The Arrow Hotel

Built in 1928

Photographed by Cosmos Mariner, August 6, 2021

1. The Arrow Hotel Marker

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From the National Register Nomination prepared by Nicholas G. Powers, 6/1985:
The Arrow Hotel is an L-shaped, three-story building of cast-in-place concrete post and beam construction with pan-cast concrete floors, brick exterior walls, cut stone cornice, and wood joist flat roof. The first and last window group of the North and East facades are adorned with a mosaic design, of cut stone, black tiles and bordered with cut stone on the second and third stories only. The ground floor fenestration consists of a storefront configuration of transom lights above large plate glass windows with a brick bulkhead below. The storefront is divided into individual bays by brick piers.
The Arrow Hotel was constructed beginning about July 1, 1928,

Photographed by Cosmos Mariner, August 6, 2021

2. The Arrow Hotel Marker

The marker is mounted at eye-level on the northeast corner of the building.

and was completed and ready to open for business December 27, 1928, at a cost of $81,500. Originally the Arrow Hotel housed 53 hotel rooms, two stores, a barber shop, hotel lobby, dining room, kitchen, and a beauty parlor. Each business opened onto either Ninth Street or Broadway Avenue now known as South "E" Street and Nebraska State Highway #2.
The architect of the original hotel was John Latenser & Sons of Omaha, Nebraska, who also designed the nearby Custer County Courthouse. General contractor was C. E. Atwater & Company of Grand Island, Nebraska, who also built the Walnut Jr. High School there. A local contractor, F. A. Bates, was the plumbing and heating contractor. F. C. Sutton of Lincoln contracted the wiring of the Arrow Hotel and also the Nebraska Capitol in Lincoln.
Upon completion the hotel immediately became the social and community center for Broken Bow and the Southwestern Sandhills region, a sparsely populated farming and ranching community, thus playing a significant role in its history. From the hotel's beginning it has been an example of a major hostelry in a rural setting. With this and its stylistic association

Photographed by Cosmos Mariner, August 6, 2021

3. The Arrow Hotel (east elevation)

with the Prairie style of architecture, it has been a prominent architectural feature of the region. The Arrow is a locally prominent example of the Prairie style of architecture which found significant favor in Nebraska during this period.
The hotel was conceived in the members' minds of the local "Public Service Club" in late 1927. In early 1928 the Public Service Club instituted a sales campaign to raise financing for the construction and furnishing of the hotel. During this campaign a "Name the Hotel" contest was conducted in the Broken Bow High School with Helen Roberts entering the winning name of "Arrow Hotel." The Broken Bow High School also held a contest for the best essay on the need of a new hotel in Broken Bow, which was won by Opal Griffith. Both winners were given a prize of a $5 gold piece.
The original ownership was held by over 200 stockholders consisting of individuals and businesses. Some well-known stockholders were the American Legion, Nebraska Power Company, and J. C. Penney and Company. The commerce of Broken Bow and the surrounding community was directly affected by the advent of the Arrow Hotel. The hotel lobby

Photographed by Cosmos Mariner, August 6, 2021

4. The Arrow Hotel (north elevation)

has been referred to as the reception room of the community to its traveling guests. These guests received a greeting with pleasant decorations and furnishings, appetizing meals, as well as courteous and efficient service. The local citizens were quick to center their community and social life around the Arrow Hotel with civic and social functions being held in its banquet room and coffee shop.
The site the Arrow Hotel occupies has been a hotel site since September of 1883 when James P. Gandy, brother of the founder of Broken Bow, Jesse Gandy, erected the two-story brick frame Commercial Hotel. The Commercial Hotel operated there for forty-four years until its demolition in 1927.

Excerpt:  The Arrow Hotel is a historic hotel building in Broken Bow, Nebraska. It was built on the site of the demolished 1883 Commercial Hotel by C.E. Atwater in 1928 and designed in the Prairie School style by John Latenser & Sons. Inside, there are four murals by Tom Talbot, who maintained a studio in the hotel in the 1960s. The building has been listed on the National Register of Historic Places

Photographed by Cosmos Mariner, August 6, 2021

5. The Arrow Hotel (northeast elevation)

since September 12, 1985.