In the late 60's and early 70's Howard Hughes was on a mission to bring the Las Vegas Strip into a new age, away from the independent businessmen with deep mob ties and towards an age of corporate expansion. In these years, Hughes's company H.N.O (Hughes Nevada Operations) purchased many iconic Las Vegas properties such as the Desert Inn, the Frontier, the Silver Slipper, and of course, The Sands. Hughes paid $14.6 Million Dollars for The Sands in 1967.
While Hughes owned The Sands, all chips minted at this time contain an H.N.O marking.
In 1987, Nevada Gaming Control passed a law requiring very specific rules on disposing of old casino chips. Before this casinos could do whatever they pleased with old chips, typically resulting in chips being discarded in two ways:
- Dumping them in the middle of Lake Mead
- Burying them in the foundation of new casinos
Pictured above and on display at Degen's Museum is a $25 H.N.O Sands chip, recovered from the foundation of the Frontier Hotel and Casino upon its demolition in 2007