974 G Street

Address: 974 G Street

Legal Description: West ½ of Lot 87

Building: Payton/ Wittemeyer Building

DATE State Of Nebraska sold to W. J. Carrier

1880 W. J. Carrier and wife sold West ½ Lot 87 to James E. Mack.

1885 J. H. Fort rented the building two doors east of the Review office and opened an organ and sewing machine depot.

1887 In March, the buildings were moved from the Dworak property on Court Street to make room for the new brick building. (It is possible that these buildings were moved to 143 North 9th Street, as Anna Dworak owned that property.) According to an account from Fred Camp in 1937, this was the first brick business building and he helped to make the bricks.

1887 In June, J. Jensen and V. Dworak built a brick building 48’ x 80’ with two stories and a basement.

1887 In November, V. C. Shickley, C. W. Shickley, and A. W. Shickley were officers of Farmers Loan and Trust Co. using an office upstairs in the new Jensen Block. The business originated in 1885, but it's unclear where it was located.

1887 Mohrman and Arends moved into the new quarters in the west ½ of the new Jensen Dworak building.

1889 In November, Mohrman and Arends moved to 966 G.

1889 In December, M. S. Durham’s store occupied the room vacated by Mohrman and Arends. He moved his goods to Geneva from Strang. He gave out tickets to a musical entertainment at Ward’s Opera House for every $2.00 that a customer spent.

1890 In September, Durham’s business failed. M. S. Durham was running an “Alliance store”

1890 In October, creditors took possession of Durham’s stock of general merchandise.

1891 In March, Bert Drinkwater purchased a first class two chair barber outfit and began business in the rooms vacated by the Shickley Bros. Carson Foster of Fairmont sold his entire outfit to Drinkwater and Vodra and bought all new furniture and equipment. (Unable to find a location for this, but in April 1890, Drinkwater added a chair to his Palace Tonsorial parlor. In August 1890, he redecorated his rooms. In November 1890, he sold his tonsorial parlor to Richeson Bros. In March 1891, Will Richeson sold his barbershop to Mr. Demmick of Exeter.)

1891 In June, Mr. McMaster of Arlington bought the Durham general merchandise stock.

1891 In August, J. Albert Wells moved his stock of goods here from the Armory hall at 984 G.

1892 In July, N. Hitch’s grocery store was here.

1892 In October, the Sanborn Maps showed a grocery store here.

1893 G. H. Palmer was located upstairs.

1895 In October, F. A. Keeler moved his store here from 866 G.

1897 In January Baird’s Bakery moved into the Keeler Grocery Store.

1897 In March, F. A. Keeler’s increasing business necessitated him taking on his own delivery wagon. He and Mr. Brown had been sharing one.

1897 In June, according to the Sanborn maps, a grocery store was located here.

1899 Frank Held, tailor, was located in rooms over Keeler’s store.

1899 In September, Farmers Trust Company was located over Fiegenbaum's at 972 G.

1909 The Sanborn maps showed a general store here.

1909 In May, Rosenquist & Nicholas, groceries and dry goods, moved to the west room of the Brayton building at 942 G.

1909 In October, P. H. Kuhl leased the room formerly occupied by Rosenquist & Nicholas and put in a stock of men’s furnishings. Geneva Suitatorium, Harry Stowell, was located in the rear. The Suitatorium had the agency for the Fremont Laundry.

1909 In November, a new front was installed so that Kuhl’s room and the Geiselman room matched.

1911 In February, Harry Stowell moved his Suitatorium to the room vacated by M. Heisey at 130 No. 9th.

1912 In January, the Kuhl stock of clothing was turned over to a company representing the creditors in the bankruptcy proceedings. It was then purchased by the Globe Clothing Co.

1912 Also in January, P. H. Kuhl advertised that he had a line of gent’s furnishings and that he was located at Butler’s grocery (954 G).

1912 In February, Geneva Variety Store, E. H. Vawter proprietor, moved here into the building recently vacated by the Kuhl Clothing Co. They found the Wilcox building at 137 N 10th Street too small.

1912 In March, Mr. Pierce, proprietor of the Boston Store, moved his salable goods to the variety store of Vawter & Co. where he had leased one side of their room. The stock was then on sale at this location.

1912 In June, E. H. Vawter & Co. moved their variety store to the east side of the room occupied by the A. Butler Co. at 954 G. Their stand here was leased by a man from the northern part of the state who intended to open a shoe store.

1912 In July, workmen were putting the building formerly occupied by the variety store in shape for the Holbrook shoe store. R. H. (Roy Harry) Holbrook, formerly of Creighton, Nebraska planned to open his business in the next week or so.

1913 In January, W. E. Fiegenbaum, the jeweler and optician, secured half the store room occupied by Mr. Holbrook, the shoe man.

1913 Mr. Holbrook had a shoe repair shop in connection with his store. His cobbler was a first class German shoe maker who learned his trade in the old country and had been at the trade all his life.

1914 In August, W. E. Fiegenbaum moved his jewelry store from this location into the east half of the L. S. Fiegenbaum building (972 G), just one door west of his former location.

1914 In October, F. A. Montgomery moved his drugs, wallpaper, paint, books and stationery goods into a shared space with Holbrook’s shoe store located second door west of the Boston Store.

1915 F. A. Montgomery sold his stock and business to Beverly N. Winston, the Nyal Store. Mr. Winston, a registered pharmacist, moved here from Broken Bow.

1917 In February the Winston Drug Co. moved to the Geiselman building in the west block. The move was made because additional room was needed for the stock.

1917 In May, a partition was put in the room occupied by R. H. Holbrook’s shoe store. G. W. Sinnett’s grocery store occupied the east half Sennett's grocery was previously located in the Wilcox building at 137 N 10th Street.

1917 In August, R. H. Holbrook sold his shoe store to Jacob Engel.

1918 In January, the Home Guard rented the hall over 974 and 984 as an armory hall.

1918 In January, G. Hauser of St. Joseph, Missouri became associated with his uncle, Jacob Engel, in the management of Mr. Engel’s shoe store.

1918 Mr. and Mrs. R. H. Holbrook moved to Lincoln, where Mr. Holbrook was employed by a Lincoln bank.

1918 In July, Mrs. G. W. Sinnett sold their grocery stock to Hitch & Swails. Hitch & Swails continued to operate their store in the west block and the Sinnett store at their old stand in the east block. The new business was called The Newmarket.

1919 In May John C. Swails purchased the stock of the Newmarket grocery. He continued the business at the same location and under the same name.

1920 In April, J. C. Swails sold the Newmarket grocery store to Fred H. Camp. Camp’s Grocery opened at the same location in the east block as the former Swails Newmarket grocery store.

1921 Fred H. Camp sold his grocery store in the east block to F. D. Crawford.

1921 In July, John Salzman shoe repair was located with G. Hauser shoes

1921 In August, John Salzman sold out to G. Hauser, but he remained working for Mr. Hauser.

1922 Hauser’s Shoes/Salzman’s shoe repair and Crawford’s Grocery occupied this location

1922 The Sanborn map showed a grocery store here.

1927 G. Hauser moved his stock of shoes into the first building south of the Jameson Hotel at 109 South 10th.

1927 John Linnert moved his grocery store into the room vacated by G. Hauser and John Salzman, two doors west of Chenoweth’s.

1929 Chet Wilson opened a Frigidaire office and demonstration exhibit at Linnert’s Grocery.

1930 After May there were no longer advertisements about the Frigidaire office and sales at Linnert’s Grocery.

1932 Linnert’s Grocery store closed.

1933 F. H. Camp’s Grocery store opened for business.

1933 The Sanborn maps showed a store here.

1938 A modern front was put in the store building occupied by Fred H. Camp.

1941 Fred H. Camp sold his grocery store to Stuart Schepers and retired from business.

1941 Creola Wythers had an apartment on the second floor of this building.

1942 Occupants unknown.

1943 The C. C. Larsen Construction Company, which had a contract at the Fairmont Air Base, opened a commissary in the Camp building to feed the company’s employees. Construction at the base was on a 24 hour day. The commissary closed when the company’s contract was completed.

1943 The Sanborn maps showed a store here.

1944 Charles Picard opened the Thrifty Home and Auto Supply store here. It stocked paint, glass, wall paper, auto accessories and hardware. Albert Frycek was the store manager. Due to government restrictions and the inability to get certain merchandise, not all supplies were immediately available.

1946 Paul H. Farmer leased the building from Maude Picard.

1946 Paul Farmer operated Thrifty Home and Auto.

1948 Neal Tucker purchased a half interest in the Thrifty Home and Auto Supply.

1950 The Thrifty Auto Supply store was affiliated with Western Auto Supply Company of Kansas City, Missouri and the name changed to Western Auto Supply. Western Auto was famous for its Western Flyer bicycle.

1953 The Western Auto Store became Geneva Hardware. The partnership of Farmer and Tucker dissolved with Tucker buying out the Farmer interest. 1953 was the last year the firm was listed in the phone book.

1958 Geneva Hardware sold their stock to the Gamble Store.

1958 Ray and Irene Holroyd moved their business, Holroyd’s Bakery, here from 1010 G Street.

1979 In May, Mr. and Mrs. Ray Holroyd sold their bakery to Wendell Yung of Red Cloud. The name was changed to The Donut Nook.

1979 In October, The Donut Nook business and equipment was for sale

1980 Ray Holroyd retired and sold his business to Howard Burnette of Omaha. The name was changed to the Rolling Pin Bakery.

1980 In November, the bakery was under new management, Willa Springer and Dottie Newman.

1981 Howard Burnette re-opened the Rolling Pin Bakery in December.

1982 In June, Howard Burnette sold the Rolling Pin Bakery to James M. Smith (Smitty).

1984 Smitty’s Bakery closed and the operator returned to Hebron.

1985 Fran’s Café moved here from 948 G Street due to the expansion of the Gambles store.

1986 Jan’s Geneva Bakery, Jan Loghry proprietor, opened for business in space shared with Fran’s Café.

1988 Fran’s Café was joined by the Geneva Bakery which was owned by John Picard and operated by Marge Marget.

1991 Fran’s Café was closed when Frances Linder Brahmstedt retired from the café business. The Geneva Bakery continued in business here as a combination bakery and café.

1992 Y-Knot (formerly Fran’s Café) was located here.

1994 Jill Reislinger purchased The Geneva Bakery and changed the name to Jill’s Sweet Shop. She continued to run it as a combination café and bakery.