Historic Harrison
put your soles to the ground with our walking tours to find your inspiration and feed your soul.
Harrison bills itself as Nebraska’s Top Town because, at 4,876 feet above sea level, it is situated at a higher elevation than any other town in the state. The small village in Northwest Nebraska was originally established as a railroad camp in 1884 and appropriately named Summit. When the Fremont, Elkhorn and Missouri Valley Railroad reached Summit two years later, an unincorporated townsite was platted and named Bowen. The name changed again in 1887 to Harrison, and the village was incorporated in 1888.
Early resident hauled water by wagon five miles from Sowbelly Canyon until a well could be dug. As the town grew, the first two blocks of Main Street were divided into 16 lots on each side of the street for a total of 64 lots. Businesses also located along First and Second Streets.
This Sole to Soul Walking Tour will take you back in time to those early days as you explore the village’s beginning.
The first small home you’ll encounter is the Mary Coffey Home. Mary Broderick Coffey was Deputy County Clerk and County Clerk from 1924-1965. Her home was remodeled into a hair salon and then a saddle shop in the 1970s and 1980s.
Cross First Street to the south.
This corner is the former site of the Harrison Depot. While the depot is no longer in existence, the remains of a loading dock for the FE&MV Railroad can still be seen. The railroad’s cabooses were painted red and sported large antlers of elk. Harrison had railroad service until a flood in the White River Valley washed out the track and bridges in 1991.
Cross Main Street to the west.
Lower Hotel (115 Main Street): The Lower Hotel was built in 1887, and the north addition was constructed in 1902. Built to accommodate passengers on the railroad with rooms and meals, the hotel has been in continuous operation since 1887, with the exception of two years. It has been known as the Commercial Hotel, Northwestern Hotel, Oxford Hotel, Jordan Hotel and is today the Harrison House Hotel, a name borrowed from a now-defunct hotel also located on Main Street. Many high school students boarded at the hotel during the school year, washing dishes and doing other chores in exchange for their board.
Continue walking north along the west side of Main Street.
Publow House: Mrs. Daniel Publow moved into the little house just north of the hotel in 1935. She cooked at the hotel for many years. The house is now vacant, with its last occupants being Albert and Stella Publow, who lived there until 1965.
White Business Building: Believed to have been an early home for the Harrison Sun newspaper, this building was also believed to be the home of Burke Millinery in the early 1900s, selling ladies hats, collars, hosiery and similar items.
Anderson Building: In 1937, Martin and Minnie Koch started Koch Furniture in this building; not much is known about the building prior to that date. After Koch Furniture relocated north to the Davis Building, the store housed a Pool Hall on the north side and a café and bakery on the south side; the oven is still in the basement. In 1945, Adolph Zurcher purchased and remodeled the building into a garage and a Dodge Chrysler dealership. The Anderson Building is now part of the Museum Complex. While the building is not open to the public, visitors can view a 100+-year-old Buick Touring Car through the large windows. The museum has plans to turn the building into its Farm & Ranch Museum in the future.
The lots adjacent to the Anderson Building, now used by Herren Brothers True Value, once housed early businesses in Harrison, including the Town Top Bar and Johnny’s Bar, a pool hall, drug store, meat market, harness shop and Herren Brother’s first location. Mac McClarey’s Barbershop was also located on one of the lots, and some of his items are now part of the museum’s collection. All of the buildings in this stretch were destroyed by fire in 1974.
Harrison House Hotel: Built in 1887-88, the next building was originally the Bowen Hotel before the name was changed to Harrison House Hotel when it was purchased by Eggert Rohwer in 1888. He and his wife operated the hotel for 10 years, and various cafes and restaurants operated in the south side of the addition. Windy Acres Angus eventually purchased the building and used it as their offices with an apartment on the second floor. Currently vacant, the building most recently housed a café and gift shop.
Gerlach Building: This was the site of the first saloon in Harrison, named Weller’s, which opened in 1886. During that period, the community would place planks on the whiskey barrels for Sunday church services. The Gerlach Building became the Commercial bank in 1893, and the bank vault is still located in the basement. During the banking years, it is said that Mr. Gerlach tired of people sitting on the front steps during business hours, so he placed a brass strip across the step and attached it to a battery to take care of loiterers. Gerlach’s Mercantile occupied the building in 1899, and in 1911, the west half was sold to McGinley Mercantile, while the east half became Harrison State Bank in a new brick building in 1913. Koch Mercantile relocated to the building in 1934, and DeKay’s purchased the building in 1948 and opened a grocery store. It has operated continuously as a grocery store since that time.
Cross Second Street to the north.
Davis Building: The original frame building on this location was constructed by Griswold and Marsteller in 1886. Bourret and Davis operated a general merchandise store there until 1908. The frame building was moved into Second Street while the current brick building was being constructed and then torn down in 1909. The new building operated as Davis and Langworthy and then Davis and Sons until 1919 when Koch Mercantile moved in and remained there until they moved across the street to the Gerlach Building in 1934. The Davis Building has housed many businesses over the years, including grocery stores, a meat market, general mercantile and hardware stores and Koch Furniture. It was also the second location of Whiteaker’s Western Store, a tire store, drug store and a café – Sioux Sundries – known far and wide for the Coffee Burger, made from one pound of ground beef. Most recently it was reincarnated into the Sandhills State Bank.
First National Bank: The original frame building on this site was also a bank. It was replaced in 1911 with the current brick and stone building. The clock currently on Security First Bank farther up Main Street, was installed on the First National Bank building in 1915. First National Bank was purchased and reorganized into the Sioux National Bank in 1924, operating at this location until 1983. It was then converted into an apartment and gathering place for Windy Acres Angus and today functions as a private residence. The owners have maintained the cattle club’s bar, the bank’s vault and the original check writing stand, and the “Paying,” “Receiving” and “Bookkeeper” signs are still intact as well.
Harrison Sun Building: Built in 1899, this building housed the printing press for the Harrison Sun. JH Newlin purchased it in 1907. In 1924, the business and the building were sold and moved to the new brick building on the east side of Main Street. This building then housed a creamery and a Red and White Grocery Store. It remained a grocery store until the 2000s, when it was converted into a residence. It is currently home to the Saddlebum Art Gallery and Studio. A hand-carved alter decoration from the 1890s inside the studio was salvaged from the Catholic Church. The alter was one of three carved for churches in the area by the current owner’s great-grandfather.
Coffee Apartments: Various businesses were located in the buildings on the block now home to Coffee Square and Coffee Apartments. They included a harness shop, drug stores, a café, the Lowry Hotel and the old Post Office. The Lowry Hotel was built around 1910, and included a store and a restaurant on the north side. It was a favorite spot for children with its diverse candy counter. The hotel was sold in 1945 and Koch Mercantile moved into the building until the 1970s, offering furniture on the north side, variety and dry goods on the south and flooring and paint in the back. They also rented out rooms for high school boarders. The Post office is now part of the Sioux County Historical Museum Complex.
Also in this line of buildings was the Rice Building, immediately south of the IOOF. Records indicate the building was built in 1912 and housed JH Rice’s drug store; the family lived in the back of the store. The building was sold to Robert Wefso and then Dr. Priest before Frank Viele purchased the business in 1928 and the building in 1931. It seems to have spent its whole life as a drug store.
The buildings were torn down in the 1980s to construct the apartments.
IOOF and Opera House: Built in 1908, this building was the center of cultural life in early Harrison. Traveling musical troops appeared on the stage, and many dances were held in its theater. Martin Koch operated a pool hall and bowling alley in the basement – the ghost image of the bowling alley sign can be seen on the lower portion of the south side of the building. A movie theater projection room was added, and silent and later talkies were shown into the 1960s at Summit Theater. Various Lodges, including the IOOF, used the second floor and then the ground floor. The building is currently vacant.
Hoyt Block: Built in 1938, the building has housed the Post Office and Whiteaker’s Western Store since it opened. Prior to its construction the lot was the location of a private home.
Security First Bank: The lots to the north of the Hoyt Block, now home of Security First Bank, originally were the location of various small businesses, including real estate offices. The buildings were torn down in the 1980s. The clock on the front of the bank was originally installed on the First National Bank Building in 1915.
Cross Third Street to the north.
Sioux County Courthouse: The first courthouse was built from native brick in 1888 and used until 1930. When a new more modern courthouse was needed, county offices were scattered around town until the new courthouse was completed in the fall of 1930. Today, the courthouse is listed on the National Register of Historic Places and the original jail still sits behind the building to the west. A painting of the original courthouse and the 135-year-old bull-shaped adornment that sat atop the original courthouse’s spire are inside.
Cross Main Street to the east and begin walking south to the corner of Third and Main.
Fitch Service Station/Law Office: This building was a remodeled service station built by Glen and Jane Fitch in the 1950s, using the north lots of the White Eagle Motor Camp. It was remodeled by W.E. Mumby to house his law practice. Shortly after he moved in, the building’s interior was destroyed by fire. Renovations were completed, and the building has housed a law office since that time.
Lushbaugh’s White Eagle Service Station & Camp Court: This residence and the lots to the south of it once contained nine small cabins. The cabins were built in 1928, along with a service station. Morris and Alda Engrebretsen purchased the buildings in 1952 and connected and remodeled the cabins into the Sioux Motel and built the residence that occupies the lot today. The Sioux Motel was torn down in the 2000s.
Harrison Fire Hall and Municipal Cold Storage: An early frame building housing the village fire hose carts was replaced in 1921 with the current brick building. For some reason, a floor was not poured in the new building. In 1930, when the new courthouse was being constructed, the county poured a concrete floor and plastered the walls in lieu of rent. It was converted to the Municipal Cold Storage Plant in 1945 and sold in 1950. It is currently a storage/workshop.
Powell Hardware and Undertaking: This building was constructed by James Bourret in 1909. After several owners, it was then sold to Tress Powell in 1919. It was a general hardware business but also sold McCormick Deering tractors and “Gasolene.” The Powells were also the local undertakers so a casket room was located in the back of the store. The undertaking business was eventually moved to the Powell’s home.
The vacant lot south of Powell Hardware once housed the Ranch Supply Store, which was built in 1887-88. It was sold to Sarah Bassett, a colorful Baptist missionary with ties to the Graham and James Cook families. She operated it as a general mercantile store and lived in a room in the back. She also required her two clerks to sleep on the premises. It was a large building with two entrances and a covered boardwalk in front. “Ranch Supply Store” was painted in large letters on the shingles. James Cook bought Bassett’s interest and sold it quickly in 1901 to JH Bartel, who sold it to FM Hall in 1909. In 1913, John Anderson purchased the building and presumably the inventory. Marsteller and Son operated in the building from 1916-1921. It sat empty and was eventually torn down in the 1930s, with the lot becoming a tank low for Powells.
Cross Second Street to the south.
Andrews Building: Also known as the Phillips Building and the McGinley Building, the original building at this location burned in a fire in 1886, along with most of the east side of the block. Charles Andrews quickly rebuilt, erecting a large two-story building with a balcony on the north and west sides. The top floor was a large space for programs, dances, dinners and lodge meetings. The ground floor held various businesses, including a bakery, drug store, hardware store, Whiteaker’s first location, and alter a gift and knitting shop. There was an apartment on the ground floor as well. The second floor was removed in the 1950s.
Photo Shop and Henry Building: The Longhorn Saloon’s beer garden was once home to a photo shop in the 1930s and 1940s, though little is known about the business. The Henry Building houses the saloon today. It was constructed in 1947 and John Broderick operated Johnny’s Bar there for two years. At that time, he moved his bar to the bowling alley across the street and the Henry Building became a garage. When the lots across the street burned in 1974, the Town Top Bar relocated to the Henry Building, and a bar has operated at the site since that time.
Sioux County Historical Museum Complex
Oscar Ward/Holtz House: This early home is in photos from the 1900-1910 era. It was the Oscar Ward home when the first switchboard was installed. Mrs. Ward and daughter were the switchboard operators from 1906 until the 1930s when it was moved to Crawford. The telephone service in Harrison began in 1900 when the Marstellers ran a line from their store in the Davis Building to the Depot. JH Bartel did the same, and the Bodarc Valley line came in to the Bourret and Davis Store. In 1906, long distance service to Crawford was installed, and early lines were the top wire of barbed-wire fences. The original switchboard is housed in the Ward/Holtz House as part of the museum’s collection.
New Harrison Sun Building: This brick building was constructed in 1924 by RW Meyer, who had purchased the Sun from the Newlins. It housed the printing presses and operations of the Sun until 1955 when the Sun was sold to Gerald Bardo. The building was empty until it was reimagined as the Sioux County Historical Museum’s first building in 1976 as the county’s bicentennial project.
Original Post Office: This was not the first Post Office, as the original was a mere 100 yards north of the Depot. This building was constructed in 1903 and used as the Post Office until 1938 when the Hoyt Block was built. The old Post Office building was then used as an appliance store for a few years and moved to the museum complex in 1977. Inside is the Post Office exhibit, as well as general store and barbershop exhibits.
Log Cabin School: District 61 was located 12 miles southeast of Harrison. The original school was a log cabin building, and the district retained the name once a new one-room schoolhouse was constructed.
Main Building: A more recent addition to the museum, the main building houses exhibits detailing the life and times of the early residents of Sioux County.