Oran Gragson served as mayor of Las Vegas for sixteen years, from 1959 until 1974. He was born February 14, 1911, near Tucamari, New Mexico. In 1919 his family moved to Arkansas, then later to Texas. Gragson came to the Las Vegas area in 1932, and worked at Hoover Dam for a short time before finding employment in highway construction. He later managed the Boulder Inn Casino and Dance Hall, then became part owner of a new and used furniture store. His interest in the furniture business continued, and he opened the North Main Furniture Store, followed by the Charleston Appliance Center. Gragson married Bonnie Henley in Arkansas in 1934, and they had two children, Kenneth and Shirley.

In 1959 Gragson, a political unknown, was elected Mayor of Las Vegas. Three years later he won the Republican nomination for governor, but lost to incumbent Grant Sawyer in the general election. Gragson won re-election as mayor in 1963, 1967, and 1971. He chose not to seek a fifth term, and retired from office in 1974. In 1968, he won the Fiorello LaGuardia Award for “Outstanding Mayor of the Year.”

During Gragson’s tenure as mayor, he oversaw the construction of several major structures, including Cashman Field and the Convention Center. The City of Las Vegas acquired several properties for neighborhood parks and community centers, and Gragson founded the Mayor’s Urban Renewal Committee, which primarily funded housing projects and improvements on the Westside. The mayor survived two recall attempts, the first during his initial term as mayor. The controversy centered about unrest within the sheriff’s department and city hall. The second attempt to recall the mayor took place during his last term, and was also unsuccessful. Gragson governed the city during a turbulent time of racial tension and social unrest.