LAS VEGAS (KLAS) — Tomorrow marks seven years since the 1 October attack that claimed the lives of 58 people attending the Route 91 Harvest Music Festival.
The “Remembering 1 October” exhibit returned to Rotunda Gallery inside the Clark County Government Center to mark the tragedy.
The exhibit features a selection of items from the Clark County Museum’s 22,000-piece 1 October collection. Many of the items, including banners, letters, cowboy hats, stuffed animals, and mementos, were left at the Welcome to Las Vegas sign and other locations in the city as offerings of grief and support.
There are several displays within the “Remembering 1 October” exhibit that pay tribute to the victims, survivors, and first responders.
The centerpiece of the exhibit is a model of the “Forever One Memorial.” The planned memorial, designed by JCJ Architecture, will be built on two acres donated by MGM Resorts International, located in the northeast corner of the Route 91 Harvest Music Festival site off Reno Avenue and Giles Street.
The memorial will include a tower of light and 58 candles for each victim. There will also be a community plaza and wall dedicated to the survivors.
One of the most profound pieces in the “Remembering 1 October” exhibit is the “Angels of Love” display, which visually captures the magnitude of loss. The exhibit was created by a California-based nonprofit as a gift to Clark County and the community.
It contains 58 large stained-glass angels in remembrance of those who perished and the 869 smaller angels for those who were injured. It also contains memorabilia dedicated to first responders who assisted victims.
At the center of the display sits a gold plaque with the names of each victim. Above that, a digital display shows images on those who perished in sync with the song “We Won’t Back Down.”
“We are Vegas Strong, and this incident did not keep us from going forward,” Clark County Museum Administrator Amber Colbert said. “We did not back down. We stayed Vegas Strong, and I think the song really plays to that and the country music that was played at the concert as well.”
The “Remembering 1 October” exhibit also will include The Art of Healing mural created in remembrance of the first anniversary of 1 October, and a sculpture featuring two glass butterflies with purple and orange wings entitled El Camino Illuminado, “The Lighted Path,” to represent those who have succumbed to their injuries in the years after 2017.
The Art of Healing Mural was created by local artists and students at Las Vegas Academy of the Arts. It contains nine large panels with teddy bear images representing the 58 lives lost the night of the tragedy on Oct. 1, 2017, and condolence messages the public was invited to write the first year it was on display.
The “Remembering 1 October” exhibit is open now through Oct. 10 inside Rotunda Gallery and is free and open to the public.
Do you have a 1 October story?
Did you leave items at the 1 October memorials at the “Welcome to Fabulous Las Vegas” sign or the median strip of Las Vegas Boulevard at Reno Avenue? Clark County Museum wants to hear from you. They are collecting the stories behind the memorial items to record and preserve the community’s reaction to this tragic event. Use the following link to share your story: Clark County Museum 1 October memorial items information form.
