Name/Title
Hughes and Frehner StoreEntry/Object ID
1988.323.0077Description
Hughes and Frehner Store (June Hardy and Bill Lee) #4a on Walking Tour
Now the Golden West Casino
When the bridge to Bunkerville was built across the Virgin River in 1921, the main route came up Main Street (now Mesquite Blvd.). Before that, traffic between Bunkerville and Mesquite followed the river to the then Woodbury Lane crossing then on up what is now Willow Street. Because of this change in the traffic flow, the J.E. Hughes and Sons General Merchandise store was moved to this location on Main Street. Alfred Frehner was now a co-owner. The modern Hughes and Frehner Store was built of adobe brick (16 inch thick walls). In 1926, the post office was moved to the back of the store with Elmer Hughes as postmaster.
In 1945 the store was sold to Deloy Abbott and the post office was moved to the front room of the new Hughes Motel (City Hall block). Deloy rented the building as an O.P. Skaggs Grocery Store, and later an ice cream parlor. In 1952 George Harmon from Las Vegas bought it and put in a liquor store and gaming hall. He called it the Valley Inn. Louis Nielsen bought the business in 1975 and operated it as a bar and casino until 1995 when he sold it to Brad Pederson. Mr. Pederson gutted the building and rebuilt it as the Golden West Restaurant and Casino.