NEBRASKA

							 Nebraska Lincoln Highway Historic and Cultural Resources

I) NEBRASKA LINCOLN HIGHWAY PROPERTIES ON THE NATIONAL
REGISTER OF HISTORIC PLACES (21 sites)

  Douglas County

     Omaha
  Nash Buildings, 902-912 Farnum and 901-911 Douglas streets, 1978-07-12

  Blackstone Hotel, Farnum Street and 36th Street.

      Elkhorn
  Brick Lincoln Highway, west from 180th Street, 1988

  Main Street Bridge, Main St. over W. Papillion Creek, 1992-06-29

  Washington County

     Blair
  Washington County Courthouse, 16th St. between Colfax and South streets,
  1990-01-10

  Dodge County

     Fremont
  Dodge County Courthouse, 435 N. Park Ave, 1990-01-10

  Fremont Post Office, Broad Street.

  Love-Larson Opera House, 543-545 Broad St., 1974-09-10

  Colfax County

     Schuyler
  US Post Office--Schuyler, 119 E. 11th St., 1992-05-11

  Platte County

    Columbus
  Downtown Columbus Historic District

  Platte County Courthouse, 2610 14th St., 1990-01-10

  Columbus Loup River Bridge, US 30 over the Loup River, 1992-06-29



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Hall County

   Wood River
Gloe Brothers Service Station, 1933, 609 East 11th Street, restored by the Bank of
Wood River.

Merrick County

   Central City
Merrick County Courthouse, 18th St. between 15th and 16th Aves., 1990-01-10

Buffalo County

    Shelton
Meisner Bank Building, Lincoln Highway, currently the Shelton Historical
Interpretive Center.

Hall County

   Wood River
Gloe Brothers Gas Station (Heritage Bank), 1933, 609 E. 11th Street

Dawson County

  Lexington
Dawson County Courthouse, Washington St. between 7th and 8th streets, 1990-01-10

    Cozad
Allen's Opera House, 100 E. Eighth St., 1988-09-28

Lincoln County

   Maxwell
Fort McPherson National Cemetery, 1980-06-25

   North Platte
Lincoln County Courthouse, Dewey St. between 3rd and 4th streets, 1990-01-10

Deuel County

   Chappell
Deuel County Courthouse, 718 3rd St., 1990-01-10



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  Cheyenne County

     Lodgepole
  Lodgepole Opera House, west side of Oberfelder at Front Street, 1988-07-07
     Sydney
  Downtown Sydney Historic District

  Kimball County

    Kimball
  Wheat Growers Hotel, First and Oak streets

II) NEBRASKA LINCOLN HIGHWAY LANDMARKS

  Douglas County

      Omaha
  The Rose Blumkin Performance Arts Center, Farnum Street and 20th Street. The
  Rose‟s Moorish architecture represents the early 20th Century penchant for exotic
  theater design at its peak.

  Farnum Street Automobile Row, 30th to 40th Streets. Omaha‟s premier Automobile
  Row still contains numerous vintage early 20th Century garages, as well as the
  Blackstone and Colonial Hotels.

  Blackstone Hotel, Farnum Street and 36th Street. Now apartments, the Blackstone was
  one of Omaha‟s most luxurious hotels during the heyday of the Lincoln Highway.

      Elkhorn
  Elkhorn Brick Lincoln Highway, 1920, Lincoln Highway east of Elkhorn. One mile
  of this three-mile brick section is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. It
  includes a reconstructed pony truss bridge over West Papillion Creek, seven replica
  concrete Lincoln Highway markers and an interpretive pull-off maintained by the
  Omaha Public Power District.

  Elkhorn Lincoln Highway Monument, 1988, Elkhorn Brick Section. The monument
  includes four replica 1928 Lincoln Highway markers, and a descriptive historical
  plaque.

  Holling Hotel, Pacific Street. Located proximate to a restaurant and three garages,
  this small town hotel catered to many Lincoln Highway travelers in the 1920s.

     Valley




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Valley Sign, entrance to Valley from US 275. Small town Nebraska was known for
its neon-lit, vertical gateway signs. Valley‟s purple and orange heraldry is all that
remains on the Lincoln Highway.

Spiked culvert, old Lincoln Highway just south of Dodge-Douglas County line, north
of Valley. An early means of making low culvert rails more visible was to top them
with concrete posts or spikes, like this one just south of the Dodge County line on the
original Lincoln Highway.

Dodge County

    Fremont
L. P. Larson Opera House, Broad Street between 4th and 5th streets. This old opera
house has been restored.

Abraham Lincoln Statue, 1921, John C. Fremont Park. The statue is a gift from L.D.
Richards, and includes a bronzed copy of the Gettysburg Address.

Fremont Historic Visitors Center, 1893, 605 N. Broad Street. This restored,
romanesque post office houses several agencies and a Lincoln Highway display.

Tenth Street Brick Section, 10th Street between Broad and Nye streets.

Fremont Seedling Mile, 1915, 23rd Street. No longer showing its original concrete,
this LHA seedling mile extends west from Fremont.

Overland Trail Historic Marker, Fremont State Recreation Area, US 30 west of
Fremont.

Colfax County

   Schuyler
Abandoned drive-in theater, junction of 1913 Lincoln Highway and second
generation 1925 Lincoln Highway (US 30). Northeast of Schuyler.

Los Amigos Auto Repair, c. 1925, B Street and 16th Street. Los Amigos is a Spanish
Mission style canopy gas station.

B Street Brick Section, 1923, B Street.

Kopec Brothers Garage, c. 1910, A St. and 16th Street. Kopec‟s large, brick garage
has changed little over the years.

Platte County

   Columbus



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Chevrolet-Buick Garage, c. 1920, 23rd Ave. and 13th Street. This large buff-colored
brick garage exemplifies the type of in-town auto showrooms built in the 1920s.

Columbus Theater, 13th Street between 24th and 25th Avenues. The brick façade of the
Columbus Theater is augmented by an elaborate terra cotta panel celebrating
Christopher Columbus, and a colorful art moderne marquee.

Evans Hotel, 1913, 13th Street and 27th Avenue. The capstone on Columbus‟s Park
Plaza still sports the name of the Evans Hotel although the former flagship hotel now
houses businesses and apartments.

Gottberg Building, 1921, 13th Street and 28th Ave. Max Gottberg built this elaborate
Ford dealership in 1920, and ran it until 1944. It was recently restored as the Gottberg
Brew Pub and Dusters Restaurant.

Columbus Carrilon and Oregon Trail Monument, US 30-81.

Columbus Seedling Mile, 1921, US 30 west of US 81. The stretch of Lincoln
Highway extending west from the Meridian Highway (US 81) is believed to be a
LHA seedling mile although no documentation of it exists.

    Duncan
Avenue of Trees. This grass-covered, abandoned Lincoln Highway remnant passes
through a colonnade of hackberry trees.

1928 concrete Lincoln Highway Marker, North Boulevard and Main Avenue.

1928 concrete Lincoln Highway Marker, Main Avenue and Ninth Street.

Merrick County

   Clarks
Millard Street Brick Section, E. Millard Street east of Green Street.

Lincoln Highway Mural, 1995, Veterinary building at Millard and N. Green streets.
Clarks High School art teacher, Bonnie Goodman, and students designed and painted
this Lincoln Highway scene.

Hall County

    Grand Island
Shady Bend, The Tourist‟s Haven, 1929, US 30 east of Grand Island. Shady Bend
was a one-stop service center east of Grand Island that included a resident herd of
bison. The canopy filling station still stands.




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           Opened in 1929, the Shady Bend filling station and cabin court still stand as
           a representative example of the pre-World War II commercial roadside.

Nebraska‟s First Seedling Mile, 1915, Seedling Mile Road east of Grand Island. The
original concrete pavement still covers a section of this seedling mile east of Grand
Island.




         The Grand Island Seedling Mile is the only seedling mile that retains its original
         concrete pavement. (Bob Stubblefield)

Kensinger‟s Service Station, 1933, Stuhr Road and Seedling Mile Road. Kensinger‟s
exhibits a vernacular interpretation of streamline modernity.

Yancey Hotel, 2nd Street. Grand Island‟s ten-story, flagship hotel has been recycled as
an apartment block.




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    Wood River
Gloe Brothers Service Station, 1933, 609 E. 11th Street. The Bank of Wood River is
in the process of restoring Wood River‟s old Gloe Service station to be used as a
drive-in bank.

Buffalo County

   Shelton
Ryan‟s Garage, c. 1925, 221 Highway 30. Ryan‟s is a mission-style garage that
formerly operated as a Conoco station.

Shelton Historical Interpretive Center, 1998. Numerous Lincoln Highway artifacts are
part of the collection to be found in the renovated Meisner Bank Building.

Replica 1928 Lincoln Highway Marker, Railroad Park.

   Kearney
Kearney Seedling Mile, 1915, US 30 west of Kearney. A colonnade of trees once
shaded Kearney‟s seedling mile.

1733 Ranch Site and Covered Wagon Gift Shop, US 30 west of Kearney. For much
of the 20th century, the 1733 Ranch was marked with a sign proclaiming it to be 1,733
miles from Boston, and 1,733 miles from San Francisco. In the 1990s, the ranch was
developed into a housing development called 1733 Estates. Nearby there is a covered
wagon-shaped gift shop complete with oxen.

The Great Platte River Road Archway Monument, 2000, over Interstate 80. An eight-
story archway has been constructed across I-80 that houses a two-level museum
dedicated to emigration and travel along Nebraska‟s Great Platte River Road, from
the earliest pioneers on the Oregon Trail through the era of the Lincoln Highway to
the present period of interstate highways and fiberoptic cable.

Dawson County

    Overton
Lincoln Highway Bridge, c. 1919, adjacent to US 30 and the Union Pacific Railroad
east of Overton. The outside wing wall of this small, concrete bridge was recently
painted with the Lincoln Highway logo. The bridge is on an abandoned remnant of
the Lincoln Highway.

   Lexington
Dawson County Museum, Taft Street. On display at this local history museum are
two 1928 concrete Lincoln Highway markers.

Spanish Mission-style Motel, c. 1927, 6th and N. Harrison streets.




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   Cozad
Hendee Hotel, E. 8th Street. The old Hendee Hotel has been restored as the Robert
Henri Museum.

    Gothenburg
Gothenburg “Pony Express” Station. Mistakenly thought of as a Pony Express
station, this log structure is the second story of a building from the Machette, or
Upper 96, Western Stage stop.

Lincoln County

Gothenburg Stairsteps, 1913-1924. The original Lincoln Highway between
Gothenburg and North Platte followed a series of tight-turning section line roads that
“stairstepped” across the plains to the south of the Platte River.


    North Platte
Sioux Lookout Statue, southeast of North Platte overlooking the Gothenberg
Stairsteps. This badly vandalized statue commemorates the Sioux who witnessed the
westbound wagon trains on the Oregon/California Trail.

Ford Garage, c. 1920, 315 E. 4th Street. Typical of in-town garages of its day, the
Ford Garage is constructed of brick with a parapet façade set to the sidewalk build
line.

Three 1928 concrete Lincoln Highway markers.

   Sutherland
1928 concrete Lincoln Highway marker.

   Brady
1928 concrete Lincoln Highway Marker, Memorial Park.

Keith County

  Paxton
Two 1928 concrete Lincoln Highway markers.

    Brule
Lincoln Highway Pole Paintings, 1995. Local residents marked the route of the
Lincoln Highway by painting the utility poles in a fashion copied from the early days
of the Lincoln Highway Association.

California Hill, US 30 west of Brule. A state historical sign commemorates the hill
climbed by thousands of westbound emigrants from 1841 through 1860. The Lincoln
Highway climbs the same hill.



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Deuel County

    Big Springs
Big Springs Café and Garage, 3rd St. and Chestnut Street. These two buildings made
up the Lincoln Highway heart of Big Springs in the 1920s. The Lincoln Highway‟s
short-lived Colorado Loop turned south to Denver at this interstection.

   Chappell
Spanish Mission-style motor court, c. 1930, Lincoln Highway and Ochs Street.

Cheyenne County

    Lodgepole
Filling Station, E. McCall Street. This filling station has been converted into a barber
shop.

Finch‟s Drug and Sundries Store, McCall Street. Finch‟s architectural style and décor
has not changed significantly in over fifty years.

Lodgepole Opera House, 1911, Oberfelter Street. The Opera House is on the second
floor of this garage.

Lodgepole Motel, 1932. The Lodgepole consists of six cabins connected by garage
bays, and arranged in a U-shaped court.

Former Texaco Garage, c.1945. This large brick and stucco garage retains its Texaco
detailing.

   Sunol
Abandoned Motel, 1929. Craftsman style detailing is exhibited on this strip of motel
cabins.

   Sidney
1928 concrete Lincoln Highway Marker.

Former Mayfair Service Station, 1947, Lincoln Highway east of Sidney. The Mayfair
is a brick service station with semi-circular parapets and brick corbelling.

El Palomino Motel, 1950, Lincoln Highway west end of Sidney. Built with
permastone siding and glass block windows, this U-shaped motel is a 1950s classic,
complete with a roof-top neon, metal-box sign.

Kimball County

   Kimball



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  Wheat Growers Hotel, Oak St. and First Street. This now closed, two-story hotel has
  its name prominently displayed beneath the eve in white brick.

      Bushnell
  Bushnell Remnant and Culverts, old Lincoln Highway east of Bushnell. A series of
  concrete culverts, including a spiked culvert, are lined up along the original alignment
  of the Lincoln Highway, immediately north of the Union Pacific Railroad, and
  parallel to the later Lincoln Highway marked as US 30.

  Bushnell Tubes, old Lincoln Highway west of Bushnell. Two, large tubes carry the
  original Lincoln Highway beneath the Union Pacific railroad.

      State Line
  State Line Station, US 30 Nebraska-Wyoming Line. A tall tower proclaiming this to
  be the „State Line‟ stood at this now-closed, border-straddling truck stop until toppled
  in 1996.




III) NEBRASKA LINCOLN HIGHWAY INTERPRETATION AND PRESERVATION
PROJECTS

  Nebraska Historic Buildings Survey of the Lincoln Highway

      The Nebraska State Historical Society undertook a county building survey that
  highlighted the Lincoln Highway in Lincoln (1993), Buffalo (1994), Dodge (1994),
  Cheyenne (1994), Hall (1995), and Platte (1996) Counties. The Lincoln Highway
  along with four other historic Nebraska highways was also part of a reconnaissance
  field survey undertaken in 2001. Contact: Bill Callahan, Nebraska State Historic
  Preservation Office, 1500 R Street, PO Box 82554, Lincoln, NE 68501, (402) 471-
  4788; callahan@nebraskahistory.org.

  Lincoln Highway Pole Painting

      Members of the Nebraska Lincoln Highway Association have supported a pole
  painting program to mark the Lincoln Highway in different locations across the state
  including, Elkhorn, Clarks, Central City, Grand Island, Shelton, and Brule. Contacts:
  Bob Stubblefield, Nebraska LHA Director, 7300 Willow Rd, Shelton, NE 68876,
  (308) 647-6554, Fax 308-647-6554; Carol Ahlgren, 3613 Marcy St., Omaha, NE
  68105, (402) 221-4649, Fax (402) 221-3465.

  Douglas County




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Elkhorn Brick Lincoln Highway

     The stretch of brick Lincoln Highway east of Elkhorn was laid in 1920, and is
listed on the National Register of Historic Places. In 1988, a Lincoln Highway
monument was erected by the Elkhorn, Nebraska, Lincoln Highway Diamond Jubilee
Committee. The monument includes an historic plaque and two replica 1928 Lincoln
Highway markers. Several other replica markers flank the road. This three-mile
section brick pavement is currently the subject of intense planning by local, state and
federal agencies, in part using TEA-21 funding. This planning is part of an ongoing
attempt by many public agencies and private advocates to find a way to protect and
interpret this fragile stretch of historic Lincoln Highway. Contact: Bill Callahan,
Nebraska State Historic Preservation Office, 1500 R Street, PO Box 82554, Lincoln,
NE 68501, (402) 471-4788; callahan@nebraskahistory.org.

Dodge County

Fremont Historic Visitors Center
    The Fremont Chamber of Commerce conducted a Grand Opening ceremony for
the restored, 1893 Post Office on August 25, 2000. The new Visitors Center houses
several agencies and a Lincoln Highway display. Contact: Dodge County Convention
& Visitors Bureau, P.O. Box 182, Fremont, NE 68026-0182 1-800-727-8323.




         After restoration and adaptive reuse as Duster’s Brew Pub, the Gottberg Auto
         Garage in Columbus attracted a parade of antique cars from the Model T Club
         in 1998. (Jo Lutnes)



Platte County

Gottberg Auto Company Restoration
   Max Gottberg built this elaborate Ford dealership in 1920, and ran it until 1944. It
was recently restored as the Gottberg Brew Pub and Dusters Restaurant. Contact: Jo




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  Lutnes, Platte county Convention and Visitors Bureau, Lincoln Highway, PO Box
  515, Columbus, NE 68602-0515, (402) 504-2769.

  Lincoln Highway Banners
      Columbus undertook a banner program to mark the route of the Lincoln Highway
  through town. Contact: Jo Lutnes, Platte county Convention and Visitors Bureau,
  Lincoln Highway, PO Box 515, Columbus, NE 68602-0515, (402) 504-2769.

  Hall County

  Gloe Brothers Service Station Restoration
      The Bank of Wood River restored Wood River‟s 1933 Gloe Brothers Service
  Station to be used as a drive-in bank. It has been listed on the National Register of
  Historic Places. Contact: Bank of Wood River, 110 E. 9th St. PO Box 487, Wood
  River, NE 68883 (308) 583-2262.

  Buffalo County

  Shelton Historical Interpretive Centre
      Shelton‟s Meisner Bank Building now houses a local history museum containing
  a number of Lincoln Highway artifacts. The Interpretive Centre has applied for a
  TEA-21 grant to renovate one of the bank rooms into a Lincoln Highway Visitors
  Center. A replica 1928 Lincoln Highway marker has been dedicated in Railroad Park.
  The Meisner Bank has been listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
  Contact: Bob Stubblefield, Nebraska LHA Director, 7300 Willow Rd, Shelton, NE
  68876, (308) 647-6554, Fax 308-647-6554.

  Shelton Lincoln Highway Festival and Antique Car Show
     Since 1998, the town has been hosting an annual Lincoln Highway Festival and
  Antique Car Show. Contact: Bob Stubblefield, Nebraska LHA Director, 7300 Willow
  Rd, Shelton, NE 68876, (308) 647-6554, Fax 308-647-6554.

  Great Platte River Road Archway Monument
      The Great Platte River Road Archway Monument spanning I-80 at Kearney
  opened in July 2000. The fortress-like, eight-story archway museum houses a two-
  level museum dedicated to emigration and travel along Nebraska‟s Great Platte River
  Road, from the earliest pioneers on the Oregon Trail through the era of the Lincoln
  Highway to the present period of interstate highways and fiberoptic cable. Contact:
  The Great Platte River Road Memorial Foundation, One Archway Parkway, Kearney,
  NE 68847 (308) 237-1000, Toll Free: 1-877-511-ARCH, Fax: (308) 338-0411;
  robrien@archway.org.

IV) NEBRASKA LINCOLN HIGHWAY CONTACTS

  State Historic Preservation Office contact:




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Nebraska State Historic Preservation Office, 1500 R Street, PO Box 82554, Lincoln,
NE 68501, Bill Callahan (402) 471-4788; callahan@nebraskahistory.org.

Lincoln Highway contacts:
Ahlgren, Carol, National Park Service, Midwest Region, 1709 Jackson Street,
Omaha, NE 68102, (402) 514-9358, carol_ahlgren@nps.gov

Lutzi, Tom & Judy, 8600 Buckboard Ln, Lincoln, NE 68532-9102, (402) 438-5839

McConnell, Curt, 921 “E” St, Lincoln, NE 68508-3123, (402) 475-2234,
curtmack@prodigy.net

Stubblefield, Bob, Nebraska LHA Director, 7300 Willow Rd, Shelton, NE 68876,
(308) 647-6554, Fax 308-647-6554




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