Laughlin

History

The townsite of Laughlin was established in the 1940s as South Pointe because of the proximity to the southern tip of the state of Nevada. The early town consisted of a motel and bar that catered to gold and silver miners, construction workers building Davis Dam, and fishing enthusiasts. In the 1950s, construction workers left, and the town functionally disappeared. In 1964, Don Laughlin, owner of the 101 Club in Las Vegas, flew over the site and saw its tourism potential. He offered to buy the land, and within a few years, the Riverside Resort motel and casino, consisting of only 12 slots and two live tables, began operating. A second casino, the Bobcat Club, opened in 1967, where the Golden Nugget Laughlin currently operates. In 1968, a third casino, the Monte Carlo, opened its doors. The neighboring Bullhead City, Arizona was a key part in Laughlin's growth, with shuttle boats transporting customers from the Arizona side of the river to Laughlin's resorts and back. The southernmost tip of Nevada, along the Colorado River, where Nevada, California, and Arizona meet, was a major national tourist destination and gambling resort during the 70s, 80s & 90s. In the 1980s, Laughlin was developed with the construction of several more hotels and casinos. The Colorado Hotel (now the Pioneer), The Regency, Sam's Town Gold River (now the Laughlin River Lodge), and The Edgewater opened in the early 1980s. Other investors saw the growth as an opportunity to get in on the action. A second boom resulted in the construction of The Colorado Belle, Harrah's Del Rio, and The Ramada Express (now The Tropicana Laughlin). In 1987, Don Laughlin funded and built the Laughlin Bridge at a cost of $3.5 million, which connected Laughlin to Bullhead City. He donated the bridge to the states of…

Geography

According to the United States Census Bureau, the census-designated place (CDP) of Laughlin (which may not coincide exactly with the town boundaries) has a total area of , of which is land and is water. Laughlin is one of the lowest-lying communities in Nevada, situated just above sea level. Laughlin has a hot desert climate (Köppen climate classification BWh), with under six inches of precipitation per year. Summers are extremely hot with days frequently exceeding in July and August while over-night lows tend to stay between . The winters are mild with days typically seeing temperatures between and corresponding over-night lows between . It is one of the United States' hottest cities during the summer. Heat waves with high temperatures over are unusual, but not unheard of. On June 29, 1994, Laughlin experienced the hottest temperature in Nevada state history at . At 10a the hardiness zone is the highest of any weather station in Nevada. [https://planthardiness.ars.usda.gov/]

Race & ethnicity

Most-observed species

• Great-tailed Grackle

  Quiscalus mexicanus (Gmelin, 1788) · Aves
  794
• Mallard

  Anas platyrhynchos Linnaeus, 1758 · Aves
  604
• American Coot

  Fulica americana Gmelin, 1789 · Aves
  578
• Rock Pigeon

  Columba livia J.F.Gmelin, 1789 · Aves
  498
• Abert's Towhee

  Melozone aberti (S.F.Baird, 1852) · Aves
  492
• Gambel's Quail

  Callipepla gambelii (Gambel, 1843) · Aves
  479
• Common Raven

  Corvus corax Linnaeus, 1758 · Aves
  430
• Turkey Vulture

  Cathartes aura (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  416

Most recent

• M 2.64 — 2025-10-07
  20 km SW of Primm, NV
• M 2.6 — 2024-03-07
  14 km ENE of Boulder City, Nevada
• M 2.7 — 2022-12-09
  2 km NW of Valentine, Arizona
• M 2.52 — 2019-04-23
  21km SW of Primm, NV
• M 2.5 — 2016-02-29
  8km NNE of Cadiz, CA
• M 2.9 — 2015-03-02
  19 km E of Yucca, Arizona