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Junction City in Geary County, Kansas — The American Midwest (Upper Plains)
 

800 Block Washington Street

Historic Buildings

 
 
800 Block Washington Street Marker image. Click for full size.
Photographed By Cosmos Mariner, September 7, 2017
1. 800 Block Washington Street Marker
Inscription.
816 N. Washington:
Baskin/Clewell Drug Store

Here, in 1978, the last of the "old-fashioned drug stores” in junction City closed. Built in 1904 by pharmacist C.H. Baskin, the building was acquired by Charles Clewell in 1917. Eventually his son, Roy Clewell, became the proprietor.

802 N. Washington:
Central National Bank

Sumner W. Pierce founded the Central National Bank in 1884. In 1910, he erected the main bank building on the northwest corner. Pierce added a stone building on the north side in 1911, and on the west side, also in 1911. The Central National Bank continues to operate from the building. Strength has been one of the main-stays of the Central National Bank through its 100 year history. It has gone forward in a positive fashion from its youth to maturity. Even in the worst of times — the Great Depression, the Bank Holiday, and even inflation - it was a viable source to the community it serves.

Its strength comes only from loyal support of the community. The people of Junction City, Fort Riley, and the surrounding rural communities have been its strong-arm through the years. However, the bank had to “crawl" before it could "walk." The "crawling stage" lasted about 40 years but even in those years, the bank never lost its capital base — the main spoke in
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any bank’s wheel.

We have grown from the darkest days of the 1930’s, when management struggled to keep the doors open, to our present-day strength ranking in the top 5% of the nation’s banks.

During the first 40 years, many banks were formed, but many were lost. During 1930, more than 1,300 banks closed their doors and by 1933 an additional 7,000 had failed. Only the strongest survived and remain today.

801 N. Washington:
Pennell Building

J.J. Pennell was a well-known photographer in Junction City between 1886 and 1922. In 1908, he built this building which housed the Miller Drug Co. downstairs and his photography studio upstairs. It was here that Joseph Stanley Pennell wrote his novel of Junction City and the Civil War, "The History of Rome Hanks," a best seller in 1944. "Pennell 1908" can still be seen atop the building. The building was restored and dedicated in 1997 by Geary County and currently houses offices of the Geary County Attorney and other court services.

Photos courtesy of Geary County Historical Society.
 
Topics. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: ArchitectureIndustry & Commerce.
 
Location. 39° 1.815′ N, 96° 49.763′ W. Marker is in Junction City, Kansas, in Geary County. Marker is
Marker detail: Baskin/Clewell Drug Store image. Click for full size.
Courtesy of Geary County Historical Society
2. Marker detail: Baskin/Clewell Drug Store
at the intersection of North Washington Street (Alternate U.S. 77) and East 8th Street, on the right when traveling north on North Washington Street. Marker is located along the sidewalk at the southeast corner of the intersection, facing north. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 725 North Washington Street, Junction City KS 66441, United States of America. Touch for directions.
 
Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within walking distance of this marker. 700 Block Washington Street (here, next to this marker); 7th Street East & West of Washington (about 300 feet away, measured in a direct line); 600 Block Washington Street (about 300 feet away); George Smith (about 400 feet away); Civil War Memorial Arch (approx. 0.2 miles away); State of Kansas Vietnam Veterans Memorial (approx. 0.2 miles away); Purple Heart Memorial (approx. 0.2 miles away); 1st Infantry Division Memorial (approx. 0.2 miles away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Junction City.
 
Also see . . .
1. Central National Bank History. In 1884, Sumner Pierce, a businessman originally from New York who had moved to Kansas in 1879, organized the Central Kansas Bank with capital of $50,000. When it opened October 1, 1884, the bank provided a fire-proof vault, a burglar-proof safe, and a time lock to secure deposits. In 1889, bank management decided to change from a state bank to a national bank in order to provide depositors the greater
800 Block Washington Street Marker (<i>wide view; looking south along North Washington Street</i>) image. Click for full size.
Photographed By Cosmos Mariner, September 7, 2017
3. 800 Block Washington Street Marker (wide view; looking south along North Washington Street)
safety offered by a national bank.

The desperate times of the 1930s led to new banking regulations. Congress removed the authority of National Banks to issue currency, and authorized a national currency to be printed by the U.S. Bureau of Printing and Engraving. (Submitted on March 30, 2019, by Cosmos Mariner of Cape Canaveral, Florida.) 

2. Joseph Stanley Pennell. Joseph Stanley Pennell was born in 1903 in Junction City, where he graduated from high school. The son of pioneer stock, his mother "did a lot of traveling in covered wagons" while his father came to Kansas from North Carolina when he was 16. There was an array of grandfathers, great-grandfathers, and great uncles among his antecedents who fought - some for the Union and some for the Confederacy - in the Civil War. In The History of Rome Hanks Pennell employs a fragmented, interior-monologue narrative style, giving his reader a view of the War as his characters must have experienced it. (Submitted on March 30, 2019, by Cosmos Mariner of Cape Canaveral, Florida.) 
 
Central National Bank (<i>view from near marker</i>) image. Click for full size.
Photographed By Cosmos Mariner, September 7, 2017
4. Central National Bank (view from near marker)
Pennell Building (<i>view from near marker</i>) image. Click for full size.
Photographed By Cosmos Mariner, September 7, 2017
5. Pennell Building (view from near marker)
 
 
Credits. This page was last revised on March 30, 2019. It was originally submitted on March 29, 2019, by Cosmos Mariner of Cape Canaveral, Florida. This page has been viewed 206 times since then and 10 times this year. Photos:   1. submitted on March 29, 2019, by Cosmos Mariner of Cape Canaveral, Florida.   2, 3, 4, 5. submitted on March 30, 2019, by Cosmos Mariner of Cape Canaveral, Florida.

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Mar. 29, 2024