Historical Downtown McCook
A landmark of its own, downtown McCook is lined with striking architectural
designs. Each building is rich in its own history, providing an enjoyable
atmosphere reminiscent of the times in which McCook experienced its booming
growth.
Stroll along the historical brick streets and enjoy personal hometown service
from the specialty shops that fill the downtown area. Experience traditional
entertainment with annual events such as the Buffalo Commons Storytelling
Festival and the Heritage Days Celebration.
Heritage Hills Golf Course
Featuring 250 beautiful acres on the west edge of McCook that plays 18 holes
to one of the hardest course and slope ratings in the state with a Par 72.
Visitors agree that it is one of the most challenging tests of golf ever
experienced. Heritage Hills is ranked "One of Golf Digest's Top 75 Public Golf
Courses In America", and has been named as one of the "Top 100 Values". The
course resembles the Scottish highlands with its rolling-prairie links. As you
drive from Heritage Hills' elevated tees to its elevated greens, you'll
encounter plenty of challenging hazards with bunkers, sand traps, hills, bluffs,
lakes and ponds.
6000 Club House Drive 308-345-5032
Massacre Canyon Battle Monument
The Massacre Canyon Battle on August 5th, 1873, was the last battle between
the Pawnee Nation and the Sioux Nation. A 35 feet tall - 91 ton pink granite
monument boldly stands 3 miles east of Trenton, Nebraska. The face of a Sioux
Chief is carved at the top of the monument representing the Sioux as victors of
the Battle. The face of a Pawnee chief is carved just below and on the other
side of the stone. It depicts one of the worst, and the last, of the many
battles between the Sioux and Pawnee Indians. The monument is a memorial of the
Frontier Days and the end of the Indian Wars.
Travelers are invited to discover the history of the Massacre Canyon Battle and
other Southwest Nebraska attractions at the Visitor's Center located near the
monument. The center features stories of early pioneers, information on the
tribal customs of the Sioux and the Pawnee People and offers hand crafted Native
American gifts and souvenirs.
Visitors are free to enjoy the scenic view of the picnic area while visualizing
the climactic battle between two of the last Great Plains tribes. One look into
the stone faces carved into the monument makes you stop to wonder what it would
have been like to live in the time of the Indian Wars.
Massacre Canyon Battle ....
During
the summer of 1873, chiefs Sky Chief, Sun Chief, and Fighting Bear were
peacefully coming up the Republican River on a massive buffalo hunt. More than
300 warriors and 400 women and children were moving into Sioux territory. On
August 4, 1873, they reached the north bank of the Republican River and made
camp. The Pawnee were warned to be on guard against Sioux attacks. The following
morning, they started north up the divide between the Republican and Frenchman
rivers.
Sky Chief, who headed the hunt for his father and was too old to travel, was one
of the first Pawnee to die. He had just killed a buffalo and was skinning it
when the advance guard of the Sioux shot him. The Pawnee were about 100 yards
from the head of the canyon when the Brule and Oglala Sioux War Party led by
chiefs Spotted Tail, Little Wound, and Two Strikes were reported coming. The
women and children were ordered to take refuge in the canyon with the pack
ponies. As the Sioux came over the hill, it was apparent that they outnumbered
the fighting men of the Pawnee four to one.
J.W. Williamson, an Indian Scout who had helped to guide the Pawnee on the hunt,
raised a white flag and rode toward the Sioux. His horse was shot out from under
him.
After the order was given to retreat, the women, children and men dropped their
meat and left their pack horses. They mounted their horses and fled down the
canyon just east of present Trenton. It was in the retreat down the canyon that
the greatest loss of life occurred among the squaws and children as the Sioux
rode down each side, firing down on the Pawnee.
After reaching the Republican river, the Pawnee were crossing to the opposite
bank when the sound of a bugle stopped them. As a company of U.S. Calvary
emerged from the timber, the Sioux turned and fled.
The Pawnee refused to pick up their meat as they believe that it was already
poisoned. The Pawnee returned to their reservation north along the Loup and
never returned to the traditional Pawnee hunting area along the Republican
again.
This battle ended hostilities and opened the land to cattlemen. The first
ranches in Nebraska were formed later that year on the open range between
Culbertson and Stratton in southwest Nebraska.
3 miles East of Trenton on Highway 34
308-334-5236
Doyle Site
Doyle is one of the finest examples of Woodland culture in the
Republican River valley of southwest Nebraska and northwest Kansas. Work at the
site uncovered a superb example of a Woodland house floor. Artifacts,
particularly pottery vessels, attribute the occupation to the Keith Phase (A.D.
500-1000), the only known Woodland culture in southwest Nebraska. Radiocarbon
dates suggest two separate occupations, the first about A.D. 50 and another
about A.D. 550-600. These dates offer preliminary evidence of Woodland culture
emerging in the Republican basin five centuries earlier than previously thought.
The Doyle Site is listed on the National Historic Register.
McCook Army Air Base
McCook Army Air Base, activated April 1, 1943, was one of 11 Army Air Force
training bases in Nebraska during World War II. Some 15,000 servicemen and 500
civilians were stationed here. The 2,100 acre base included three 150 by
7,500-foot concrete runways, five hangars, and barracks for 5,000 men. The base
closed December 31, 1945.
Seven miles north of McCook on Highway 83
McCook Carnegie Library
The McCook Library, listed on the National Historic Register, is an
example of the Spanish Colonial Revival style, designed by architect William A.
Marean of Denver, Colorado. Marean designed numerous turn-of-the-century
buildings of prominence in Denver and the surrounding area, but the library
building in McCook is the only structure in Nebraska known to have been designed
by him. Property for a building site was donated by a local firm, and Andrew
Carnegie provided construction funds in December of 1905. The library was
dedicated on February 17, 1908.
423 Norris Avenue
McCook Community College
McCook Community College, Nebraska's oldest two-year college, occupies an
attractive eight-building campus in the northeast residential area in McCook.
Opened in September of 1926, the college offers more than 20 academic and
pre-professional transfer programs plus numerous vocational programs for the
residents of Southwest Nebraska.
308-345-6303
Frank Lloyd Wright's Sutton House
One of America's most influential and imaginative architects,
Frank Lloyd Wright, spent almost 70 years creating a striking variety of
architectural forms. 602 Norris Avenue is one of the few homes west of the
Mississippi River designed by this internationally famous man. The Sutton House
is an example of Wright's prairie style, in which he blended the structure with
it's natural surroundings. The house was designed in 1905-7 and was completed in
1908.
The two-story frame and stucco Prairie style house was built for Mr. and Mrs.
Harvey P. Sutton. Sutton owned a jewelry store in McCook, was active in
community affairs, and served as director of the C.B.&Q. Railroad Concert Band,
known throughout the state. The Sutton House is listed on the National
Historic Register.
Norris Avenue and West F Street. Private Residence
Senator George W. Norris Home
Built in 1886, the Senator George W. Norris Home is both a state and national
historic site focused on the history and vision of Senator George Norris
(1861-1944). The Home is listed on the National Historic Register.
Norris was one of the great independent politicians of American public life in
the early 1900s. The establishment of Nebraska's unicameral legislature (the
only one-house legislature in the U.S.), and landmark legislation such as the
Rural Electrification Act and the Tennessee Valley Authority, were chiefly the
result of his efforts. He represented Nebraska for forty years in the U.S.
Congress, as a representative (1903-13) and as a senator (1913-43).
The house was built in 1886 and purchased by District Judge George W. Norris and
his wife, Pluma, on Nov. 29, 1899. Pluma died in 1901 following the birth of
their third daughter and Norris married Ella Leonard in 1903. Shortly after the
turn of the century, Norris remodeled the house and added indoor plumbing. By
1910, electric lights and a furnace were in use.
Senator Norris completed major remodeling in 1931, reportedly as his own private
relief project during the Depression. The double garage was also built in 1931.
The steep tiled roof, stucco exterior and half-timber trim greatly changed the
outside appearance. The brick fireplace and sunroom were added and the roof
raised a half-story. A wider staircase was added in the new entryway and the
previous narrow stairway became the pantry between the kitchen and study. There
were now three large bedrooms upstairs, each with a full-sized bathroom.
The home has been magnificently preserved along with the furnishings and
appliances that were used when the home was occupied by the Senator and his
wife. As you walk into the home, one of the first things you will notice is the
beautiful interior woodwork.
A proud portrait of the Senator is mounted above the fireplace in a living room
full of antique furniture and books. The study features a wooden desk with the
Senator's spectacles and writing instruments laying out as if he was just
sitting there. A fabulous 1937 black Buick with a straight-8 engine and suicide
doors is still parked in the garage.
Prisoner-of-War Camp - German P.O.W. camp built in 1943.
Located one mile north of Indianola
Pawnee Woman's Grave -
Located in the Indianola City Park on Highway 6 & 34
Mallalieu University - Rev. Allen Bartley founded the town of Bartley in
June of 1886, as the site of this university. By the summer of 1886, 27
buildings had been constructed in the new town for Mallalieu University, named
for the founding bishop. Due to economic conditions, the university was forced
to close but the town continued on.
Located in the Bartley Town Park on Highway 6 & 34
First Homestead Red Willow County Marker
The Round Sale Barn -
Located in Bartley
Copper Kettle Monument - a Nebraska State Historical Marker,
located in Norris Park
Nelson Buck Survey Party Massacre Marker
Bohemian Families' Marker
Blue Star Memorial Marker - a memorial for service personnel.
