Council Bluffs Changing Scene: Back in 1905 about two dozen painters and decorators lined up in front of the John B. Long paper and paint store at 31 S. Main St., to have this picture taken. The fading old print belongs to Mrs. C.H. Campbell, 1401 Fairmount Ave. The Longs operated the store over 50 years in Council Bluffs.
The Council Bluffs Public Library is unaware of any claim of copyright in the images in the collection. We encourage use of these materials under the fair use clause of the Copyright Act (17 U.S.C. § 101 et seq). The Council Bluffs Public Library has provided in the catalog records for these materials all known information regarding the photographer or other persons associated with the materials. This information is provided as a service to aid users in determining the appropriate use of an item, but that determination ultimately rests with the user.
Council Bluffs Changing Scene: Engine 999 plied the rails in Manawa Park to thrill thousands of youngsters in 1915 when the park was running full force. Here C. W. Bain was the engineer and fireman on the line, and the picture is from Bain's album. [In the photo, Bain's torso and head are outlined in ink.]
Council Bluffs Changing Scene: After a "good" storm in 1925, Indian Creek looked like this in the vicinity of Ninth Street. Debris and logs were piled high. This photo by Kenneth I. Wolfe, 1030 N. Broadway, looks northeast from Ninth Street and the creek.
Council Bluffs Changing Scene: This is the home of Ed Rogers, 533 Willow Ave., as it appeared in 1910. At that time, Rogers was the proprietor of a well known saloon on Broadway. At left is the Public Library; at right, another old residence. This photo came from Harry Neill, 721 S. 6th St.
Council Bluffs Changing Scene: This is the Grand Hotel, as it is pictured on a postcard dated 1915. The hotel burned in 1925, along with several other buildings in the 100 block on Pearl St. This picture is from a postal card collection of Arthur Rogers, 130 Park Ave.
Council Bluffs Changing Scene: The old Union Pacific Transfer Depot at Tenth Ave. and Twenty-first St. was a busy place at the time this picture was made. Not only mail was transferred in the open sheds at left, but cross-country passengers as well. Hotel facilities were part of the service offered. This picture is from an old postcard loaned by Arthur Rogers, 1309 Park Ave. It was dated 1913.
Council Bluffs Changing Scene: About 1924, this was the view looking north from atop the Standard Oil Co. building at Sixteenth Ave. and Third St. Foreground is the Turner Silo Co. In background is the Chicago Great Western Railroad yards, with roundhouse at right. This old picture came from Bud Bascom, 1911 S. 11th St.
Council Bluffs Changing Scene: Some 47 years ago, this is how Broadway looked from Sixth Street to the east. At the left is the Revere Hotel; at right is the L. C. Brackett bookstore. Note the sporty model roadster. This view appeared on a postcard dated 1910 that came from Don Jones of 2422 Avenue F.
Council Bluffs Changing Scene: This was the home of former Mayor W.R. Vaughan, 148 W. Washington Ave., as it was shown in the Illustrated Atlas of Pottawattamie county, 1885. The old atlas belongs to Charles M. Roe, 515 Huntington Ave.
Council Bluffs Changing Scene: This is the St. Francis Academy, as it appeared in the Illustrated Atlas of Pottawattamie County published in 1885. The school, at Fifth Ave. and Seventh St., was founded as a private institution by the Sisters of Charity. Later, it was taken over by St. Francis parish. Note the board walks. The old Atlas is owned by Charles Roe, 515 Huntington Ave.
Council Bluffs Changing Scene: There wasn't much to attract the eye when this photograph was taken by James F. McQueen, 100 Third St., in November of 1954. Looking west from Franklin Avenue, just north of Bennett Avenue, a person saw acres of rolling hills, an apple orchard, woodland and plowed fields. There were few houses, upper left, in the area. Then came the need for more building sites and people with imagination.
Council Bluffs Changing Scene: Taken about 1920, just a few years before the structure burned down, this picture shows the roller coaster which thrilled thousands of people every year in the old Manawa amusement park. It stood at the northwest corner of the park near the streetcar stop. The photo was furnished by Kenneth I. Wolfe of 1030 N. Broadway.
Council Bluffs Changing Scene: From a postal card dated 1910 comes this view of St. John's Lutheran Church at Seventh St. and Willow Ave. The photo was furnished by Don Jones of 2422 Avenue F.
Council Bluffs Changing Scene: Ready to deliver a new kitchen stove in his wagon is Sherman Sellers. This old picture was made at the intersection of Main St. and First Ave. in 1898 and came from L.R. Sellers of Route 1, a brother of Sherman. In background, at the right, is the old Grand Hotel.
Council Bluffs Changing Scene: The third annual National Horticultural Congress was in full swing here back in 1909, when this picture was taken. The building, which later became known as the City Auditorium, was especially erected for the show. Fruit from all producing states in the union were on display. This old postal card picture came from George Langstrom, 500 Damon St. He recalled the building was erected in about 30 days in 1907.
Council Bluffs Changing Scene: After a cloudburst in the 1920s this was the view near the intersection of Harrison and Hall Streets. Paving bricks were washed down the hill and the subgrade melted as shown in the photo taken from the south by Lou Patterson of 3140 Avenue F.
Council Bluffs Changing Scene: Pottawattamie County's second Courthouse--replacing one constructed of logs--was built in 1866 at a cost of $42,000. It had a short life of 18 years. In 1883 a grand jury declared the basement jail unfit for confinement and in 1884 the building was condemned by the Board of Health. The picture was provided by Mrs. Charles Officer of 204 Fifth Ave.
Council Bluffs Changing Scene: Just last November this was the west side of Fourth Street between First Ave. and Broadway. Building wreckers were moving in to clear the block for a city parking garage. Most of the structures dated well back into the horse and buggy days.
Council Bluffs Changing Scene: This is the south side of Broadway looking west from Main Street as it appeared in 1903. In the foreground is the First National Bank Building and behind it the four-story Council Bluffs Savings Bank. The illustration is from a booklet supplement to the Daily Nonpareil furnished by James Mulqueen of 110 Third St.