Christopher Columbus Crowell

Christopher Columbus Crowell came to Nebraska in 1869.  He engaged in several businesses, then formed the Crowell Lumber and Grain Company.  His company, starting from one location in Blair, eventually consisted of 15 branches with a headquarters in Omaha.  In 1925, it was sold and became the Rivett Lumber and Coal Company.
     He was descended from Elder Brewster, the first churchman in the New World.    His father was Prince Crowell, a prominent Eastern shipbuilder and banker.  C.C. and his wife, Polly, whom he married in 1867, came to Blair, Nebraska in 1869 and prospered greatly.  In 1884, they built a lavish mansion.   In 1905, they retired to California and donated the mansion to the Methodist Church, specifying that it be used as a retirement home for Methodist ministers.  The Crowell Memorial Home, enlarged many times over the past 115 years, still exists.

— Data from the Crowell Memorial Home brochure, located by Adam Seaman

[BACK]