The logistics of moving a 1950s house across the Las Vegas valley can seem daunting at first, but to the people behind the scenes of the Heritage in Motion project, the move is the next logical step to tell the story of Howard Hughes’ Green House.
Las Vegas carries layers of history, including the Indigenous peoples who first settled the land, mining that began in the 1800s, decades of atomic testing and mob influence, and its status as a neon oasis in the Mojave Desert. Hughes’ mint-green 1950s bungalow is part of that history, and it now has a chance to sit on Clark County Museum property, free and open to the public.
A 1939 TWA advertisement promoting the airline’s “Sun-Country Route” is displayed as part of a historical exhibit at the Clark County Museum on Sept. 6, 2026. (Kelsey Williams) 
A mannequin depicts a travel agent at a period desk in a mid-20th-century office exhibit at the Clark County Museum on Sept. 6, 2026. (Kelsey Williams) 
The Green House, once leased by Howard Hughes, is shrouded by palm trees at its current location behind KLAS-TV on Sep. 7, 2026. (Kelsey Williams) 
A flight suit, part of an exhibit on Howard Hughes’ aviation career, is displayed at the Green House on Sep 6, 2026. (Kelsey Williams) 
A flight suit, part of an exhibit on Howard Hughes’ aviation career, is displayed at the Green House on Sep 6, 2026. (Kelsey Williams) 
A motor court cabin from Las Vegas, circa 1935, is displayed as part of the “Mobile America” exhibit at Heritage Street on Sept. 6, 2026. (Kelsey Williams) 
The Boulder City Railroad Depot, one of 16 historic structures on Heritage Street at the Clark County Museum, stands on Sept. 6, 2026. (Kelsey Williams) 
A 1918 ore wagon from Sandy Valley, part of the mining exhibit at Heritage Street at the Clark County Museum, is displayed on Sept. 6, 2026. (Kelsey Williams) 
Visitors explore the General Store exhibit in the ghost town and mining trail collection at Heritage Street at the Clark County Museum on Sept. 6, 2026. (Kelsey Williams)
The relocation would bring the house to Heritage Street, where 16 historical structures are currently on exhibit. The move is not without its logistical challenges.
“One of the really cool things about this structure is that it is masonry,” Amber Colbert said. “So it is unreinforced masonry throughout even the interior walls are masonry, which are gonna make for a very difficult move. But I don’t think Howard Hughes would have it any different. We’re gonna have to use engineering and just pure innovation.”
Currently in its planning phase, the 13-mile move will need to take many different logistical elements into consideration, consulting a structural engineer to balance the preservation of history with the reality of engineering limitations.
The slab the building rests on is historical, and was jackhammered by people looking for Howard Hughes’ will. The slab is just part of a larger conversation around what is most important to save in the move to tell a complete story.
“I am a Howard Hughes literacy advocate because we have to be careful,” Michelle Munkres, volunteer and Heritage guild member, said. “It is a very complicated history. It is complicated, it is messy, not all of it is to be admired. But there are some parts of his life that deserve to be told, that deserve to be remembered, and this is a really good place to tell these stories and to preserve that story.”
Learn more about the Heritage in Motion project on their website.
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