Downtown Pioneer
El Cortez opened on November 7, 1941 — the same year El Rancho Vegas opened on the Strip. Located on Fremont Street in downtown Las Vegas, El Cortez was built in a Spanish Colonial style with a distinctive tower that gave it an identity no other casino could claim. It was elegant, it was different, and it attracted attention from the very beginning.
In 1945, Bugsy Siegel, Meyer Lansky, Moe Sedway, and Gus Greenbaum purchased El Cortez. Siegel saw the profits rolling in and used them to help fund his ambitious Flamingo project out on the Strip — the casino that would eventually get him killed. The mob sold El Cortez in 1946, and it passed through several owners over the following decades, each adding their own chapter to its story.
Surviving History
What makes El Cortez unique is not just its age but its authenticity. It still operates in its original building. While every other 1940s casino in Las Vegas has been demolished, imploded, rebuilt, or replaced, El Cortez retains its original structure — making it the oldest surviving casino in Las Vegas and the only one where you can walk through the same walls that Bugsy Siegel once owned.
Jackie Gaughan purchased El Cortez in 1963 and ran it for decades, keeping it as an affordable, old-school gambling hall that catered to locals and downtown regulars. Gaughan was a beloved figure in Las Vegas — he lived in the hotel's penthouse and was known for walking the casino floor greeting guests by name. He maintained the property's vintage character even as the rest of Las Vegas reinvented itself around him.
Today El Cortez has been renovated but retains its vintage character. It is listed on the National Register of Historic Places — a rare distinction for a Las Vegas casino. The lobby, the casino floor, and the distinctive tower all carry the weight of more than 80 years of history.
Key Facts
Oldest Casino (1941)
El Cortez's original 1941 structure still stands and operates — making it the oldest surviving casino building in Las Vegas. Every other casino from that era has been demolished and replaced.
Bugsy Siegel Connection
Siegel, Lansky, Sedway, and Greenbaum owned El Cortez from 1945 to 1946. Siegel used the profits to help fund his Flamingo on the Strip — the project that would lead to his assassination in 1947.
National Register
El Cortez is listed on the National Register of Historic Places, one of very few Las Vegas casinos to receive this distinction. Its Spanish Colonial architecture and continuous operation make it historically significant.
Jackie Gaughan Era (1963–2008)
Jackie Gaughan owned and operated El Cortez for over 40 years, living in the penthouse and keeping it as an affordable, old-school gambling hall. He was one of the last of the original Las Vegas casino operators.
What's There Now
Visiting El Cortez
Address: 600 Fremont Street, Las Vegas, NV
Status: Still open and operating in its original 1941 building.
What to See: The original 1941 building is intact and visitable. The lobby and casino floor retain their vintage character. The distinctive Spanish Colonial tower is a downtown landmark. Walking through El Cortez is the closest you can get to experiencing old Las Vegas as it actually was.
Nearby: Walking distance from the Fremont Street Experience, Binion's Gambling Hall, and the Mob Museum.
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