Self Guided Tour of Reardan 1988
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Mule Days 1988
This document is treated as a historical document and corrections have not been made to this text. Corrections have been applied to Self Guided Tour
SELF GUIDED HISTORICAL ART TOUR
Sites are numbered on the map with additional information contained in this booklet. Walk through as much or as little of the tour as you desire. We will leave the display up through Sunday evening and will put it up again next year if we have been able to add to it. Enjoy! We did.
High School Art II Class under Bonnie Smith
- Reardan Fire and Rescue was originally constructed in 1907-08 as the new home of the Farmer's State Bank. The front pillar were removed at a later date. If you walk to the sides of the building, you will see the original brick walls--bricks from the local Hansen Concrete Company run by Gus Hansen.
- Next door was the Reardan Harness Shop run by A. G. Youngman. It was later the made the first town library. Today the lot houses the swing rides for the kiddies during Mule Days.
- Inside the telephone switchboard office. (Photo during the 1950s.) The first telephone office burned during the block fire of 1913, the block south [sic] of the current Red Rooster.) Does anyone have a photo of the first office? Would you share?
- The Center Flag Pole was erected during World War I (called the Great War then). This photo was taken during Mule Days 1917 with the Stevenson building in the background. The "pole" which was smack-dab in the center of the intersection made made a fine thing for the young folks to circle in their vehicles. As more and more vehicles began bouncing off the flag pole, it was removed.
- Conrad Scharman's Meat Market was built in the early 1900s. Bill Hopkins took it over in the late 1920s followed by Lincoln Mutual #2 and for the past seven years, by Carol and Sherwin Broadhead's "R" Store.
- Note the freshly slaughtered beef in on the wagon in front of the Meat Market.
- J. C. Driscoll home. Story holds the J. C. was unable to get the city counceil permission to tear down the existing cabin on the property, but he was allowed to "remodel" the cabin. Unwilling to defy the council, yet ready to build his home, this was his "remodeling" effort. He build around the existing cabin. The home is currently owned by Carter Amundson.
- Bernard Hansen's home was build by his parents, Mr. and Mrs. J. A. "Gus" Hansen in 1904. Gus Hansen was an early businessman in town.
- Third and fourth Reardan School houses. Reardan's first school was a small cabin belonging to a pioneer family. The second school (first "real" school) was a wooden building located near the cemetery. The third school was brick. As the school population increased, the rooms were used and more teachers were hired. Terms of school in the very early times were set by the harvest, weather, availability of a teacher, availability of kids. Some years there were two three-month sessions; some years there were even three terms. According to school board Minutes from 1897-1907, teachers often lasted only a couple of weeks before resigning, making the hiring hers the main item of business at every director's meeting. The other most frequent item of Business was letting bids for the cutting and delivering of wood.
- The fleet of busses from the 1920's. Current fleet of busses may be seen behind the high school complex. As more and more of the one room country schools were absorbed into the district, we became one of the largest districts in square miles in the State of Washington. (Over 600 Square miles.)
- This block was shown from the wooden gym which sat where the greenhouse now is. Early basketball teams played in a warehouse situated where the current City Garage now is located. The houses shown were about where Iva Garber's home now stands, although we found no identification as to the owner. Behind stood the home of Gus Lutzhoff which is now called "home" by Jim and Judy Hentges.
- Original Lutheran Church and Parsonage were built in 1890. The current church building was constructed on the original site in 1917. Current parsonage built in 1965.
- The Catholic Church was constructed in 1907 with the fellowship hall added in the early 1960's.
- The home of John and Mary Shumer sat where Benhardt Building Supply now stands. John and Mary were grandparents of Mildred Childs Griefendorf. The home was built in 1905.
- The Methodist Church and parsonage were constructed in 1903.
- The Memorial Clinic was built in 1947 to honor the World War II war dead. In 1955 it was turned over to the City Hall and Library. In early day Reardan there were several doctors and dentists: G. S. Greene at the Reardan General Hospital in the 1910's; W. A. Kerrison, dentist; Dr. Frank Decker (1925); Dr. Milburn's Private Hospital. Dr. Driscoll was the first doctor contracted to the Memorial Clinic.
- Inside the Ice Cream Parlor operated by Harvey and Etta Sprinkle in 1923.
- Mule Day's Float (1913) constructed by Johnny Myers who did much of the plastering in local homes and businesses.
- The Washington Grain and Milling Company built in 1899 was supervised by Mr. Moriarity. The mill burned during a January 1952, fire.
- Pioneer Drug Store
- Post Office with the Long Lake Stage in front (1905);
- Jim Riley's Saloon and Pool Hall and Child's Drug Store. Buildings on this block burned on at a time in separate fires.
- The Reardan Train Depot as it looked in the fall of 1917. This was a busy place that fall as troop trains were carrying home soldiers from the Great War.
- Hansen's Hardware originally stood here. Later it was moved one block east, then torn down in 1919. The building you see now was built by Gus Hansen as his "new" hardware store. It was built with blocks made by his own Concrete Company.
- Originally the Baptist Church constructed by George Hiram Lair in the 1890's.
- This building was purchased by W. J. Colville for his garage in 1920. Previous to that Mr. Colville ran his station from one end of Hanson's Hardware. When the "new" garage was built in 1928, the original Baptist Church was moved to its present location facing the Springdale highway.
- Home built by G. Lair in 1904. Four homes were built; this is the only one remaining.
- In 1890 the population of Reardan was 31.
- In 1905 the population of Reardan was 900 (during the construction of Little Falls Dam)
- In 1988 the population of Reardan is 485.
- In August of 1913 a huge block fire destroyed a hotel, barber shop, telephone office, livery stable, and rooming house. It wiped out businesses on the north west block of Broadway and Lake.
- In 1926 another fire destroyed the South-West corner of Broadway and Lake taking with it a hotel, two general stores and a drug store.
If you have something to contribute to this project in the form of knowledge or pictures, please leave your name at the display during Community Days. Thanks.
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