In 1991, Nevada's Commission for Cultural Affairs was formed to oversee the preservation of the state's historic buildings and the conversion of the best of them for use as cultural centers. This program has rehabilitated dozens of historic structures valued by their communities for the ways they represent the development of the state and its culture.

Nevada's Historic Buildings highlights ninety of these buildings, describing them in the context of the state's history and the character of the people who created and used them. Here are reminders of mining boomtowns, historic ranches, transportation, the divorce and gaming industries, the New Deal, and the innovation of Las Vegas's post-modern aesthetic. These buildings provide a cross-section of Nevada's rich historic and cultural heritage and their survival offers everyone the experience of touching the past.