Welcome to another installment of White Pine: Then & Now!
In this weeks edition, we see a parade in downtown Ely around 1925 (based on the license place of the car nearest the camera). The banner behind the band is touting how organized labor protects the children, but the banners further down the parade makes me think this might be an Independence Day parade or even a Labor Day parade. To the left of the parade there is the Commercial Hotel followed by what appears to be an empty lot. On the next block, there is an unidentified building and next door, the sign on the building appears to say Wilson Bates Furniture Company. From what I can find, it appears that Wilson Bates took over the Graham Mercantile building around 1929 and has been there ever since. Next you can see a sign for what appears to be a service station then two tall false front buildings. Further down, there are several unidentified businesses after which you can just make out the Northern Hotel. Just barely visible beyond the Northern is the previously mentioned Graham Mercantile. Moving to the right hand side, at the edge of the photo you can just make out the sign that hung off the Masonic Lodge followed by what appears as another empty lot with a small hut of some sort. On the next block, there is a small hotel followed by two or three unidentified businesses and then the Collins Hotel. Everything beyond the Collins Hotel is unidentifiable in this photo. Of particular note is Aultman Street itself. You’ll notice that the center of the street is poured concrete, which is directly related to early improvements to the Lincoln Highway. When Aultman was rebuilt and repaved in 1994-1995, those concrete slabs were still in place but were removed as part of the repaving project.
Looking at the current photo, taken August 12, 2024, we can see how much has changed in the 99 years since the original photo was taken. The Commercial Hotel is gone with Racks Bar & Grill now occupying the spot it once stood. The empty lot next to the Commercial is now Club Rio and the building where the Verizon store is located. On the next block, the two wood buildings are now gone, replaced by what is now Sculpture Park, Klaas Realty and the long closed Debbie’s Discount Furniture. Next door to Debbie’s is a vacant lot that was at one time Sprouse-Reitz Five and Dime store then the Longhorn Saloon. The building burned to the ground January 1977. The service station is gone, replaced by First National Bank of Ely and the two false front buildings gave way to the Hotel Nevada in 1929. On the next block, most of the buildings have survived, but the Northern Hotel burned in 1964 leaving another empty lot. Next is the Art Bank and Garnet Mercantile, neither of which is visible in the 1925 photo. The tall green building is the former Graham Mercantile building, which has been home to Wilson Bates Furniture since at least 1929. The original building was remodeled some time after the 1950’s with the metal exterior. On the right hand side, the Masonic Lodge is long gone, but the building still stands. The seemingly vacant lot next door is now occupied by Steptoe Valley High School. The hotel on the next block is now Economy Drug and the two businesses that were next to that are now the Chamber of Commerce. Collins Hotel is still standing, though its future is uncertain as the last attempt to reopen it (as Annie’s Lounge) failed before the doors ever opened.
Leave a Reply