The Wheat Growers Hotel opened in 1890 in the tiny town of Kimball, Nebraska to serve passengers traveling on the first transcontinental railroad in the United States. It was considered a large structure at that time and known to serve wealthy travelers with a plush environment and service. The structure is not open to the general public currently as steps are being taken to restore the hotel as a registered historic landmark.
The Wheat Growers Hotel is a historic hotel located at 102 S. Oak St. in Kimball, Nebraska. It was built in 1918 in the Early Commercial style and was the largest hotel in Kimball at the time. The hotel was added to the NRHP on July 11, 2002.
The Wheat Growers Hotel has 86 rooms, two hallways on each floor, and all rooms have electricity, plumbing, and steam heating. The hotel also has a restaurant, ballroom, kitchen, and heating system that keeps the building comfortable in Nebraska storms.
The hotel is temporarily closed and is being renovated to become a historical tourist destination. The renovation plans include:
10 suites on the second floor
Restaurant, museum, gift shop, and coffee kiosk on the first floor
Ballroom and brewpub in the basement
Courtyard on the south side of the building
The video above is the first part of an attempt to explore the building and some of its stories and more segments appear on this page below.
In Part Two of the series, we explore the first and second floors and take in the electrical wiring, plumbing fixtures, and heating and cooling systems. We also find out that a very well-known man and his family occupied the best room in the hotel for an extended period.
In Part Three of the series, we explore the basement ballroom kitchen and laundry and conduct a search for signs of the speakeasy location. Then we return upstairs and learn about a severe blizzard, and a ghostly resident and her paranormal activity.
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LINKS
Historic Wheat Growers Hotel | Website
National Register of Historic Places Registration
