Hotel Lowrey
Building was built in 1922 by Wiley W. Lowrey
The Lowrey family came from Water Valley, Mississippi where Wiley W. Lowrey was in real estate.
The Hotel Lowrey was built on prime real estate property between the KSC and Frisco railroad lines.
The hotel was built with a cement roof to accommodate two additional floors, which were never constructed.
The hotel was air cooled and each room had a private bath.
The second story mezzanine overlooked the main lobby and the coffee shop and dining room.
This mezzanine was used for private dining, private parties, and a place where the local school choirs would serenade the diners.
The individual rooms on the second and third floors all had adjoining baths.
These bathrooms were tiled in ceramic tiles from a tile company the Lowreys purchased.
Most of the original tile remains.
There were electric lights in each room.
The second floor had public showers for the train travelers who wished to clean up while waiting for a train connection.
The hotel featured air cooled rooms, a dining room and coffee shop, public showers and restrooms, a barbershop, and retail shops.
Still intact are the laundry chute, dumb waiter and public telephone booth.
The furnishings were turn of the century period.
The interior style of the hotel was an art deco/Mediterranean motif.
The hotel ceased to operate as a hotel in the 1960s. Until that time it was managed by Mrs. George and Mrs. Romaine.
Since closing as a hotel the building has served as a dormitory for college students, offices for the OSU extension division, office space for doctors, lawyers and county offices.
In 2008, the county gave a 50-year lease to the LeFlore County Historical Society. Since that time, the Hotel has undergone many changes to bring it back to it's glory days. It took many volunteer hours and hard work to make the Hotel look as it did in 1932. In 2013, the artifacts were moved from the now closed Kerr Museum. The museum started to look and feel like a museum in 2014 with artifacts in many of the rooms. In the summer of 2016, the museum began staying open Tuesday through Saturday 11 to 3. In 2016, we added the Poteau Alumni Rooms, the Veteran's Room and the Presidential Room on the second floor along with 3 mini-split Heat and Air conditioners. In 2017, we added 3 mini-split Heat & Air Conditioners to the third floor. In 2018, we added rooms dedicated to Dr. John Montgomery and Senator Robert S. Kerr. We installed a chair lift to the second and third floors making it easier for visitors who would otherwise not be able to go upstairs.
