Removed.

[Marcia Moore]

Removed.

[frawin]

Marcia, I think that is the building just North or Tracis Trends. My parents had the cafe in it for 20 years more or less, they acquired it from Dave and Hazel Knight. I think Dave and Hazel got it from Pop and Sue Allen.  Earl Allen the Druggist lived over the Cafe for years. I will ask Pat the next time we stop to see her. I have never heard it referred to as the Bruce Building .
Frank

[W. Gray]

I found one brief mention of a Bruce--Alexander Bruce--in the Elk County history book.

The county history quotes History of the State of Kansas and says Alexander Bruce was one of the founders of Howard along with John McBee, S. B. Oberlander, C. T. Adams, P. C. topping, Perry and Milton Vinson, and T. A. Dodd.

[Marcia Moore]

Removed.

[frawin]

Marcia, that explains something I have wondered about regarding the building that was the cafe just North of Traci's Trends. There were 2 buildings between Traci's trends and the Senior Center (Where the Senior center is was the Zeleny Farm Supply, M-M Farm Equipment and Westinghouse Appliance dealers), the 2 buildings had the same red brick front and were obviously built or remodeled by the same party. The 2 buildings were owned by Ralph "Junior" Perkins, the cafe was in the South one next to what is Traci's Trends and Junior Perkins and his Brother-in-Law Ross Gaines had the General Electric Appliance store in the North one. My guess is that these 2 buildings were part of the rebuilding from the Courthouse Fire.

[Marcia Moore]

Removed.

[frawin]

Marcia, I think that Pop and Sue Allen had the cafe in the building just North of Traci's Trends, I think it is a cabinet shop or someting like that now, my parents had the Cafe in it for 20 years or so.. Have notes on some of those buildings somewhere, I know where Traci's is was the Drugstore and the Building just South of Traci's was the Ford Garage, when the new Ford Garage was built where the First National Bank is now the building where the old one was became the Western Auto, and where the Ford Shop was is where Jack Van Buskirk put his Auto Repair Shop.

[Marcia Moore]

Removed.

[W. Gray]

If we are talking about the building on the right, that is the former courthouse but at the time this picture was taken was a hardware that J.C. Burchfield operated. He traded his quarter-section farm for that old courthouse and I think that farm became the poor farm. The stone building burned around 1895 and the exterior walls were torn down for a new building.

That first courthouse was built of stone on a vacant lot donated by the town company. The building itself was built with an unfinished interior with funds donated by the people of Howard City and Howard. It was the county's responsibility to finish the interior. The top floor housing the courtroom was carpeted.

That location for a courthouse was not the first site considered. The first proposed site on Wabash Avenue is where Doug's Place or Penny's Pub or the local watering hole is now.

In the photo, it seems to me that the building on the left is now part of Cooksons where they have the lawn stuff?

[frawin]

"In the photo, it seems to me that the building on the left is now part of Cooksons where they have the lawn stuff?"

Waldo, what do you base that on. There were 2 businesses South of where the Cafe was, between the Cafe and where Cookson's is now.