Laserfiche WebLink
In addition to the parking lot, other d0~vntown changes since <br />the 1970s include a variety of alterations or remodelings to the <br />exterior of historic commercial-buildings. The alterations are <br />most extensive on Main Street between Jackson and King <br />streets. It is not known how much original historic fabric <br />remains behind the wood screens and other new facades <br />applied over the original brick. <br /> <br />Early Trade <br /> <br />Early merchants were a small and generally persistent group, <br />with several families such as Houlton, Wheaton, Babcock, Dare <br />and Nickerson providing dry goods and services over several <br />decades. The Bank of Elk River established in 1885 was the <br />first in Sherburne County. The incorporators were W.L. <br />Babcock, Henry Castle, and W. H. Houlton. The Houltons were <br />among families who combined mercantile interests with <br />lumber, banking, farming and politics. This business core <br />served as promoters of the town, creating business associations <br />and campaigning for improvements that sustained the <br />community, such as telephone service, electric power, and <br />roads. This was especially important in the early twentieth <br />century, as the decline of industries such as milling demanded <br />that the town develop as a healthy trade center for the <br />surrounding agricultural hinterland. The publication of thd Elk <br />River Souvenir (1901) and special booster features in local and <br />regional newspapers were part of business leaders' efforts to <br />enlarge the market. <br /> <br />Jackson Street, 2002. The Houlton <br />Block is at far left. <br /> <br />Elk River Historic Contexts and Phase II Downtown Commercial Area Study <br /> 30 <br /> <br /> <br />