Back from a quick tour of the strip to the old center of Las Vegas entertainment and gaming, Fremont Street. This is the Golden Nugget, one of the longer lasting establishments, now a hotel as well as the largest casino on Fremont Street.

The description states:
THE MILLION DOLLAR
GOLDEN NUGGET GAMBLING HALL
SALOON AND RESTAURANT
LAS VEGAS, NEVADA
“Where Fortune Smiles”
See the Old-Style West in our modern world. A place of mahogany bars, crystal chandeliers, with the genuine hospitality and old-time gaiety of the barbary coast and the Virginia City of fifty years ago.
—Barbary Coast is a reference to the notorious district in San Francisco, home to bordellos, gambling halls, drug dens and other unsavory entertainments. Virginia City was a boom town in the Washoe basin near Reno, notable for its extensive silver mining activity and the emergence of Mark Twain there as a journalist in his younger years.
The card dates from the 1950s

This second view of the Thunderbird is from the private side of the hotel, where you can see guests swimming, tanning and lounging around the pool behind the main building.

The description states:
The swimming pool and center patio of the famous Hotel Thunderbird in las Vegas, Nevada, one of the many fine resort hotels that attract a large number of vacationists and travelers each year.
–It is interesting to note there are no visible indications of either drinks or ashtrays, which would have been present in abundance around a pool in this era. The hotel was upgraded over time and ultimately demolished and replaced with another hotel resort that went bankrupt before completion.
This card, like the others in this series, dates from the 1950s.

This card image shows the parking lot and flamboyant decoration of the Thunderbird Hotel as it was shortly after its construction. It was another of the early Strip hotel/casinos, and like the others had a very active existence, being remodeled, expanded, renamed and ultimately abandoned and imploded to make way for the Fontainebleau, currently in bankruptcy.

The description states:
One of the luxury resort hotels that had made Las Vegas, Nevada, the hub of the scenic Southwest for the vacationeer, tourist and casual traveller.
–This description uses the older term vacationeer rather than vacationer, and politely leaves out the gambler as one of the groups frequenting the city. The cars shown in the lot clearly date this image to the 1950s.

Another image of the Desert Inn, this time from the pool side on the other side of the main building from the parking lot shown before.

The description states:
WILBUR CLARK’S DESERT INN
LAS VEGAS, NEVADA
An evening view across the quiet waters of the Swimming Pool looking toward the glees-enclosed Skyroom Cocktail Lounge, the Painted Desert Room Supper Club, ‘Round the Clock Casino and Lady Luck Bar.
–The Skyroom is easy to identify, being elevated above the rest of the building, much like an airport control tower. The rest of the rooms named are not distinctive enough in this rendition, but the presence of tables to the left strongly suggests this is the location of the Supper Club and the right side windows are the Casino.
This card like the others in this series, dates from the 1950s

Following on after the Sands is Wilbur Clark’s Desert Inn. It also served as a location for the filming of Ocean’s 11, as it was adjacent to the Sands at the time.

The description states:
The Green Vista of
WILBUR CLARK’S DESERT INN
LAS VEGAS, NEVADA
The sweeping grandeur of the main building at this magnificent resort introduces the guest to the luxurious livery offered by the newest and largest Las Vegas hotel.
–The hotel, like most others on the strip from the earlier days, was expanded many times, and finally demolished in favor of another development, in this case the Wynn resort.
The automobiles pictured here indicate the card dates from the 1950s.

The final Las Vegas location of this week continues the arid theme common for the era. The Sands Hotel was a modest start, just a few hundred rooms along with the casino, but it hosted the filming of Ocean’s 11, which is considered the birth of the Rat Pack. They performed at the legendary Copa Room stage at the Sands, among many other stars of the era.

The description states:
THE SANDS
A Place in the Sun
LAS VEGAS, NEVADA
The newest luxury hotel in Las Vegas, world renowned for its head line entertainment, luxurious living accommodations and complete shopping and amusement facilities.
–The statement above noting that the Sands was the newest at the time of the photo points to the photo dating from 1953. In the end, even though it was expanded with a landmark circular tower, the Sands was demolished and replaced with the Venetian on the same site.

The Hotel Flamingo was the first luxury resort on the strip, and it’s early history is deeply entwined with the influence of the mob, including such famous figures as Bugsy Siegel and Meyer Lansky.

The description states:
THE SHOWPLACE OF THE NATION
FLAMINGO HOTEL, LAS VEGAS NEVADA
This is a view of the grounds of the Famous Flamingo Hotel, showing in the center of its beautiful landscaped gardens.
–The resort still exists, but has been extensively reconstructed several times since this image, so there is literally nothing left of what you can see here. The image is from the 1950s.

We move away from Fremont St. to the early developments along the strip. The Hotel Sahara anchored the north end of the early Strip, and was the last of the pre-1969 hotels to be demolished. It hosted many famous performers, not least of which were the Rat Pack, a group of entertainers including Frank Sinatra, Dean Martin and Sammy Davis, Jr.

The description states:
HOTEL SAHARA
LAS VEGAS, NEVADA
The last word in modern luxury hotel construction. Famous stars appearing nightly to entertain. Renowned for fine food and luxurious living.
–The hotel expanded many times over the years, but was finally closed in 2011, and will be replaced with a mega-resort on the same site. This image is of the hotel just shortly after its initial completion, and dates from the 1950s.

Proceeding down Fremont Street in Las Vegas, we finally come to the Horseshoe Club. Looking at the previous postcard, you can see the same Hotel Apache sign in the far background on the left, as is shown on top of the club building in this picture. The Hotel Apache and Eldorado Club were purchased by Benny Binion and restyled the Horseshoe Club.

The description states:
THE HORSESHOE CLUB
FREMONT STREET — LAS VEGAS, NEVADA
The new Horseshoe Club is another notable showplace of Las Vegas, Nevada. The Tourists, visitors, and Las Vegans, have found here the perfect combination of restful atmosphere and all the modern conveniences for relaxation. There is a restaurant serving de luxe meals at low prices, one of the largest bars in Nevada, nearby parking, and all games of chance for which Nevada is famous.
–Now it is called Binion’s Horseshoe, and anchors one end of the Fremont Street experience. Since the description indicates the club is new, it is possible to date this card to the 1950s.