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Short explained that she was from Lincoln, but prior to joining
Neal was driving to Springfield daily for her career. When she and
Neal had an opportunity to talk, and he invited her to become a part
of his office she was delighted to be back working in Lincoln.
Neal (above standing center) was present for the open house, though
he said he was on day 10 of his retirement. Guests arrived early to
enjoy an excellent buffet of finger foods, congratulate Short on her
new office and to wish Neal the best in his retirement.
Short said the plan all along had been for her to work beside Neal
getting acquainted with his customers and his business, then become
the successor when he retired. She said that she and Neal had agreed
that this transition time was also a good time to move the office
and start fresh.
Short talked about the selection of the new location. She said when
looking at the Broadway location, one aspect of the building left
her with mixed feelings, the 121 Tavern sign at the front corner of
the building in the alleyway. However, when she learned that there
was a familial connection to Edward Jones and the sign, it became
more endearing to her.
The 121 Tavern was located in the building, according to visitors at
the office on Monday, in the 1950’s. One of the beers the tavern
offered was a product from Griesedieck Brothers, a brewing company
and distributor from St. Louis. What Short learned was that the same
Edward Jones who founded the company she works with married Ursala
Griesedieck, the daughter of one of these brothers. In addition,
even though he had already formed his investment company, he
eventually became the president of Griesedieck Brothers.
The 121 Tavern sign, restored a few years ago when the Wall Dogs
came to Lincoln to work on a variety of signs, bears the logo of the
Griesedieck Brothers.
Also, Short noted another interesting point. The building she is in
is located next door to the building Neal worked out of years ago.
Neal was at 513 Broadway from 1981 to 2000.
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This building is also the subject of a recent renovation project in
Lincoln. The property owned by MMIL, of which local businessman
David Lanterman is a part, had stood empty for quite some time.
Lanterman’s group purchased the property and, after finding a
tenant, re-designed the interior of the building to accommodate
offices. Included in that was the creating of a better floorplan and
the restoration of the vintage aspects of the building.
Lanterman had appeared before the Lincoln Historic Preservation
Commission last month to discuss the historical correctness of his
façade plan for the building. During that time, he shared that
inside, he had been very pleased to discover that the original tin
ceilings were still intact and would be salvageable. On Monday, the
dark hardwood floors also look to be original.
 The exterior of the building had been redesigned at some point in
the past. Lanterman brought the exterior of the building back to its
correct era, installing long windows with wood pillars and a large
glass and wood door, which he told the LHPC was also an antique.
Talking with Lanterman last week, he said there was still some work
to do on the exterior of the building, mostly new paint. He
explained that with a lease agreement in place, the priority had
been to get the new front of the building installed, and the
interior work finished first.
Regarding the office on South Kickapoo Street, Short said there is
still an Edward Jones representative in the building. Jim Sparrow
has his offices there and will remain there as far as she knows.
[Nila Smith] |
