Editorial: Preserving our history

Friday, Feb. 18, 2005 | 8:50 a.m.

About the only tangible evidence of Las Vegas' early days as a railroad town are 13 cottages, circa 1910, still standing in the downtown area. Appearing spare and bleak today, the cottages are all that remain of a cluster of 65 then-desirable homes built for railroad employees. Seven are on Casino Center Boulevard, between Bonneville and Garces avenues -- the exact spot planned for a new high-rise office/condominium development.

It was inevitable that the accelerating growth of Las Vegas would one day come knocking on the cottages' doors. We're just glad that knocking sound doesn't mean the wrecking ball for all of them. The least-preserved cottages will be salvaged for parts, but at least three will be moved to the Las Vegas Springs Preserve, another historic site that is under construction.

The removal costs will be paid by the Las Vegas Rotary Club, the American Public Works Association and the Cashman Family Foundation. A fourth cottage, on the 600 block of Fourth Street, is owned by the city, which will pay to have it moved to the preserve as well. (Another cottage was removed four years ago to the Clark County Museum.)

We're delighted to see this level of commitment to historic preservation.