188 So. 8th Street

Address: 188 South 8th Street

Legal Description: Spears Subdivision, Out Lot 27, Lots 1-2

Building:

DATE E. R. Spears purchased lots from the State of Nebraska.

1875 E. R. Spear sold the property to James T. and M. W. Platt. They built a building to be used for general merchandise on Lot 2.

1876 J. T. Platt built another building to the north on Lots 3-4.

1876 M. W. Platt advertised his business in the Fillmore County Review. He was a manufacturer and dealer in copper, tin, sheet iron ware, eave- troughing, and tin roofing.

1877 J. T. Platt and Dr. Smith were partners, J. T. Platt & Co.

1879 J.T. Platt advertised general merchandise, dry goods and groceries at the southwest corner of the courthouse square.

1882 Mark Alexander, an early butcher, came to Geneva in 1882. In the Nebraska Signal, February 11, 1932, he described the stores he saw when he came to Geneva. In Lot 2, Smith & Platt had a general store in the building owned by James T. Platt.

1882 In November, G. W. Kessler refurnished and renovated the hotel. Boarding and lodging by the week $3.00. Southwest corner of the square.

1883 Jensen and Cooksey, Attorneys-At-Law, moved their office into the front room of the Platt House building lately occupied by Luther Eugene Stowell as a boarding house. An addition was built on the south for hotel use.

1883 In the spring of this year, J. T. Platt was advertising the Platt Store for sale or trade for stock of goods or for farmland in Fillmore County.

1883 J. M. Noyes, coal yard, had an office at Platt’s store.

1884 In April, Platt and Smith dissolved their partnership, but Platt continued with the store.

1884 Platt closed out the entire stock and retired.

1884 In September, his sale to close out his stock was held in the building formerly occupied by Conant on the north side of the square. (866 G)

1885 James T. Platt converted his building into a hotel known as the Platt House. It was entirely rebuilt and fitted. It was not yet rented.

1885 The Platt Hotel, also known as the Stowell Hotel, was located on Lots 2-4 with two separate buildings.

1885 There was a masked ball held at the Geneva House. Food was prepared by Mrs. Stowell.

1886 A firm from Syracuse rented the hotel. Platt built an addition connecting the two buildings.

1886 Proprietors of the Platt House were R. N. White, Coombs, and Ben LaShell.

1888 Proprietors of the Platt Hotel were Strong and Ward.

1890 Frank Strong sold the Platt House furnishings and left for Syracuse, Nebraska, where he took charge of a hotel. J. T. Platt had moved to Kansas, but returned to Geneva from Phillips County, Kansas. The crops failed so he locked up his hardware store and returned to Geneva.

1890 In June, A. M. Baldwin rented the Platt House.

1890 Pardue ran the Platt House.

1890 The Platt House closed its doors again, and the furniture was sold at auction.

1892 G. W. Kessler refurbished the hotel.

1892 L. E. (Gene) Stowell rented the Platt House in March as a boarding house.

1892 The Sanborn Maps show the Stowell House here.

1892 Fillmore County Broom Factory, operated by A. Adams & Co. moved their business from the building opposite the post office to the corner south of the Platt House, on Lot 1. With the improved facilities and their eleven years of experience in the manufacture of brooms they were confident their product was first class.

1892 In October, Frank Held, merchant tailor, was located in the Old Stowell building on the southwest corner of the square.

1894 L. E. Stowell papered and painted the dining room in his hotel.

1895 H. L. Smith owned Lot 1 and sold seed implements. Later he sold his store to Benton Canon of Grand Junction, Colorado and moved to Colorado.

1897 The Sanborn Maps show the Stowell House here.

1899 Gene Stowell bought the A. G. Camp residence and planned to go out of the hotel business at the end of the month. The Stowell House had been an institution of the town so long that it seemed strange to have the proprietor go out of business.

1899 J. H. Hakes rented the Stowell House and bought furniture from Mr. Stowell.

1900 Hakes auctioned all of the furniture of the Hakes Hotel.

1900 To settle the estate after the death of J. T. Platt, his son-in-law, Leroy Lohry, bought the farm. H. L. Smith bought the south part of the building, and C. A. Smith bought the original building and the north addition.

1902 The Sanborn Map shows the Stowell House here.

1903 C. A. Smith put a new foundation under the Platt house and a new roof was put on it. He also repaired the interior and painted and papered.

1904 “For rent, sale or trade, West Side Inn, ex-Stowell House, newly fitted up.” – C. A. Smith

1904 C. A. Smith rented his hotel building on the west side to C. W. Foulke of York.

1904 The Platt House was known as the West Side Inn, formerly the Stowell, Platt and Smith Hotel.

1905 D. B. Lincoln moved into the Platt House and conducted a boarding house here.

1907 The Lincoln Hotel was set to close.

1908 W. C. Schupbach, leased and furnished the Park Hotel.

1908 W. C. Schupbach sold his lease on the Park Hotel to Mrs. D. B. Lincoln.

1908 A real estate ad advertised the Lincoln Hotel for sale or rent.

1909 The Sanborn Map shows a boarding house.

1909 C. A. Smith advertised this property as a 16 room hotel or rooming house for sale or rent.

1912 The sidewalk along the west end of the courthouse square was completed and a crossing was laid from the south end to the Renico Hotel.

1913 The name of the Renico Hotel on the west side of the square was changed to the Gilmore Hotel and Mrs. Hannah Gilmore succeeded Mrs. Renico as landlady.

1918 The furniture from the Gilmore Hotel was for sale.

1919 C. A. Smith planned to tear down the Gilmore Hotel. It had stood idle for some time and due to its old age, was in a poor state of repair.

1920 J. J. Lightbody tore down the old building on the west side of the square formerly used as a hotel.

1922 The Sanborn maps show these lots as vacant.

1927 Sometime in this era, Oliver C. Bedford began a bulk tank and oil delivery plant.

1927 J. W. Dingman purchased the lot from O. C. Bedford and built the White Way Filling Station. It is believed Everett Ritchey managed the station. There was a cabin camp for tourists west of the station.

1929 H. L. Anderson and Charles McBeth purchased the bulk tank plant and oil truck from O. C. Bedford. C. McBeth had been in charge of the Peterson Oil Co. truck

1929 Eric Johnson bought the White Way Station from Mr. Dingman. Johnson had been employed in the Warner Filling Station and was also associated in the ownership of a station in Shickley. His station was the headquarters for Champlin products.

1929 In July Eric Johnson leased the White Way Station to the Mona Motor Oil Company. The Mona Motor Co. had two other stations, Warner’s at 8^th and G Street and M. I. Ellison’s at 1246 G Street. Mr. Johnson retained ownership of the cabins.

1929 J. R. Spicer was the manager of the White Way Station.

1930 For one month, from January to February, Paul O’Brien was the manager of the White Way station. He was succeeded by Harold Nicewander.

1930 On July 1, the Mona Motor Co. closed the White Way filling station. The lease was about to end and the company did not want to renew the lease. The station was owned by Eric Johnson.

1933 L. L. Coryell & Son, Coryell Service, leased the station from Eric Johnson. They later moved to 10^th and F Street.

1933 The Sanborn Maps show a filling station here.

1943 The Sanborn Maps show a filling station here as well as tourist cabins on the west part of the lots.

1944 The Coryell Service Station was sold to Oscar and Bertha Weaver. It was managed by A. R. Owen and his son-in-law Joe Wilson.

1946 In March A. R. Owen and Joe Wilson took over the Coryell Station at 187 South 10^th Street.

1954 Orval McDonald and his son William McDonald leased the station and named it McDonald Service Station.

1963 In October, Irvin Miller purchased the station from the McDonald’s. It was a Derby Station.

1968 Ritchey Derby Service was opened by Everett Richey after being closed for several weeks. Ritchey had a motorcycle business on the east side of the square.

1971 The Alma Oil Company, who owned several stations in the state, bought the business.

1973 Big Red Gas Company, owned by Loren Hofferber, Robert Ohnesorge and Jack Slocum operated the station for two years.

1975 Tom’s Texaco was owned and operated by Tom Ortgies. He renamed it Tom’s Service.

1978 Tom added a car wash to the west of the station.

1981 The gas station and service department closed, but the car wash remained in operation.

2002 The station building was remodeled for the owner’s private use.

2020 The car wash and filling station building were sold to Randy and Riley Bolken.

This was ongoing as of the last posting.