Some notable figures in Henderson’s history

Wednesday, April 16, 2003 | 12:22 p.m.

ADRIAN DOMINICAN SISTERS - Based on the advice of Nevada Bishop Thomas Gorman, the religious order based in Adrian, Mich., purchased the Basic Magnesium Hospital for $1, assuming its debt, in 1947. The hospital was renamed St. Rose de Lima. Today it is St. Rose Dominican Hospital, a health care system with two hospitals, St. Rose de Lima and Siena, and seven other medical buildings in Southern Nevada.

SELMA BARTLETT - A banker for 55 years, 48 in Henderson, she once told the Las Vegas Sun that because she had no children she had always looked upon Henderson as her child. First at Nevada State Bank, later at First Interstate Bank and now as a senior vice president at BankWest, Bartlett has helped finance hundreds of millions of dollars of Henderson's growth. She also is a trustee for the Nevada State College at Henderson.

THE REV. CAESAR CAVIGLIA - Known affectionately as "Father C.," Caviglia was pastor at St. Peter's Church in Henderson for 22 years before his retirement in 1994. He played a vital role in establishing Clark County Community College's Henderson campus in 1981 and taught anthropology, sociology and philosophy there for a number of years.

STATE SEN. JAMES I. GIBSON - A longtime Nevada legislator, he represented Henderson, starting as an assemblyman in 1965 and as a senator from 1967 until his death in 1988. The Democrat served several terms as majority and minority floor leader. Gibson was long regarded as one of the state's most powerful lawmakers. He was the son of pioneering Henderson chemist Fred Gibson, for whom Gibson Road is named, and father of current Henderson Mayor Jim Gibson.

LORNA KESTERSON - The longtime managing editor of the Henderson Home News and former correspondent for the Las Vegas Sun in 1985 became the ninth Henderson resident and first woman to be elected mayor. The former councilwoman in the late 1970s served as mayor until 1993. She also is the widow of one-time Henderson Councilman Bob Kesterson.

LOU LA PORTA - A Henderson Councilman in the 1950s and Clark County Commissioner in the 1960s, he played a role in the creation of the air pollution board and in the expansion of McCarran Air Field, now McCarran International Airport. Owner of La Porta Insurance Agency in Henderson since 1948, he is a co-founder of the Black Mountain Country Club and is a past president of the Henderson Chamber of Commerce.

MIKE O'CALLAGHAN - Former two-term governor of Nevada, he is past owner and now columnist for the Henderson Home News and chairman and columnist of the Las Vegas Sun. O'Callaghan was a Basic High School government and history teacher who took students to the first five Sun Youth Forums. He was a co-founder and a boxing coach of the Henderson Boys Club.

VAIL PITTMAN - A member of one of Nevada's most powerful political families of the mid-20th century, Pittman was elected lieutenant governor in 1942, served as acting governor in 1945 and was elected governor a year later and served until 1950. He also served in the state Senate. He was the brother of late U.S. Sen. Key Pittman. Vail Pittman died in 1964.

JIM THORPE - Regarded as one of America's greatest athletes of the 20th century, the 1912 Olympic decathlon champion and early pro football star was a longtime resident of Henderson, where he operated a bar in the Pittman area. He died in 1953.

TANYA TUCKER - At the time her first hit song was recorded in the 1970s, launching her as a teenage country music star, she lived in Henderson. Tucker went on to become Country Music Association Vocalist of the Year for 1991. Her hits include "Delta Dawn" and "The San Antonio Stroll."

J. MARLAN WALKER - A longtime Mormon Church leader, he was a teacher of languages at Basic High School. He taught primarily Spanish and Latin and spoke several other languages. His students included U.S. Sen. Harry Reid and prominent Las Vegas attorney Frank Schreck. He is the father of current Clark County Aviation Director Randy Walker. Marlan Walker retired in 1987 and lives in Henderson.