TEKAMAH, Neb. (KMTV) — In Tekamah, you're invited to cross the threshold of the historic Bryant House - where they talk about 'bringing the past alive in the present.'
- The house is decorated now for the holidays. Some of those items are not original to the home; however - nearly everything else is.
- The thousands of artifacts include a square piano, linens, dishes, a telephone, glass negatives and ledgers from the family's general store.
- An open house is scheduled for December 15, 2024; however, tours are available Fridays and Saturdays through that date. To make arrangements, call (402) 870-1127.
Continue reading for the expanded story, as seen on-air.
The music is as authentic as everything else.
"Rose's grandfather, Benjamin Folsom, was the Founder of Tekamah," Bonnie Chatt explained.
"The house was built in 1890 by Rose and E.W. Bryant. The furnishings that you see here - the linens, the clothes - is all original to the three generations of Bryant family that lived here," Chatt continued.
There are tens of thousands of such effects, but the centerpiece may be...
"The piano. 1880 square grand piano. We still play it at Christmas," Chatt, a volunteer at the house since 2016, beamed.
The details create an experience of what life was like 135 years ago.
"When you think of when the house was built, and we've got a handwritten document of how they went down to the river. They felled the trees. They dovetailed them. They saved the bark for the roof," she elaborated.
Adding - at the time, Nebraska homes didn't have electricity. However, homes in New York did, and that's where the architect was from. The Bryant House was wired and ready for when things changed.
The blueprints and family's journals tell the story.
As do pictures like those shown on glass negatives.
So, be enamored by the holiday glow, but learn about the Bryants and their general store. See the hand-carved furniture and embossed door hinges. It's the history which Chatt hopes visitors feel.
"When you think about what our grandparents did, their struggles, how they had to fight to get everything - we kind of take that for granted now."
The Bryant House is open each Friday and Saturday through the second weekend in December, with an open house on December 15, 2024.
For special visits, call (402) 870-1127.