This article was originally written by Vivian Donaldson, who graduated from Eureka High School in the 1930s.
“People talk about the good old days, in some respects, they are right, but come take a walk with me down along Main Street as I remember it.
“The town is Eureka, in the years from say, 1930 to 1940. I may not have all the people and businesses exactly right in that time span and you will see why as my small story unfolds.
“It’s a summer night, probably Saturday, and since it really doesn’t get dark until 9 p.m. or after, I decided to walk from my north Elm Street home up to watch the “Sunflower” (Missouri Pacific train) come in from Wichita, as it heads east. You could always count on lots of activity on the station platform (the station was located on east Ninth Street in the first block east of Main Street), people waiting to board the train going east and people who had been to Wichita, getting off.
“As I left home, I passed by the Katz Pipe & Supply Company owned by “Izzy” Katz and proceeded to the train platform to watch Art Frazier maneuver the big old baggage cart into place. It was huge and awkward, had iron wheels and a long “tongue.” He would later drive his “jitney” (a small bus) downtown for anyone needing a ride.
“It was not so busy this night. Since everyone worked six days a week, Saturday night was usually a very busy and social time for the citizens of this town.
“I rounded the west end of the depot and platform and started down Main Street past the Bailey Bottling Works. (Located on the east side of Main Street, later Denner Welding or now Diamond S Welding). Walking ahead of me was “Chief” Pryce. He could have gone to Hollywood and played an Indian part to perfection. As he walked, his pace was a gliding one, almost as if he were walking on a forest path. He was a large man and his posture was one of pride or as his nephew, Floyd Pryce said “as he carried himself.”
“Chief sort of scared me, although I couldn’t say why. So, I crossed Main Street to the west side and walked by Porter’s Grocery Store (later Olson’s Grocery located at Ninth and Main) and then Jim Burch’s Barber Shop.
“If this were Sunday morning, Jim Burch and his fishing buddy, Fred, would be seen walking down Main Street with cane poles, a seine, stringers and a bait bucket. Fred was head and shoulders taller than Jim. He wore a brown high crowned felt hat, where Jim wore a soft billed cap. Both would have on old suit coats and they would be going at a pretty good clip down to the dam before the fish stopped biting.
“Across the street Ted McNeill was closing the furniture store, and on the west side, which I was on, I could see across that the Leader Garage (located on the northeast corner of Main and Seventh Streets) was already closed.
“I crossed Seventh Street going south to the Race Parks Service Station, opened in 1949, (now a laundromat). People are filling their gas tanks for tomorrow’s church service or a Sunday drive. Across Main Street the Lyndon Hotel (now the new library lot) has lots of cars out in front and is busy on this Saturday night.
“And here is where I’m becoming aware that the further, I go south down Main Street, the further back in the years I am. I see the Kelly’s running the Lyndon Hotel and restaurant. While on the west side of the street, which I am on, I pass the Ark Market (Troy Scott owns the building now) where all kinds of fresh fruits and vegetables as well as groceries are sold. The owner was Joe Gray and for a dollar bill you could come out of his store with a “peck” ( ¼ of a bushel) sack full of food. He also had a habit of placing baskets of fresh produce outside the market with names and prices. One time I heard my mother say “Joe, I don’t think you spell beans “beens” and his answer was, “I know it, but everyone who comes in to tell me I’ve spelled a word wrong on my signs always buys something first!”
“South of the Ark Market was a building which at one time housed the Eureka Steam Laundry and south of that another service station (northwest corner of Main and Sixth Streets). It was Phil Braden’s Sinclair Station and lots of young high school boys hung out or worked there. Across the street east, several musicians were carrying instruments upstairs for the Saturday night dance in the Cartwright building (built in 1927 and burned a few years ago). Now, I am at the corner of Sixth and Main Street with three of the few original sites still in use. The Methodist Church, without the south addition, the Carnegie Library and Jackson Garage, still run by George and Karl Jackson.
“I can see Ross Jackson out in front, standing beside his Rickenbacker Super Sport. It was a really nice car and was used by other towns in parades and to bally-hoo events. Unfortunately, Ross was killed in his own plane in the summer of 1929 east of Eureka.
“It occurs to me now that there is traffic going north up Main Street to Seventh and turning east and also traffic coming off of Seventh and going south. So, of course, Highway 54 is coming through Eureka, this highway opened for traffic in 1929.
“Next to Jackson’s is the Brown Palace, run by Mrs. Brown. Roomers and boarders are in chairs and rockers on the broad front porch. South of that is a café run by Easton’s and another small business, I think it must have been a beer “parlor.”
“I’m still on the west side of Main Street, going past Purkable’s house and a Conoco Service Station (now Joyce and Hursh Optometry) at the corner of Main and Fifth Street. Crossing the street to the south is a small building occupied by Polhamus in some phase of the oil industry. Next comes Rock Island Lumber Yard with “Choppie” Norton as manager. It was a thriving business, but later bought out and closed by Houston Lumber Company (now Home Lumber).
“Then there is the twostory building that served as the first hospital in Eureka, located at 411 N. Main, built in 1907, now run by Marion McNeill Elder and Helen Shaffer McNeill from McPherson. All the doctors in Eureka used the building for surgery and patient care.
“Then there was the “Little Kastle,” the hamburger and coke headquarters at that time for the north Main Street people. It was always busy. At the time, I think Shirley Ott had it.
“The last building on that side of the 400 block was a Phillips 66 Station (now Community Bank), probably leased by Carl McKay, and Fred Garvin ran it and was a great public relations man. He could find humor in anything, even a little boy following a trail of ants on his way to school.
“Now, I will really go back in time and remember the “Fourth Ave. Hotel” (now the Greenwood County Museum is there) which was located just west of the Phillips station and faced to south towards the old courthouse. In my memory it was a two-story. Gray frame building near the street and had a long veranda running full width of the upper story. I don’t remember whether it was razed or burnt down. I just remember it was there and then it wasn’t. In its place was a new building with a Chevrolet-Buick Agency on the main floor and Ward McGinnis’s offices overhead.
While I am on this detour off Main Street I may as well circle the courthouse block by going to Oak Street and turning south. On the right is the J.D. Clark residence (now apartments). Frances, the daughter gave piano lesson there. Where Memorial Hall now stands was a liver barn and a tent skating rink and I can see Pete Gant, a large man, but such a graceful and elegant skater, doing his fancy steps to music. In later years, Junior Hamilton was the star of the skating rink.
“The Masonic Temple, built in 1922-1923, stood where the post office now resides, but in 1935 it burned to the ground. I attended two Junior-Senior Proms in that building.
“When the Memorial Hall was built, it seems to me it was used mostly by the American Legion and V.F.W., but I do remember the high school basketball team played some games there.
“The city band would probably be giving a concert in the courthouse lawn (now a parking lot) with the Colvins, Boyersmiths and Paul Clark in fine fettle.
“Going back on Third Street towards Main Street, I pass Cread Souder’s Radio Shop, a game room and a candy store, etc. owned by Nels Hanson and a hardware store owned by Harold Cone and W.H. Evans. On the Main Street corner was the A.G. Green Insurance Agency. That building was later occupied by the Citizens National Bank (later Harold Henderson Abstract).
“I’ve got to return to the 400 block and cross over to the east side of the street on Main and Fourth Street. The H.H. Bush Garage and Ford dealership occupied a good portion of the north end of the block (now Emprise Bank). At a later date it will be remembered that Archie Mendenhall and Bob Morris were blown up onto the roof of the Bush Motor Garage while welding on a gasoline tanker. Both young men were burned and seriously injured.
“C.C. Ball had a beer parlor next and Pop Jones and Don, his son, opened a “Day & Night” Market which was a forerunner of super markets where you went around and gathered up your supplies. Ben Grubb had a barber shop and on the corner of Fourth and Main was a standard Statin run by Don Donaldson.
“Directly east of the Standard Station and across the alley, was the S&H Bakery, opened in 1924, (now NAPA Auto Supply), run by John Stein and oh, the lovely aromas coming from there and a fresh, warm loaf of potato bread could be purchased for a dime!”
