Moulin Rouge - U.S. National Register of Historic Places on Waymarking.com

Las Vegas was a deeply segregated town in the 1940s and 1950s and it was frequently referred to as the "Mississippi of the West". Black patrons were not allowed to enter most casinos on Fremont Street or the Strip, and black entertainers were often refused accommodation at the luxurious resorts where they performed. In May 1955, the elegant "Moulin Rouge" on Bonanza Road opened as the first interracial casino and hotel in Las Vegas with 105 rooms. It was variously called the "First Multiracial or Integrated or Cosmopolitan Hotel" in Las Vegas. Blacks and Whites were welcome. All the dealers at the Rouge were white. They were the only jobs at the hotels that were not filled by blacks. Prior to the Moulin Rouge, blacks couldn't deal or be involved in any casino games, so there were no experienced dealers to draw from. The Platters opened the Moulin Rouge in the big opening night. Typical night at the Moulin Rouge would have Sammy Davis, Jr., on stage, with George Burns and Gracie Allen, Nat "King" Cole, Jack Benny and Mary Livingston, Joe E. Lewis, Frank Sinatra, Peter Lawford, and Harry Belafonte, and 350 others watching the hottest show in Las Vegas from the audience. Despite its initial success and popularity, the Moulin Rouge closed after only six months due to financial mismanagement. In 1960 it was used for a historic signing of an agreement to abolish housing and other forms of racial segregation on the Strip. Although entered on the National Register of Historic Places in December 1992, subsequent owners have met with little success in returning it to its former glory. Efforts to save the Moulin Rouge are ongoing; in April 2002, the Preserve Nevada group added the hotel to their list of Nevada's ten most endangered historical sites. In May 2003, an arsonist's fire destroyed what remained of the Moulin Rouge.

Street address: 900 W Bonanza Las Vegas, NV USA 89109 County / Borough / Parish: Nevada Clark Las Vegas Year listed: 1974 Historic (Areas of) Significance: Event Periods of significance: 1950-1974 Historic function: Domestic, Recreation And Culture Current function: Abandoned Privately owned?: yes Primary Web Site: [Web Link] Secondary Website 1: [Web Link] Season start / Season finish: Not listed Hours of operation: Not listed Secondary Website 2: Not listed National Historic Landmark Link: Not listed

Visit Instructions:
Please give the date and brief account of your visit. Include any additional observations or information that you may have, particularly about the current condition of the site. Additional photos are highly encouraged, but not mandatory.

Recent Visits/Logs:

Date Logged Log User Rating   12/19/2010 brwhiz visited it 10/22/2010 Rebel04 wrote comment for it 03/16/2010 leadhiker visited it 11/29/2009 Metro2 visited it 07/24/2009 DopeyDuck visited it 11/15/2007 Boris and Natasha visited it 05/31/2007 Dusty_Rhodes visited it

View all visits/logs