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15 Fremont Street
Las Vegas, NV
Coin Castle
Sept 4, 1970 to 1999
The Coin Castle Casino operated at 15 Fremont Street in Downtown Las Vegas, NV from Sept 4, 1970 to 1999.
The Fuller Index shows the Coin Castle opening Sept 4, 1970 by Don Petit who operated it through
June 30, 1977, licensed for slots and 21.
When Herb Pastor bought out Don Petit in 1977 it became a slots only casino.
In a newspaper article from August 11, 1977 Herbert Pastor was approved as the unconditional licensee
The Coin Castle was well known for its hawkers out front calling to potential winners
to come in and play while offering free strings of beads to the crowds.
That tradition continued with costumed young ladies doing the same
The Coin Castle
became La Bayou and the
incredible sign with the
figure of the king was no more.
But you can still visit the
original Coin Castle King
at the Neon Musuem
where he reigns amidst other
restored signs and memorabilia from
an earlier Las Vegas including
some of the coins from Fitzgeralds Hotel and Casino.
If you're a very patient collector you might be able to gather all 26 versions of the Coin Castle alphabet matchbooks!
In 1981 Herb Pastor received the symbolic keys to the City of Las Vegas. He owned and operated the Coin Castle Casino
He shared the stage of this 50th Anniversary celebration with the City of Las Vegas Mayor Bill Briare, Nevada Governor Bob List and Gaming Commission Chairman, Harry Reid, United States Senator from Nevada and the Senate Majority Leader of the US Senate.
Other properties owned and operated by Herb Pastor:
The Coin Castle was on the site of the former
Monte Carlo Club which had given way to a
Denny's restauarant (shown above and below)
and Sam's Roast Beef restaurant before becoming a gaming establishment once again.
There's a certain irony in this 1976 article about penny slots, which quotes the manager of the Coin Castle.
In 1976, Penny Slots were money losers for the casinos. It cost more in taxes than they actually made for the casino.
Fast forward to today and you see penny slots all over the casinos.
If I've read the Nevada Gaming Control reports correctly the latest number for "penny slots" in Nevada exceeds 49,000 machines!
And they make money for the casino because now the "penny slot" can cost up to $5 a spin for a full progressive jackpot qualifying bet!
Herb Pastor
You could win BIG at the Coin Castle in downtown Las Vegas!
Big Crazy Cash Coupons at least!
Scroll down this set of photos showing the same small part of Fremont Street covering almost a century.
The "Alley" icon will help to orient your view over the years. The alley stayed the same until it was built over.
The Coin Castle had become La Bayou but by August of 2016 La Bayou was demolished for the expansion of the Golden Gate. Many historic gambling establishments were in this location over the years as as shown below.
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