Hulpieu-Miller Then and Now

208-210 W Chestnut St/Wyatt Earp Blvd

This building appears to have split personalities. If you didn’t know better, you would swear there’s no way the Wyatt Earp and Gunsmoke sides are connected. The Gunsmoke entrance is beautiful, while the appearance of the Wyatt Earp side has rendered the building a noncontributing structure in the Dodge City Downtown Historic District. How did that happen?

The 1884 Sanborn Fire Insurance Map shows frame dwellings in this block. The homes on Walnut were spared from the infamous fires but those along Chestnut were destroyed. The 1887 Sanborn shows Dodge City Electric Light and Steam Heating Co. at what was then 210 Walnut Street. There was an empty lot at the former 302 Chestnut Street.

After the electric company moved, their old building was occupied by a plumbing business. The 1905 Sanborn shows the old electric building was to be rebuilt.

I wrote a bit about the drama between undertaker Charles Hulpieu and his brother-in-law, E. S. Adam, in a previous post. Hulpieu was involved in the Home Furnishing Company from its inception in 1904. This business moved from a building Carrie Bainbridge owned across the street at 205 West Chestnut in early 1909. Bainbridge and her son, Robert Rath, were partners in Home Furnishing Co. for a while but Charles Hulpieu and John F Miller operated the business.

The 1911 Sanborn shows the new furniture and undertaking building with renumbered blocks at 209-211 Walnut Street and 208-210 West Chestnut Street. An elevator was situated at the northeast corner of the building. The first floor had iron posts with wood posts upstairs. Presumably, the exterior appearance was the same on both the north and south sides.

Rath and Bainbridge sold their half interest in the business to Hulpieu and Miller in April of 1914. This was when Joe Hulpieu became a partner.

John Miller died in October of 1923 and his son, Louis, took his place as a junior partner. By the 1930s, the business had begun testing out the Hulpieu-Miller name alongside Home Furnishing Co.

Charles Hulpieu died on November 21, 1946 and his son C. Frederic “Buss” Hulpieu took his place in the business. Hulpieu-Miller, Inc. was formed on November 23, 1946 with registered agent Donald D Martin. Joe Hulpieu had directed his attention to the funeral home. In those days, the main entrance was on Walnut Street. By 1953, Louis Miller was President and Buss served as Vice-President and Secretary.

These photos were taken on the Chestnut side during a parade in 1954. It is unclear whether this brick exterior was original. I would lean toward it being rebricked at some point since it’s pretty plain. The windows were definitely not original.

I have no explanation for the exterior on the Gunsmoke side, but this style was common in the 1920s and ’30s.

Louis F Miller died in July of 1959 and his widow, Janet (Hellwarth) Miller, took his place as President of Hulpieu-Miller. Buss was still the Vice-President with Dwight Johnson Secretary/Treasurer and the store was managed by Don Martin.

By 1962, Buss Hulpieu had exited the business and was working for West America Securities. Hulpieu-Miller was sold to Don Martin and Dennis Norris by 1967.

Hulpieu-Miller Interiors, Inc. was formed on February 23, 1976. Unfortunately, the building fell prey to the metal slipcover epidemic. During this time, the main entrance was on the Wyatt Earp side.

The store moved to Military Plaza in 1980 and the building was purchased by Fidelity State Bank. Ann Frigon and Architectural Accents occupied space at 208 W Wyatt Earp and the rest was bank territory. That spot is currently home to the Community Foundation of Southwest Kansas.

This is how the former furniture store looks today:

Obviously, Fidelity takes care of the building so I’m not going to complain. It would be great if we could see some original elements but if I had to choose, I’d rather see it well-maintained.

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