Helen Stewart: Visionary

Helen Stewart's noble status in Las Vegas history lies buried beneath landmarks such as the Old Mormon Fort State Historic Park and the Plaza Hotel. Both occupy the downtown area that she once owned and helped develop. In the early 20th century, Stewart sold her land to the railroad and from there, progress would take over as the sparseness of the desert slowly gave way to the city Las Vegas is today.

Stewart, however, contributed much more than a land sale. Her century-old accomplishments have stood the test of time because they've shown her to be a visionary.

"Without Helen Stewart, Las Vegas might have been a completely different place," said Michael Green, Community College of Southern Nevada history professor. "She made a real estate contribution, for lack of a better term. The building of the railroad and the development of Las Vegas probably went more smoothly because most of the land was in one set of hands. Considering the circumstances of her life, she undoubtedly had a vision that this place could be more than it was."

Stewart (1854-1926) is remembered as the owner of the 960-acre Stewart Ranch (also known as Las Vegas Ranch) located on what is now part of downtown. She sold most of the ranch to Sen. William Clark of Montana in 1902 -- in essence giving "birth" to Las Vegas. She is also referred to as "The First Lady of Las Vegas" for the hospitality she offered to 19th-century miners, all of whom were offered food and lodging at the ranch on their way through the valley.

It was after her husband, Archibald Stewart, was tragically shot and killed in 1884 that Helen Stewart set her sights on the future. The mother of four had longed for a social life. She'd lived the isolated ranch existence at the behest of her husband for years, and she desperately wanted to experience life in a big city. Further, young Helen was pregnant with her fifth child at the time Archibald was slain.

She inherited the acreage from her husband, and immediately tried to sell it, but no one came forward with an offer. Resigned to living on the property, the visionary side of Stewart began to surface. While her children attended school in California, Stewart would send them letters that conveyed her ideas.

"Probably about five or six years after her husband died, she was preparing to spend her whole life on the ranch. She realized she would never get to go back and live in a city, so she told her children that the only alternative was to bring the city to the ranch," said Fran Campbell, history department chair at CCSN, who has studied Stewart's correspondence. "She would tell them how she sat in front of the ranch house and imagined a church steeple, tree-lined streets, schools and hotels, and all the components of a city.

"When the children were very young, not yet old enough to go to school in California, she would verbally describe cities to them."

Meantime, Stewart kept things buzzing at the ranch. Not only did passers-through graciously accept her invitations to stay, it wasn't long before the stagecoach designated the ranch as an official stop, making it a business center and later a post office, with Stewart in charge.

Campbell noted that Stewart's reputation for hospitality helped draw attention to the ranch -- particularly from the railroad.

"Helen loved being around people and that was why she wanted a town here," Campbell said. "She thrived on people, and she thrived on news. She had a thriving ranch, and a good trade with travelers.

"Then there was a series of coincidences. There was a railroad company looking for a depot, and then she was ready to sell. It was a moment in history when things came together."

Stewart met with tragedy again when her 14-year-old son, Archie, fell off a horse and died. She was now quite weary of the ranch.

With the railroad needing to blaze a trail from Utah to California, Sen. Clark, a copper baron, bought most of the property from Stewart for $55,000.

"One of the reasons Clark built the railroad with Union Pacific was because of the boom in Southern California," Green said. "Las Vegas was a water source and that was a great necessity. Maybe the irony is that Helen Stewart became the beneficiary of the Southern California boom."

Stewart also knew that Las Vegas' growth as a railroad town was only beginning. So, she bought up another 924 acres, which included 40 acres adjacent to Four Acres, the family cemetery. Stewart proceeded to landscape the graveyard with trees.

"People didn't like the cemetery because it was so barren," Campbell said. "The reason for her sense of accomplishment: `This means people won't have to send their loved ones to California.' That meant people could visit the graves."

Campbell called her a "shrewd businesswoman," but her vision of what Las Vegas should be remained unchanged.

"She didn't see it as a money-maker," Campbell said. "She wanted it as a quintessential Midwest town where people could raise their children and feel good about it. The kinds of businesses that she was happy to see come to town were the businesses that supported family values."

In 1905, the railroad sold 1,200 lots at auction and in so doing laid the foundation for downtown.

She proved "instrumental" in getting the first school built, according to Campbell, so that parents wouldn't have to send their children to California.

Stewart also provided the site for the Las Vegas Paiute Indian Colony on North Main Street, since in years past, the Paiutes had always been welcome at the ranch.

While Stewart became an authority on the history of Southern Nevada, as well as a member of the Clark County School Board, the land she once owned -- and took an active role in developing -- remains an integral part of downtown.

Once, Stewart owned the land along Fremont Street. The Plaza Hotel is where the railroad used to be. The railroad yards used to be near the site of the current Clark County Government Center, and the Old Mormon Fort on Las Vegas Boulevard stood for decades as the Stewart Ranch. An avenue downtown is also named for her.

Today, the Helen J. Stewart School on East Viking Road provides special education and honors Stewart's granddaughter.

Also, the developer of the Mountain's Edge community in the southwestern part of the valley is constructing Helen Stewart Park, which will furnish volleyball, basketball and baseball fields in the family tradition that Stewart always treasured.

Stewart died in 1926, but her vision lives on.

"She formulated this dream, and told her children, `I'm going to make this dream happen and bring a city here,'" Campbell said. "Las Vegas draws the people who envision the impossible and make it happen. So, in many ways, her creativity continues."

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