvention and Resilience

“I was knocked down. I stood up again. You can’t dim neon.”

• 2007–2009: The Great Recession hits Vegas hard. Projects stall, unemployment spikes. But the city weathers the storm.
• 2017: Tragedy strikes with the Route 91 Harvest music festival shooting, the deadliest mass shooting in U.S. history. The city grieves, and unites.

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🌐 2020s: The Digital Strip and Beyond

“I went virtual. I went viral. But I never stopped glowing.”

• 2020: COVID-19 shuts down the Strip for the first time ever. Empty casinos echo in eerie silence. But the lights never go out for long.
• 2021–2023: Vegas rebounds with new venues like Resorts World and The Sphere, blending tech and spectacle.
• 2024: The Formula 1 Las Vegas Grand Prix brings global spotlight. Vegas becomes not just a destination—but a stage for the world.

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💡 Final Word from Vegas:

“I’ve been a mirage, a monster, a miracle. You don’t just visit me—you become me. I’m not just a city. I’m a gamble, a glow, a promise. And I’m just getting started.”

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