Vintage Photos from the Golden Age of Las Vegas

This barren patch of desert land offered for $3 million in 1955 would one day become part of the legendary Las Vegas Strip. At the time, the city was only beginning its transformation, with resorts like the El Rancho Vegas pioneering the idea of luxury hotels and casinos along Highway 91.

The price might have seemed steep for empty desert, but within just a decade the area exploded with iconic properties like the Sands, Stardust, and Caesars Palace. That same desert would soon become the heart of one of the most famous entertainment districts in the world.