Golden Gate celebrates 116 years in downtown Las Vegas
LAS VEGAS (KLAS) — The Golden Gate Hotel & Casino is celebrating another milestone as it turns 116 years old making it the oldest casino in Las Vegas.
When other buildings, including casinos, are getting torn down and replaced, the Golden Gate has managed to stay standing tall. It was built and opened in 1906.
According to Golden Gate’s CEO Derek Stevens the hotel first opened with 10 rooms, but this made it the largest hotel in the new town of Las Vegas. “When you think about 10 rooms, the original 10 rooms, a lot of people may not know the 10 rooms are rooms that we refurbished exactly like they were in 1906,” Stevens said. Since then it has grown to 129 rooms.
Over the decades, the property has survived prohibition and many other Las Vegas milestones. And is now going strong through another major event, the global pandemic. “Think about how many employees worked at the golden gate,” Stevens said. “How many people have come to Las Vegas and broken in at the Golden Gate, bartenders, cocktailers.”
Derek Stevens added that without the Golden Gate, the property across the street, Circa, wouldn’t be here today. Stevens and his brother own the Golden Gate, Circa, and The D which are all located in downtown Las Vegas.
Some of the hotel’s historic artifacts can still be seen on display near the check-in desk. The display includes the first telephone in Las Vegas with the number 1.
The hotel has also been known by other names. It opened as the Miller Hotel but also known as the Hotel Nevada. In 1931 the hotel was renames the Sal Sagev (Las Vegas spelled backwards). In 1955 the Golden Gate Casino opened on the ground floor of the Sal Sagev. It wasn’t until 1974 when the entire property was renamed the Golden Gate Hotel & Casino.