Kathryn / Sentinels of the Prairie

Kathryn, also, Sentinels of the Prairie. . Kathryn, a typical prairie town, sprang from the landscape with railroad construction. Although the area was settled by pioneers in the late 1870s, the arrival of a Northern Pacific Railroad line in 1900 and the establishment of a cooperative grain elevator put Kathryn on the map.

A month later, Runck arrived in town with a railcar stacked with lumber. Construction of the Runck Brothers Mercantile and the Northern Pacific Depot commenced immediately and the town of Kathryn began to take shape.

The town is named for a railroad executive's daughter and was among several local stops named for women on a route called "The Ladies' Line."

Local merchant, John Runck, wasted little time in platting a townsite near the railroad route on September 15, 1900.

Grain elevators or "prairie skyscrapers" once dominant features of the Midwest's skyline-are disappearing.

Elevators were the financial centers of prairie life at the dawn of the 20th century, and ownership often reflected local politics. Some elevators were controlled by big railroad and milling interests; others such as the Kathryn Farmers' Mutual Elevator (circa 1905), were constructed by local cooperatives to ensure fair grain prices. Kathryn's elevator, originally a wood structure, burned to the ground in 1916. It was rebuilt with ten-inch-thick concrete walls.

Captions: , Despite years of population decline Kathryn has retained Its pioneer serdement charm, and many of the older buildings remain with their boomtown false fronts, , 1. Jacobson's General Merchandise Store This building was moved from the Preston historic town site. It was later sold to Mrs. Myron Walker and used as a grocery store Later, it was known as Charlie's Bar , 2. Johan Johanson's Hotel The hotel was built around 1903. Mrs. Johanson died in 1904 and Johan sold the building to Austin Anderson who operated a restaurant and pool hall. , 3. Kathryn Pool Hall , 4. EG. Strom's Meat Market Built in 1905. Later, it became the town's laundromat. Razed in 2007 , 5. The Kathryn Recorder One of Kathryn's two newspapers, the Recorder was published from 1908 to 1942. , Kathryn was built during an era of rapid change From farm carts to automobiles, the hotel catered to vistors and residents alike. , The Runck Brothers Mercantile built in 1900. , The cylindrical-shaped concrete elevator was constructed in 1916, after fire destroyed Kathryn's original elevator. , Kathryn's cylindrical grain elevator, a patented design, was the first of its kind constructed in the United States. , In the early days, horse drawn wagons entered the receiving bays and dumped their grain into grates on the floor. Parades of buckets then carried the grain to the top of the structure to fill the storage bins. The basic operation remains much the same today.