Get Booked – Visit the Mob Museum!

Las Vegas hasn’t always been the mainstream attraction in the United States that it is today.  In fact, it was only a couple of generations ago when the city was still infamous throughout the world as Sin City, a hub of hedonism, appealing to our baser natures, run by gangsters and wooing big name celebrities.  I clearly remember my parents talking about friends who had visited Vegas with disdain, and how shameful it was.  Today, Las Vegas is one of the most widely visited cities in the country, by visitors from all over the world.  But if you long to know more about those days of yesteryear, visit The Mob Museum for the story of the old Vegas, and how it came to be, in the times when it was indeed, run by gangsters.

Howard Hughes brought about the beginning of the end of that era, and the movement of Vegas into corporate and mainstream America.  The story of Hughes extended stay at the Desert Inn, and his refusal to leave have become mythological.  Staff attempted to evict him from the top floor suites, and rather than leave, he purchased the hotel.  That led to a binge of purchases, coming up to about $130 million, which was huge in the 1960s.  Hughes left Vegas in 1970, never to return, but the transition had begun. Soon the strip would be lined with billion dollar resorts.

Older locals we talked to in Las Vegas spoke with open nostalgia for the bygone times of mafia control in Vegas.  They said things were better in those days.  They said the guests were treated as something special back then, and now they are treated like just another body with some dollars to spend.  Those words can cause one to wonder.. Were things really better before?  The Mob Museum may not answer that question, but it does shed some light on the way things began in Las Vegas, and the way things were.  

 

The Mob Museum is officially named the National Museum of Organized Crime and Law Enforcement.   There have been many names for organized crime groups through the 20th century- the Mafia, the Syndicate, the Family, NCS.  But Mob is the one that sticks with most Americans. In a way, it is almost a term of endearment, as we often have a romanticized image of organized crime.  (Perhaps in a country that wants to believe that a rag to riches story is possible for anyone, this image is inevitable.)  In the same way, the museum was more commonly referred to as The Mob Museum, than by its proper name, and ultimately adopted the moniker.  

Obviously organized crime did not start or end in Las Vegas.  The Mob Museum traces the history of organized crime in the United States, from the well-known families in New York, Chicago, and other cities, and the movement into Vegas.  It does paint an image of the glamor commonly associated with the Vegas of yesteryear, but it also shows the bloody, gruesome side of organized crime.  One of the very first displays is the actual wall of the Valentine’s Day Massacre, with bullet holes and blood stains.  This side was not so commonly seen in Vegas, which was an intentional move by the crime bosses.

 

 

 

The Mob Museum also tells the other side of the story, and the fight against organized crime, across the country.  As it happens, the former court building that now houses the museum was the actual location of the Kefauver hearings in Las Vegas.  These hearings, initiated by Tennessee Senator Estes Kefauver, investigating the hold of organized crime across the country, were held in 30 different cities, and televised live.  It was quite a media sensation at the time.  Films of the hearings from that very courtroom, are played throughout the day.  

Here is our little photo tour of our visit to the Mob Museum.  In most cases, they were taken through glass, so there are reflections.  We still find them fascinating, and only the beginning.  By the way, they all open up to full size images with a click.

 

[envira-gallery id=”10170″]

 

The Mob Museum is an intriguing place to visit.  Three stories of multimedia and state of the art displays are used to tell the tales, giving us a real look into a world that we seldom see beyond the veneer.  It also introduces us to aspects of the criminal world that we seldom consider related.  If you don’t believe us, check out what the New York Times had to say when the Mob Museum opened.  

If you are looking to get off the strip, or do something different in Vegas,  visit the Mob Museum! 

It is open from 9 to 9 daily.  It can get busy, so we suggest going very early, or late. 

The museum is located at 300 Stewart Street, in downtown Las Vegas!   It is a block off of Fremont Street, and the city busses drop steps away.  

And, you can buy your tickets for 20% off, here:

If you are looking for other things to do in Vegas, rather than gamble, check out our 101 Things to do in Las Vegas.  You will find plenty!

If you are planning your first trip, you need our first timer info, Vegas Virgins, What to Know Before You Go!