What Happens In Vegas?

Las Vegas is a happening place, but what's not happening is the preservation of old structures, such as the one pictured on this matchbook from the Hickory Wood Bar-B-Q.  The first thing the KC Matchgirl thought when she noticed the address was, "Bet that building isn't there any more!"

In fact, 315-17 Fremont is not an actual address any more either.  The whole block has been consolidated as one address, 301 Fremont, where The D Las Vegas, a 638 room hotel/casino now stands.  Prior to 2012, the hotel was known as Fitzgerald's, and prior to 1987, was known as Sundance.  How long Hickory Wood was in business has been hard to pinpoint, but its fate as a small business was probably sealed when the Golden Nugget Casino opened two blocks away in 1946, which lead to the Fremont Hotel opening in 1956 a mere block away.

Meat smoking on a grill has since been replaced by neon and blinking lights.  Fremont, one of Las Vegas' original platted streets dating to 1905, now boasts the Fremont Street Experience, a canopy that stretches four blocks, from Main to 4th street.  This 90 ft. barrel-vaulted structure cost $70 million to build in 1995.  The pedestrian walkway's highlight is a nightly music-enhanced light show that runs hourly from 6 pm to midnight.  Originally, the technology used incandescent bulbs, but a $17 million upgrade in 2004 switched to a LED system.

It all sounds like quite an experience, unless you just want to sit down in a small joint and chomp on some tasty looking "Q"...

Matchbook timeframe:  1940's, due to the 4 digit telephone number and artwork style.