Downtown Las Vegas History Walk: What Was Once Here
Themed tour 31 discoveries
Historical image unavailable.
Pioneer Club opened on Fremont Street in 1942. Its footprint changed over the years, but the casino became especially associated with the enormous neon cowboy added to its exterior in 1951: Vegas Vic.
The casino closed in 1995. Vic remained, giving visitors a visible connection to a gambling business that had disappeared. The sign and the casino therefore have different histories: the survival of the cowboy does not mean Pioneer Club is still operating.
YESCO built Vegas Vic in 1951. The Neon Museum describes a 40-foot cowboy whose moving arm and voice once helped greet visitors. The sign turned the building into an advertisement that could be recognized from a distance.
Look at the supplied historic view as a whole: cowboy, rooftop lettering and curved gambling marquee worked together to attract attention. The illustration preserves that earlier streetscape, rather than promising that every sign, mechanism or storefront remains unchanged.
Read the full historySources and context
Pioneer Club and Vegas Vic on Fremont Street
The Pioneer Club (1942–1995) / Vegas Vic (1951–present) section: changing footprint, exterior sign1951, casino closure1995, Vic remains. Read21October2026.
YESCO builds Vegas Vic
Designing the Las Vegas Look: YESCO built40-foot Vegas Vic in1951, mechanical arm and former voicebox. Historical operation, not current mechanism guarantee.
Opening and casino closure are recorded at year precision.
The supplied photograph is undated. The illustration depicts a historical arrangement of signs, not current storefront use or verified operating neon mechanisms.