Farrell Block
a.k.a. Stone Block
533--537 2nd St., and 112 Denver Ave., Hastings, NEThe Farrell Block, an 1880 commercial and office building, is historically significant to Hastings, Nebraska, through its associations with Thomas E. Farrell, an early settler in the community and an eminent citizen and local leader during Hastings' formative years. The building occupies a prominent corner in the community's business district and attains visual distinction as being the only 19th-century stone edifice in that area. Also, the Farrell Block is a viable reminder of the 1880s, a period of impressive population growth and financial prosperity in Hastings.
The 1870s had mostly been a period of raw growth for Hastings and Adams County, but by the beginning of the following decade, the atmosphere became calmer, although rapid expansion continued. The 1880s in Hastings was essentially a period of orderly development, with institutions being established and foundations laid (Creigh, Adams County: The Story, p. 19).
Thomas E. Farrell (1852-1902) arrived in Hastings in 1872 from Illinois and is counted as one of the town's pioneer residents (Hastings Daily Tribune, Obituary of Farrell, December 8, 1902, p. 1). He performed survey work for St. Joseph and Denver Railroad Company, was one of four men who laid out Hastings and was largely responsible for the completion of the rail between Hastings and Denver (Burton and Lewis, Past and Present of Adams County, p. 337).
Farrell became deeply involved in the development of Hastings and served the community in several public capacities: he was elected to the city council in 1874, 1875, and 1887; and was appointed County Surveyor in 1881, City Engineer in 1874 and 1875, Park Commissioner in 1886, and Street Commissioner in 1874. In addition, Farrell served on the Board of Directors of the Hastings Land, Loan, and Building Association, and in 1879 he was part of a committee that secured Hastings as the site of a four-year Presbyterian college. Farrell was also instrumental in having Hastings selected as the location for the Immaculate Conception Academy, a Roman Catholic school, donating ten acres for its campus. Prior to the construction of a Catholic church in Hastings, services were held in his residence.
Listed in National Register of Historic Places in 1979.
The National Register of Historic Places is the official list of the Nation’s historic places worthy of preservation. Authorized by the National Historic Preservation Act of 1966, the National Park Service’s National Register of Historic Places is part of a national program to coordinate and support public and private efforts to identify, evaluate, and protect America’s historic and archeological resources.