844 Main St History - Laserfiche WebLink

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At the back exterior of the house, outdoor stairs led up to an addition that had been put onto the back of the building where coffins were on display for customers to view. A local resident remembers playing with Welcome Henning in this area in the 1930s, paying no attention to the coffins. The chapel section of the building, on the right, was the location of funeral services. Current residents still recall rows of seats facing the east wall, where the coffin and flowers would be located. A local resident recalled that in the 1930s, a door or doors between the chapel and the Henning living room to the north would be opened during the services and Mrs. Henning would play the piano, providing music for the services. The Henning garage still sits on the alley behind the main building. The date of construction is not known, but the garage appears in a photo, above, dated 1930. Although the Sanborn maps of 1893, 1900, and 1908 each show a structure at the corner of Walnut and the alley, nothing was found that would indicate whether or not any of that structure remains in the current garage. The report of the 1982 architectural survey that was conducted on the Henning Mortuary building stated: This structure is primarily significant for its architectural significance to the town. It incorporates a mixture of Italianate elements with its square 8