Town file
Boulder City, Nevada
Boulder City, Nevada (Clark County, Nevada) is the town in one episode of Small Town Murder, the comedy true-crime podcast: episode 728, "The Missing Head Mystery" (21 August 2026).
- Town
- Boulder City
- County
- Clark County
- State
- Nevada
- Country
- USA
- Episodes
- 728
- Approximate location
- 35.844, -114.912
Episode 728 / 21 August 2026 / 74 min / express
The Missing Head Mystery
"Alright, we're going to Boulder City, Nevada... this is in Clark County." about 0:03:29
The case: Murder of Ladana Millam (June 2003). Read the case file.
The figures, as told in 2026
- Population
- 14,868
- Median household income
- $69,746
- Median home value
- $417,600
History, in brief
- Boulder City originated as a federal company town, built because of the Hoover Dam. about 0:05:53
- Its nickname and identity is 'home of the Hoover Dam'. about 0:05:37
- In 1928, President Calvin Coolidge signed the Boulder Canyon Project Act to build a major dam on the Colorado River. about 0:06:14
- Job seekers arrived and lived in shacks and tents around the site, an area called Ragtown. about 0:06:50
- The federal government and Six Companies Inc., a construction consortium, built a model community designed by a landscape architect. about 0:07:24
- The design used Spanish colonial revival buildings, tree-lined parks and fan-shaped land radiating from the Bureau of Reclamation Administration building. about 0:07:38
- The town went up in about 1930 and 1931. about 0:07:43
- It was a federal reservation, and Boulder City banned both alcohol and gambling. about 0:07:56
- A checkpoint gate kept out union organisers and searched people for alcohol, and piles of liquor bottles built up before the checkpoints. about 0:08:27
- The dam was completed in 1935, ahead of schedule. about 0:08:50
- Boulder City did not incorporate as a city until 1960. about 0:09:02
- The no-gaming prohibition was retained, making it one of only two places in Nevada where gambling is not allowed. about 0:09:06
- Desi Arnaz Jr. came to Boulder City and built a theatre. about 0:09:17
- The hotel on the highway to the dam opened as the Gold Strike, was largely destroyed by a fire in June 1998, reopened the next year as the Hacienda and later took the name Hoover Dam Lodge. about 0:39:03
- The hotel overlooks Lake Mead and has a 17-storey tower with 372 rooms, three miles from Hoover Dam. about 0:39:24
The reviews read out
5 stars
"A place of comfort and relaxation with a small-town feel and big-city amenities 15 minutes away; light traffic, low crime and a community that feels like a family."about 0:09:33
2 stars
"A rant from someone raised there: the city council changed everything and built more homes, police stop you for going one mile per hour and harass you because they are bored, the DA will not look at the true story, the city sends letters about things on the side of the house, and the writer is moving his family out."about 0:09:55
1 star
"The casino has had its day, the slots never hit, the staff are zombies and there are no customers; the bartender with the ponytail has a bad attitude and hates his job."about 0:39:44
1 star
"The worst day of the reviewer's life: the hotel is in the middle of nowhere, the rooms have a heavy vibe and adjoining doors, and there are scary stories about the place."about 0:40:23
Nearest Small Town Murder towns
- Grasshopper Junction, Arizona48 miles
- Golden Valley, Arizona58 miles
- Lake Havasu City, Arizona99 miles
- St. George, Utah113 miles
- Bagdad, Arizona131 miles
- Williamson, Arizona155 miles
Everything here is as told in the episode, on the date it went out; figures and places may have changed since. Endings are covered: open an episode and use the spoiler switch to read them.