Back to Featured Columns list

To drive down North Platte’s Front Street today, one might find it hard to believe that it was once the mainstay of a thriving downtown area – complete with hotels, businesses, billiard halls and even a few “houses of ill repute.” In fact, the history of Front Street can be considered just as colorful and intriguing as many of the town’s notorious residents and guests.

According to longtime North Platte resident and historian, Jim Beckius, Front Street was once the bustling epicenter out of which the city grew and became what it is today. In his book, “Images of America: North Platte - City Between Two Rivers,” Beckius explained the history of Front Street extends back to the 1800s when the first general store, built by William Peniston and Andrew Miller, was built to accommodate the needs of those working for the Union Pacific Railroad. The store offered staple items such as flour and grain. It was later purchased by Charles McDonald.

The town continued to grow as more people found North Platte to their liking and settled in the area. In December of 1869, the now-famous Union Pacific Depot and Hotel opened. It was located at the corner of Front and Dewey streets and was visited by such notable individuals as William F. “Buffalo Bill” Cody, Generals Sheridan and Sherman and Teddy Roosevelt.

The early 1900s saw continued growth on Front Street and the surrounding streets. A typical shopping trip to Front Street in 1908 might include stops at Second Hand Goods, Workman and Derryberry implements and hardware, Tramp Grocery and a quick haircut at O.W. Sizemore’s barbershop. Front Street was also the home to several other businesses including the real estate offices of Bratt and Goodman and of contractor James A. McMichael. In 1915, Lem Bailey’s Billiard Parlor and Cigar Store at 205 E. Front St. was a popular hangout. The building later became the Brunswick Billiard Hall.

In 1917, many of the streets in the downtown area, including Front Street, were laid with brick.

“Front Street was brick clear to the west of Willow Street. All the streets were bricked and they were in great shape until after the war when they tore them up to redo some water mains and sewer mains and stuff and they didn’t know how to re-lay them,” Beckius said. Today, bricks remain on only a small portion of Front Street and the downtown area.

Many residents were saddened when the original Union Pacific Depot and Hotel were completely destroyed by fire on Nov. 17, 1915. The depot was rebuilt two years later at 300 E. Front St., one block east of its original location.

Although they couldn’t have known it at the time, the Union Pacific Depot in North Platte would become far more than just a train stop and place to grab a bite to eat. In the midst of World War II, the depot became the home of the famous North Platte Canteen, a war effort that began on Dec. 25, 1941, and continued until April 1, 1946. During the five years it was open, volunteers at the Canteen served more than six million servicemen and women. It was supported by people in 125 communities in Nebraska and Colorado that sacrificed their time, energy and goods for those who were serving their country.

Throughout the ‘20s and ‘30s the city continued to expand and Front Street grew right along with it. A trip down Front Street in 1934 might include stops at the Palms Bar, the White Front Café, the OK Barber Shoppe, Brunswick Billiard Parlor and the Pierce Café.

“I remember the Pierce Café,” Beckius said in a recent interview. “Dinners were .35 cents and plate lunches were a quarter.”

He also said a trip to Front Street often included a stop at Coney Island for many residents.
“We used to say you had to take a little handful of sand in there and throw it on the stools so you won’t slide off, since it was kind of a greasy spoon,” he laughed.

Lemon’s Café was also a favorite spot for those who visited Front Street.

“Everybody that’s old enough to know remembers Lemon’s Café,” Beckius said. Later, Lemon’s Café was torn down and the North Platte Restaurant took its place.

“Everybody remembers that. If you wanted fried rice that was the place to go,” Beckius recalled.
Although North Platte experienced a time of tremendous growth during the ‘20s and ‘30s, not all businesses in the downtown area were what one could consider reputable. Many “houses of ill repute” sprang up on Front Street, Dewey, and East Sixth and Fifth streets. Plenty of gambling, prostitution and other unsavory activities took place throughout the Front Street and downtown area, hence North Platte was often referred to as “Little Chicago”.

Businesses came and went throughout the ‘30s and ‘40’s, according to Beckius. While many places had changed ownership, some were still well established by the time the 1950s rolled around.

A stroll down Front Street in 1953 might include stops at the Platte Army Store, the Working Man’s Café, the Cash-Wa Co., or Jim’s Café, which later became the Green Parrot Café until it exploded, after which the corner was left vacant.

Across the street would have been the Alamo Bar and Coney Island, with the Keith Hotel occupying the space above it. The Palace Hotel, Palace Café and Platte Bar were also staple businesses in the bustling Front Street area.

In the 1960s and early ‘70s, many businesses continued to operate on Front Street until 1973, when most of the buildings that lined the historic street were destroyed by the city for the sake of urban renewal. Even the legendary Union Pacific Depot was torn down by the railroad in 1973.

“They tore 60 buildings down in a 3½ block area and what we got for it is an Alco parking lot and that’s about all,” Beckius said. “There were all kinds of businesses – bars, Western Union, clothing stores, all kinds of stores and buildings. They tore them all down in one summer. They started right at Jeffers and went straight east for 3½ blocks. We could have had one of the best Front Streets in the world here as far as history goes.”

Beckius continued, “We hated to see those buildings go and there was no place for them to go. They built that mall out there (now the Platte River Mall), but all those people really had no place to go.”

Today, those who travel along Front Street in the downtown area of North Platte can catch only the barest glimpse of what it was in days past. The worn, brick road and a lone memorial recognizing the Depot and Canteen are virtually all that remain of the thriving epicenter it once was.