But eventually, trade became prevalent in the area starting roughly around 1821. The first collective group known to inhabit the area are the Paiutes who first came in 700 AD, spending summers in the mountains and winters in Big Springs. Petroglyphs found in the southern Nevada desert indicate that humans have had a presence in the area for well over 10,000 years. Much like New York and Paris hover over today’s Vegas, Old Las Vegas still lingers in the city if you know where to find it. Main Street wasn’t bustling, the Rat Pack hadn’t changed the culture, and organized crime was still working itself out in places like Chicago and other east coast hubs.īut in a series of moves involving Mormon missionaries and mob leaders, a metropolis in the desert took shape, revolving around entertainment venues, corruption, carnality, and unimaginable sums of secret money. Before the neon museum, visitors and casinos, there was a small patch of desert dirt located in Clark County that had yet to be developed.
