Original Homesite Of A Las Vegas Pioneer "Pop" Squires
Las Vegas, Clark County, Nevada
Marker Inscription
Original Homesite Of A Las Vegas Pioneer “Pop” Squires 1865 1958. Charles “Pop” Squires, often referred to as “the Father of Las Vegas,” lived at this location, with his wife Delphine, from 1931 until his death in 1958.Squires first arrived in the Las Vegas Valley in February 1905. He and his partners established a lumberyard, a tent hotel, a real estate firm, and the First State Bank. In March 1906, “Pop” assisted in the formation of the Consolidated Power & Telephone Company, bringing electricity and phone service to the new town.In 1908, Squires and his wife purchased the community’s only newspaper, the Las Vegas Age. Squires campaigned for the creation of Clark County in 1909. He subsequently worked on incorporating Las Vegas into a city. With his wife and the voice of their newspaper, the couple became advocates for women’s suffrage. As a member of the League of the Southwest and the Colorado River Commission, Squires helped advance plans that eventually led to the construction of Hoover Dam.Upon “Pop’s” passing, Las Vegas Sun reporter Bob Faiss wrote, “It seems strange that Las Vegas, a modern boomtown … should owe so much to the foresight of one man. But there is little we have today that wasn’t given an initial shove by ‘Pop’ Squires.”
Erected by Nevada State Historic Preservation Office
The Story
Charles 'Pop' Squires, often called the 'Father of Las Vegas,' arrived in the valley in 1905 and lived at this site with his wife Delphine from 1931 until his death in 1958. He launched a lumberyard, hotel, real estate firm, and bank, brought electricity and telephone service to the new town, and in 1908 bought its only newspaper, the Las Vegas Age. Through that paper the Squireses championed the creation of Clark County, women's suffrage, and the river plans that led to Hoover Dam.
Why it matters
Squires embodies the outsized role a single civic booster could play in willing a modern Western city into existence in the early twentieth century.
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Related people
- · Charles 'Pop' Squires
- · Delphine Squires
Related events
- · Creation of Clark County, 1909
- · Construction of Hoover Dam
Themes & tags
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