The Fitzgerald Hoard was a collection of casino chips, silver coins and collectables which had been stored in a warehouse in Reno, Nevada. The entire hoard was purchased by notable California coin dealer Ron Gillio. Named for casino owner Lincoln Fitzgerald, it included over 100,000 American silver dollars and masses of gambling paraphernalia.
Lincoln Fitzgerald ran three casinos in Nevada: the Nevada Club, which was in downtown Reno, Fitzgeralds Casino & Hotel, Reno, and the Nevada Lodge in Lake Tahoe. [1] After a 1949 assassination attempt, Fitzgerald began sleeping at one of his casinos. [2] He stayed on the second floor of The Nevada Club in a steel-walled apartment; he was referred to as reclusive by the Reno Gazette-Journal . [3] He began saving collectables and silver dollars, from his casinos and his restaurant, in a Reno, Nevada, warehouse. [2]
Californian coin dealer Ron Gillio in 2003 purchased the hoard—22 years after its namesake's death—from a warehouse outside of Reno. Amongst the items in the warehouse were roulette wheels, sealed treasury bags of silver dollars, casino chips, and other casino related merchandise. [4] There were various branded tchotchke and souvenirs such as commemorative casino spoons and coasters, key chains, and matchbooks. Gillio called his collection the Fitzgerald Hoard. [1]
The hoard included more than 100,000 American silver dollars which were in safes or piled in bags in a corner. [1] Gillio purchased everything and claimed that it took 60 days to clear out the warehouse. He did not disclose the price that he paid for the collection but the casino chips and silver dollars alone had a face value of US$500,000. [1] In June of 2004, Gillio held an auction in San Francisco to sell some of the items from the hoard. [5] The Numismatic Guaranty Corporation (NGC) graded and slabbed the 100,000 Morgan and Peace silver dollars in the hoard. [6]
The half dollar, sometimes referred to as the half for short or 50-cent piece, is a United States coin worth 50 cents, or one half of a dollar. In both size and weight, it is the largest United States circulating coin currently produced, being 1.205 inches in diameter and 0.085 in (2.16 mm) in thickness, and is twice the weight of the quarter. The coin's design has undergone a number of changes throughout its history. Since 1964, the half dollar depicts the profile of President John F. Kennedy on the obverse and the seal of the president of the United States on the reverse.
The Stardust Resort and Casino was a casino resort located on 60 acres (24 ha) along the Las Vegas Strip in Winchester, Nevada. The Stardust was conceived by Tony Cornero, and construction began in 1954. Cornero died in 1955, and the project was taken over by his brother. The Stardust had numerous creditors, and construction was stopped in 1956, when the project ran out of money.
The Hacienda was a hotel and casino on the Las Vegas Strip in Paradise, Nevada, that operated from 1956 to 1996. It was opened by Warren Bayley, who owned other Hacienda properties in California as well. Bayley opened the hotel portion in June 1956, although the opening of the casino was delayed as the Nevada Gaming Control Board objected to his choice of casino manager, Jake Kozloff. The casino portion eventually opened on October 17, 1956. The $6 million property had 266 rooms and the largest pool on the Las Vegas Strip. Like its sister properties in California, the resort included a neon sign that depicted a cowboy riding a palomino horse.
Robert Edward Stupak was a Las Vegas casino owner and entrepreneur. He was also a poker player, winning titles at the World Series of Poker and the Super Bowl of Poker. He also competed on the World Poker Tour, and various other tournaments, as well as cash games, including High Stakes Poker on GSN. He once played a computer for half a million dollars and won.
The New Frontier was a hotel and casino on the Las Vegas Strip in Paradise, Nevada. The property began as a casino and dance club known as Pair O' Dice, opened in 1931. It was sold in 1941, and incorporated into the Hotel Last Frontier, which began construction at the end of the year. The Hotel Last Frontier opened on October 30, 1942, as the second resort on the Las Vegas Strip. The western-themed property included 105 rooms, as well as the Little Church of the West. The resort was devised by R.E. Griffith and designed by his nephew, William J. Moore. Following Griffith's death in 1943, Moore took over ownership and added a western village in 1948. The village consisted of authentic Old West buildings from a collector, and would also feature the newly built Silver Slipper casino, added in 1950.
Circus Circus Reno is a hotel and casino located in Downtown Reno, Nevada. It anchors a network of connected hotel-casinos in the downtown Reno core that includes Silver Legacy Reno and Eldorado Reno and are owned and operated by Caesars Entertainment. It includes a 1,620 room hotel and a 66,515 sq ft (6,179.4 m2) casino which features free circus acts on a regular basis throughout the day over the midway which also offers 33 carnival games.
Vegas World was a space-themed casino and hotel on Las Vegas Boulevard in Las Vegas, Nevada. It was owned and operated by Bob Stupak, and was also signed as Bob Stupak's Vegas World.
Lonnie Theodore Binion, also known as Ted Binion, was an American gambling executive and the son of Las Vegas casino magnate Benny Binion, owner of Binion's Horseshoe casino. Ted Binion was involved in multiple criminal cases which included associating with organised crime figures. Binion had a multi-million dollar bullion coin and silver bar collection, known as the Binion Hoard, which he hid inside the Horseshoe casino and at two properties that he owned. When Binion died in 1998, there were suspicions of foul play. Binion's girlfriend Sandra Murphy and her lover Rick Tabish became the prime suspects. Both were charged and convicted of murder in Binion's death. The two were later granted a new trial and acquitted on the murder charges.
Silver Legacy Resort & Casino is a hotel and casino located in Downtown Reno, Nevada. It anchors a network of connected hotel-casinos in the downtown Reno core that included Circus Circus Reno and Eldorado Reno and are owned and operated by Caesars Entertainment. It has over 1,700 hotel rooms and suites and is the tallest building in Reno.
The El Rancho Hotel and Casino was a hotel and casino that operated on the Las Vegas Strip in Winchester, Nevada. It originally opened on September 2, 1948, as the Navajo-themed Thunderbird. At the time, it was owned by building developer Marion Hicks and Lieutenant Governor of Nevada Clifford A. Jones. A sister property, the Algiers Hotel, was opened south of the Thuderbird in 1953. During the mid-1950s, the state carried out an investigation to determine whether underworld Mafia figures held hidden interests in the resort. Hicks and Jones ultimately prevailed and kept their gaming licenses. Hicks died in 1961, and his position as managing director was taken over by Joe Wells, another partner in the resort. Wells added a horse racing track known as Thunderbird Downs, located behind the resort. The Thunderbird also hosted numerous entertainers and shows, including Flower Drum Song and South Pacific.
Bourbon Square Casino was a casino and former hotel in Downtown Sparks, Nevada. The property operated until January 11, 2009, as Silver Club. The property reopened as Bourbon Square on August 1, 2013, and operated until February 5, 2015. It was demolished in 2018.
The Renaissance Reno is a hotel and former casino in Reno, Nevada. It opened in 1956 as the Holiday, closed in 1998, and reopened as Siena in 2001. It uses the Renaissance Hotels brand under license from Marriott International.
Fitzgeralds Gaming was a gaming and hotel company based in Reno, Nevada, that operated four casinos under the Fitzgeralds brand. It filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in December 2000, and subsequently sold all its properties.
Caesars Entertainment, Inc., formerly Eldorado Resorts, Inc., is an American hotel and casino entertainment company founded and based in Reno, Nevada that operates more than 50 properties. Eldorado Resorts acquired Caesars Entertainment Corporation and changed its own name to Caesars Entertainment on July 20, 2020.
The Sundowner is a former hotel and casino located in downtown Reno, Nevada. The Sundowner's 11-story hotel opened in May 1975, and the casino opened two months later. With 349 rooms, it was the largest hotel in Reno until the opening of the MGM Grand in 1978. A 19-story hotel tower was added in 1979, bringing the total number of rooms to 583.
3rd Street Flats is a mixed-use development project located in downtown Reno, Nevada. It includes 94 apartment units, retail space, and a restaurant. It previously operated as Kings Inn, a hotel and casino. The hotel opened in September 1974, and the casino opened the next year. The casino closed in 1982, following financial issues, and the hotel closed on July 12, 1986, because of fire code violations. Although there were plans to reopen the building, it ultimately sat vacant for the next three decades.
LaVere Redfield was an American financier and multi-millionaire. Redfield made his fortune in purchasing oil land in Los Angeles, investing in stocks, and buying property at tax sales during the Great Depression. When he was robbed in 1952, the multi-million dollar burglary was one of the largest ever recorded. The investigation revealed a hoard of 270,000 silver Morgan dollars and postage stamps behind a false wall in his basement. After his death in 1974, his heirs found 407,000 more silver dollars hidden in his garage and home.
The Redfield Hoard was LaVere Redfield's collection of 407,000 silver Morgan and Peace dollars. The hoard was discovered in Reno, Nevada, at the home of LaVere Redfield after his death in 1974.
The Binion Hoard was American gambling executive Ted Binion's collection of silver and silver dollars. Binion had a safe installed 12 ft (3.7 m) deep in the ground of a vacant lot that he owned in Pahrump, Nevada, United States. In the safe he stored his 46,000 pounds (21,000 kg) of silver, including 135,000 silver dollars. In 1998, Binion died of an overdose and authorities determined that he had been murdered. Two days after his death Richard Tabish and four other people were arrested for digging up the buried silver.
Lincoln Fitzgerald was an American casino owner who operated three casinos in Nevada. He previously operated gambling establishments in Michigan, but in 1946 he moved to Reno, Nevada and opened The Nevada Club. In 1949, he survived a murder attempt in his garage. In 1976, he opened the largest of his casinos, the 16-story Fitzgeralds Casino & Hotel, Reno.
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