the megaresort of its time · 2011. 2. 14. · the “grand opening” on march 19, 1932, 5...

CASINO CHIP AND TOKEN NEWS | April · May · June 2002 35

by John Yee

Introduction

Similar to a modern day “GrandOpening” of a megaresort on thestrip, Las Vegans with their excite-ment and glory, came out to welcomethe newest, most modern, and plush-est hotel west of the Mississippi inMarch of 1932. The building erectedin less than a year would stand thetest of time and house the HotelApache but probably better know to

modern gamblers as the El DoradoClub or, for the last forty two years,as Binion’s Horsehoe. During the past70 years, the Hotel Apache and itsgambling establishments havechanged ownership or names fifteentimes. In addition, the Hotel Apachewas referred to synonymously as theApache Hotel.

In 1905, the Union PacificRailroad routed its trains through the

Las Vegas area. The railroad depotwas at the beginning of FremontStreet, just behind the present dayPlaza Hotel. With the railroad camegrowth and Las Vegas became anincorporated city adopting its firstcharter on March 16, 1911. At thattime there were less than 800residents in Las Vegas and 3,321residents within Clark County.However, the downtown area ofFremont Street was the hub for gam-

The Megaresor t o f I t s T ime

Photograph Courtesy of: Glenn Davis Collection University of Nevada, Las Vegas Library

The Kiva Bar and Casino was separate from the Kiva Club at the Hotel Apache (c. 1942)

36 CASINO CHIP AND TOKEN NEWS | April · May · June 2002

ing establishments and seedy activity.By the 1930s, Las Vegas grew to5,165. The three things that wouldforever change Las Vegas occurred inthe early ’30s were the legalization ofgambling, the Boulder Dam project,and the relaxation of divorce laws.

P.O. Silvagni purchases propertyfor $60,000

Amidst the Great Depression,1931 saw an influx of workers for thenearby Boulder Canyon project.Seeking an opportunity on May 14,1931, Dr. Roy W. Martin, a respectedand well-known citizen of Las Vegas,sold the corner lot on Second andFremont Streets to P.O. Silvagni ofPrice, Utah for $60,000. The site,with a frontage of 75 feet facingFremont Street and 130 feet onSecond, was made with a firstpayment of $30,000. A. LacyWorswick, an architect transplantedfrom San Francisco, was the originalarchitect for the building. Worswickwould go on to design many futurecasinos and public buildings through-out Las Vegas. Originally the mod-ernistic style of architecture of brickconstruction with steel supportingframes rose three floors with thepossibility of an additional two storiesat a future date, had a projected costof $125,000-150,000. Constructionbegan immediately during the middleof the summer of 1931 and amidst aneconomic depression.

On January 6, 1932, a gaminglicensed was issue to the Apache for aroulette wheel, however, subsequentlicenses were added to include slots,21, craps, chuck-a-luck and keno.Although records from the licenseboard do not identify who filed forthe license, it is believe to be from theApache Hotel Corporation. Eventhough the hotel and the gaming tofollow would not open for anothertwo months it was not uncommon to

request and be granted a license priorto a physical building’s completion.

The building dimensions and layout

The hotel was colorful andcomfortable with a decor of the oldwest. Windows were draped, handcarved divans and arm chairs wererandomly placed throughout the hotel.

Deep carpets covered the floor andthere were rich oil paintings andunique chandeliers with an Indianmotif throughout the hotel. Originallythe main entrance to the hotel was onSecond Street, somewhere near wherethe gift shop currently sits.

On the ground floor, one wouldenter the hotel from the main entrance



The Café was located at the corner of Second and Fremont

on Second Street or through any ofthe five shops or coffee room. Thelobby was a spacious 38 by 48 feet,lofty and ceiled area. Walking threesteps westward through a draped archled you into the casino and to theascending stairway to the upperfloors. Silvagni often slept and con-ducted business from a room on thesecond floor which had a terraceoverlooking Second Street. Beyondthe stairway, a corridor connected thecoffee shop and various stores in thebuilding. The first elevator in townwas also on the North side of thebuilding that opened up to carpetedhallways on the upper levels.

The casino, extremely small bytoday’s standards, was located in therear of the stores and west of thehotel lobby.

The downstairs basement housedthe heating and ventilation plant,storage rooms, and the banquet hallthat had hardwood floors and was the

magnet for dinner danceparties, bridge luncheonsand private functions. The50’ x 75’hall couldcomfortably feed 300people and claimed to havethe ability to feed 500 whenin a pinch. Interestingly,there was also an entrancefrom Second Street.

The hotel had 56 roomsincluding 12 suites. Eachroom had a bath; 25 roomswith both a shower andbath; 7 rooms with a show-er and toilet; and 24 roomswith just a tub. Obviously,the bath was very importantback in 1932 because thenewspapers described theamenities in detail. Somesay the Hotel Apache was onlysecond to the Riverside Hotel in Renofor modern amenities and character.

Background of P.O. Silvagni

P.O. Silvagni, although sometimesincorrectly identified as PietroOrlando Silvagni, was actually namedPietro Ottavio Silvagni as correctedby his granddaughter, MariaWadsworth. Somehow, a writer incor-rectly used the wrong name andfuture newspapers and books fromthere on out referred to P.O. as PietroOrlando.

P.O. as his friends called him,came to the U.S. from Italy in 1904and was the father of six children.However, two children passed awayearly on and the other siblings,Michele, Victor, Lena, and Olgamoved to Las Vegas shortly afterconstruction of the hotel began.

In a newspaper article datedFebruary 24, 1933, P.O. Silvagniapplied for and was granted a gamingpermit for a crap game at the ApacheHotel Casino. This is the first timethat Silvagni’s name has been associ-ated with obtaining a license and notjust the Apache Hotel Corporation.


The “Grand Opening”

On March 19, 1932, 5 o’clockp.m., the hotel officially opened to thepublic. Mayor E.W. Cragin openedthe doors to the new hotel and thusbegan the largest party Las Vegas hadever seen up to that point. The firstregistered guests of the hotel wereP.O. Silvagni along with Mrs. RobertRussell, wife of the secretary andtreasure of the Apache HotelCorporation. The Indian Princess,Rose Marie a beautiful Apache girlacted as the hostess for the evening.

The major players

P.O. Silvagni built the building andleased the hotel, coffee shop, casino,and the downstairs banquet hall, alsoreferred to as the café in several

newspaper articles. The coffee shopwhose purpose was to satisfy the gen-eral public and hotel patrons sat onthe South East corner of Second andFremont, with the means of transfer-ring food down below to the hall viaa private stairway.

The operating corporation for thehotel was named the Apache HotelCorporation and its board consisted ofSydney Smith, president and hotelmanager, William A. Brown, vicepresident, and Robert R. Russell, secretary and treasurer. The ApacheCasino, sometimes called just the

“Apache”, was leased to Charlie E.Mason and Jack Doyle.

It was not all too uncommon inLas Vegas for a hotel and a casino ofa different name to cohabitate on thesame premises. Examples of thiscohabitation include the Sal SagevHotel and Golden Gate Casino. In thiscase, the “Apache” could refer to thehotel, bar, casino, or the banquet hall.And to mix it up even more, theApache Drug Store, owned by FrankCrookston opened up May 10, 1932in one of the storefronts.

Intersection of 2nd and Fremont Streets. The Oasis Café sign on the left was the firstneon sign in Las Vegas built in 1929 followed by the Las Vegas Club sign in 1930.Thomas Young Sr., founder of Yesco had a temporary office at the Hotel Apache

P.O. Silvagni William Brown Sydney Smith Colonel Robert Russel Charles E. Mason

Las Vegas Age, March 19, 1932


William Brown was a seasonedrestaurateur, having operated cafés inArizona and in California. In additionto being the vice president of thecorporation, Brown managed the caféand the banquet hall with the mostmodern equipment. Lavishly fur-nished as the rest of the beautiful newApache Hotel, modern amenitiesincluded an electrical dishwasher

Sydney Smith was a veteran hotelman who was in charge of the hotel.However, it was Colonel RobertRussell who had all the fame andglory.

Colonel Robert Russell the selfproclaimed “Biggest Liar in Nevada”had an honorary designation as “The

Colonel” and was know for his anticsthroughout town. Frank Wright, LasVegas historian, talks about two spe-cific publicity stunts that ColonelRussell was involved in. A widelydistributed photo of an old miner withhis mule registering at the HotelApache was sent out across thenation. In another photo opportunity,Colonel Russell is shown holding thefirst fish caught from the newlyformed Lake Mead. Unfortunately,the fish had an uncanny resemblanceto a barracuda and it was laterdivulged that indeed the fish had beenpurchased form the San Pedro FishMarket. Wright also described “Bob”,as he was also know, as alwaysdressed in western garb, with long

flowing hair, handlebar moustachewith a goatee a striking resemblanceto Buffalo Bill Cody. In another storytold by Ms. Wadsworth, she recalls aphoto in her mother’s possessions ofBob on a horse in the lobby of thehotel. The creative and witty person-ality of Colonel Russell is one reasonhe was nominated for inclusion in“The First 100”, a historical bookabout the men and women whohelped shape Las Vegas.

According to the newspapers, C.E.Mason was one of the most widelyknown casino managers of that time.However, other than a photograph, lit-tle else is known about Charles E.Mason or his counterpart, Jack Doyle,the men responsible for the casinoand its management.

History of the Clubs

Although the Hotel opened inMarch, 1932, the Management of theApache Coffee Shop held a contest torename the Apache Indian Village,located in the basement andannounced the new name at it’sformal opening, June 25, 1932. IndianPrincess Rose Marie, an employee ofthe hotel who dressed in Indian garb,awarded a cash prize of $25 toThomas Wilson for the new name,“Kiva Club”. The new cabaret belowthe Hotel Apache was a roaringsuccess and a number of couples wereturned away at the opening. The newclub was designed as an IndianVillage and the main activities includeddining, dancing, and entertainment.Soon after, gaming would occurincluding keno. It is not know whybut the Kiva Club would change it’sname to the Kiva Caberet by Marchof 1934 and then to the Apache NightClub by May of 1934. It is believedthat the Apache Night Club was alsoreferred to in later years as the ‘PacheClub.


The building on Fremont andSecond has housed many gamblingclubs but the physical address has notalways been 128 E. Fremont. In factin some telephone books, the Hotel islisted on Second Street. So whetherthe casinos are located at 128 E.Fremont or 124 E. Fremont is imma-terial, the fact remains that gamingdid occur at the Hotel Apache andunder the same roof.

According to Harvey Fuller Indexof Nevada Gambling Establishments,the following clubs, their ownershipsand dates of operation are statedbelow.

Downstairs:Kiva Club124 Fremont3/19/32 - 5/4/34(Apache Indian Club, Kiva Club, Kiva Caberet, Apache Night Club a.k.a. ‘Pache Club)

Street Level:Apache Casino (Apache Hotel Corporation)124 Fremont 3/19/32 to 1941

Western Casino124 Fremont 7/14/41 - 1/3/42

New Western Casino124 Fremont2/2/42 - ?

S.S. Rex Club (Cornero, et al) - 128 Fremont3/3/45 - 6/7/45S.S. Rex Club (Silvagni)128 Fremont6/27/45 - 7/21/45

S.S. Rex Club (Guy McAfee) - 128 Fremont7/21/45 -2/7/46

Rex Club (Bernstein)128 Fremont2/7/46 - 5/2/46

Rex Club (Sedway)128 Fremont 5/2/46 - 6/46

El Dorado Club (Sedway)128 Fremont7/8/47 - 1/14/48

El Dorado Club (Mack)128 Fremont1/15/48 - 9/7/48

El Dorado Club (Rozen)128 Fremont 9/8/48 - 1951

S.S. Rex Club 1945

Photograph Courtesy of: Manis Collection University of Nevada, Las Vegas Library

Clover Club128 Fremont1/1/51 - 8/51

Binion’s Horseshoe Club128 Fremont8/15/51 - 1/8/58

Joe Brown’s Horseshoe Club128 Fremont1/9/58 - 4/22/60

Binion’s Horseshoe128 Fremont 4/23/60 - current


Chips and other memorabilia found

Fellow collector and club memberRich Burgel, came across three chips,a napkin, matches, and a swizzle stickfrom the Apache from an ex-employeeof the Apache Bar. The chips havebeen verified by the manufacturer, TRKing and were delivered to theApache Casino, Las Vegas in 1939.An order for 1,800 chips of variouspastel colors was produced in a largecrown mold and hot stamped“Apache Casino.”

Why this story is being told

Maria Wadsworth of Henderson,Nevada, granddaughter of the builder,P.O. Silvagni, recalls hanging out atthe Hotel during the swelteringsummer days when the temperaturerose to over 100 degrees. She and herfriends would hang-out, literally, atthe coolest place in town. The coolingsystem was designed to keep thetemperature nearly 25 degrees coolerthan the outside temperature and helpeliminate the installation of fans inevery room. Maria shared with methat not only did the Hotel Apachehave the first elevator in town, hergrandfather also had the first electricrefrigeration cooling system installedin 1941, the precursor to the modernair conditioner. During the ’40s withthe lack of gaming regulations andenforcement, Maria was able to walkfreely between the bar, casino, andthroughout the hotel. Her motherhelped with the books of the hoteland her aunt worked at the café. It Photograph Courtesy of: Manis Collection University of Nevada, Las Vegas Library

was truly a family business. Thoughthe original Silvagni property ownerhas passed on, Binion’s Horseshoestill pays rent to the numerous truststhat once made up the Silvagni family.

I started writing this articlebecause so few people know whatdowntown Fremont Street was likebefore the monumental strip.Standing in a modern casino you

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Notice the gun on the crap table

Photograph Courtesy of: Gladys Frazier Collection University of Nevada,Las Vegas Library

don’t know whether you’re in Paris,Italy, or New York. Each casinolooks, smells, and sounds like thenext one. The loss of identity andnovelty has slowly eroded to corpo-rate businesses that design casinoswith a cookie cutter mentality, mak-ing each casino homogenous with thenext. With the exception of thefaçade, it’s all a mirage. Althoughwith 56 rooms, the hotel could not beconsidered a modern megaresort, itwas the swankiest place for its time.

But why should anyone care abouta building that was built over 70years ago and few remnants remainfrom the original building. The HotelApache is one of the few remainingoriginal buildings from the early partof the Las Vegas downtown. Thepreservation of buildings and its his-tory is vital for future generations toknow, understand, and appreciatewhat came before the neon glitter ofthe “Strip” and what all others thinkthey know about Las Vegas. Thissmall block of real estate is where itall started. Las Vegas was different. Itwas a small town that didn’t have theworld-wide recognition it now holds.

Although I was able to highlightone particular building, many morestories can be told of the BeckleyBuilding, the Thomas Building, andof casinos that lined Fremont Streetlike the Northern Club, Arizona Club,and Boulder Club. As original patronsof these ’30s clubs grow older anddie, so do their first hand accountsof daily life, colorful history, andmemories that will forever disappear.

References and Thank Yous

I’d like to thank the followingindividuals who helped contribute tothis article: Daryl Fossier for sharingyour scans of memorabilia; Frank

Wright, historian for sharing yourintimate knowledge and research;Maria Wadsworth, granddaughter ofP.O. Silvagni for your first handaccounts of the hotel, bar, café, andcasino; Kathy War, UNLV librarianfor obtaining many of the olderphotographs; Russ, Doug and Pam foryour support; Harvey J. Fuller for thecountless hours of research and the

selfless enthusiasm to share thatinformation. And a special thank youto Howard Herz for lighting a matchunder my feet, conducting research,and the tireless effort of publishingthis work. Without your help thisarticle would never have beenpublished. �

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the megaresort of its time · 2011. 2. 14. · the “grand opening” on march 19, 1932, 5...

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