The Frank House is an extravagant house built in 1889 by the son of George W. Frank and Phoebe Frank. Although the house itself showcases the wealth and prosperity of the family that lived within, the information known about the family is limited mainly to what was known of George W. Frank. Although the Frank family was one of the wealthier families to live in Kearney during this time period, George W. Frank was the individual that the media had their attention focused on, leading to a lack of information recorded about his wife, Phoebe Frank. After Phoebe passed in 1900 and George W. Frank moved out, the house was bought by a doctor couple, Dr. Ole Grothan and his wife Dr. Georgiana Grothan, who turned the home into a sanitarium. During its time as a sanitarium (1900-1907), a similar series of events occurred where Dr. Ole Grothan received much of the praise and his wife, an accomplished doctor, received very little. These two stories, although only related to the house that they lived in, have a similar background in the fact that the women of the time period received little to no recognition for their achievements while their husbands were receiving fame for their works.
Around the turn of the 20th century, it was common knowledge that tuberculosis was not genetic but contagious, and that through good hygiene, it was somewhat preventable. Nebraska took the step in 1911 to establish a state tuberculosis hospital outside of Kearney. In January of 1912, the hospital opened, and in 1922, the building known as the East Sun Building opened, and functioned for the next several decades until closing in 1972. It was then acquired by Kearney State College and remodeled into the West Center for business classes.
What would become the helm of education for the populous, UNK would not be what it is today without the womenfolk who built it from the ground up as the Nebraska State Normal School. Although abnormal to today’s standards, through their tribulations we will discuss and ponder how they set forth to bring education to the normal class and spread their wealth of knowledge through these ambassadors of schooling in the Great Plains. Through the years of being an institute, we will delve into what the university used to be and as well as the ladies who attended in masses as well as head women figures who brought it such prestige. With the use of analyzing and digitization of old documents from the school's past, we now have an in-depth provocation of what it was like to be part of the school. Here we will share what was typical for the women such as contracts and other sources of documentation showing the prejudices and vice women suffered through during their tenure at NSNS and as well as the years have shown frozen in time, held within the pages of yearbooks, scrapbooks, and those that would create the sorority system we cherish at our modern university.
The faculty at Kearney State College made a significant impact on the Kearney community and beyond. Established in 1905, KSC was originally Nebraska State Normal School, an institution that was primarily focused on training and educating rural teachers. It later was rebranded to Kearney State College, when its curriculum expanded, and became the University of Nebraska at Kearney in 1991. Alice Paine was a cataloging librarian at the Kearney State College’s Calvin T. Library and oversaw some aspects of the building's construction. Earlier in her life she traveled to the Soviet Union and observed the Soviet people during Stalin’s regime. Nancy Westerfield brought the arts into a bright light at Kearney State College with her book Welded Women, a collection of poems. Westerfield took a particular liking to writing fiction and journalism, so much so that she was awarded the National Endowment for the Arts fellow in Creative Writing in 1975.
The Anderson Sisters are the daughters of the well-known local photographer, A.T. Anderson. Alfred Anderson is known for capturing the booming period of Kearney's history. Due to his failing eyesight, Miriam (one of his daughters) took over and ran his photography studio until 1944. Taking after their father, Alfred's daughters Miriam (Mim), Ruth, and Elizabeth also worked in the fine arts, including painting, photography, and foreign languages. The sisters grew up in this home, and both Miriam and Elizabeth lived here in their later years.
When we see the Victorian home and well kept yard, many think tea parties. While that may have been a function, the Kearney Woman's Club has been on the forefront of social and political thought since its inception. The local organization was formed in 1887 and first titled "The Clio Club," not merging with the larger, national organization and calling themselves the "Kearney Woman's Club" until the mid 1900s. The club's gathering spot, ironically a house, was built in 1886 and remains standing and in use to this day.
This was the home of Pauline and Augustus Frank from 1891-1904. Pauline continued to live in the home after the passing of Augustus until 1904, when she relocated and began working for the city library. The house is still standing today despite there being some changes to the property itself.
This is the home of Eliza Galloway, who was the first African American Resident of Kearney, a former enslaved woman who was born in Maryland. Eliza was well known as a domestic who worked in many different homes in Kearney.The homes of Kearney's elite were very familiar with Eliza and her work, as she was a domestic in many of their homes; including the home of George and Phoebe Frank.
This Tour is a Walking Tour.
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A tour exploring the ways in which women from various backgrounds impacted the physical landscape of Kearney, Nebraska. Developed by UNK's HIST464: Introduction to Public History course in Fall 2020.
