Post by Eric Standridge on Nov 10, 2011 12:22:55 GMT -6
![](http://farm7.static.flickr.com/6044/6332511594_a0c4f94435_b.jpg)
This is one of the photos that can be found in the old Lowery Hotel, where the Main Street Matters office is located.
This photograph can be positively dated to 1906. During this time, as the photo shows, the town was receiving a new water works system. Prior to 1906, Poteau residents had to rely on wells and cisterns for water, which wasn't very convenient. Though it is hardly visible in this photo, there was a well located immediately to the right of the McKenna building pictured in the foreground. This well supplied much of the water that was needed along Dewey Avenue.
This photograph would have been taken next to the railroad tracks, close to where the old Frisco Depot was located. The old depot was located at the end of Dewey Avenue, and would have been slightly behind and to the right of the photographer.
The large building featured prominently here is the old McKenna Building. This building faced the railroad tracks until sometime between 1910 and 1915, at which time the front that you see here was bricked in and the storefronts turned to face Dewey. Over the years, this building has seen numerous changes.
Two stores can be seen here; the racket store and a millinery. The millinery store generally sold items for ladies only, as ladies fashions were more ornate than they are today. Large decorative hats and long flowing dresses were typical of high society. The store to the far extreme left (not pictured) was a grocery store. In between each store was a door that opened up to a long flight of stairs that led to the second floor. The second floor housed the Court House.
Behind this building, located on the other side of McKenna, was the old First National Bank building. Beyond that, Dewey Avenue wasn't fully developed on that side of the street. Old houses and new businesses were mingled together almost haphazardly. The McKenna building and the Bank building were the only brick/rock structures on this side of Dewey when this photograph was taken.
On the other side of Dewey, the right side of this photograph, was another story. Development began with the darker building towards the front of the photo. This building was constructed around 1901, shortly after the McKenna Building, and housed several general merchandise stores. During 1906, it housed a drug store and a grocery store in the bottom floors, and offices were located in the upper floors. The rest of this brick block was constructed between 1901 and 1904 and housed a wide varied of businesses, including grocery stores, barber shops, meat markets, billiard halls, and so on. The top floors were mostly used for offices. Since the courts were located in Poteau, many signs advertising attorney services could be seen painted on the windows.
Also, you'll notice several newly installed wire poles on either side of the street. On the left side, the telephone poles ran the length of Dewey Avenue to the Frisco depot. On the right, electric poles also ran the length of Dewey Avenue. Telephone service arrived in Poteau during 1904, and full electric service arrived in 1906, around the same time that the water works systems were being installed.
During this time, Poteau still didn't have paved streets, and sidewalk were nearly non-existant. Most businesses had connecting porches that stretched from one business to the next. In this photo, a brick sidewalk has been laid that ran from the depot to the McKenna building. This was extremely helpful after it rained or in winter time. Horses, carts, and foot traffic quickly turned the streets into mush, and during heavy rains a traffic, one could easily sink up to their knees in many parts of the street.