This building located at 202 Main Street in Lander, WY has weathered over a century of storied & varied history. The building before you was commissioned by, & constructed for, the local International Order of Odd Fellows in 1886. Initially the Odd Fellows Lodge occupied the upper level of the building, while James I. Patten maintained Lander's first drug store on the lower level. In 1887 the Fremont Clipper described Patten's store as carrying "an immense stock of drugs, toilet articles & druggist sundries". While the upper level reportedly was handsomely furnished & boasted electricity. James I. Patten was first, a teacher at Fort Washakie School, the served as the "Indian Agent" for the Shoshone tribe. Patten closed his Lander store in 1896. Eventually this location would house a Golden Rule store, a chain of stores that would be purchased by James Cash Penney, which by 1913 would be known as the J.C. Penney Company. Upon establishing a liquor license in the 1940's, the Stockgrowers Bar would take residence here, Over time the building would house an upstairs bowling alley & several more restaurants & drinking establishments.
Dedicated on March 18, 2017(6022) by South Pass 67'ers Historical Society #1867 & Al Packer Chapter #100 of The Ancient and Honorable Order of E Clampus Vitus
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