One of Eastman’s oldest buildings comes down
An excavator knocks down the final walls of the bar that stood at 113 Main St., Eastman. This view is from behind the building. (Photo by Correne Martin)
The front of the building comes down.
Piece by piece, the bar was demolished.
The living quarters came down
Rubble remains.
By Correne Martin
The former KC’s Bar and Grill at 113 Main St., in Eastman, was demolished Tuesday, April 25, by West End Salvage, of Lancaster. After Corey and Kally Hammond closed their business, the building, said to be one of the oldest in Eastman, sat vacant for three years and was in declining shape.
Leanne Colsch, who owns the Main Street Bar across the road, purchased the building through a foreclosure sale nearly a month ago. She intends to rebuild a bar and reception hall on the site, which she and her son, Larry Jr., will own. She said the new facility is going to be the same width as the previous structure but extend to the back of the lot about 72 feet.
Colsch said all the work is being locally-contracted. Tug Sprosty Construction, of Steuben, will be the builder. Swats Concrete, of Eastman; Lomas Electric and D.A. Digger Excavating, both of Wauzeka, are also working on the project.
Colsch hopes the new bar will be completed yet this summer. She has not named it yet and the design plans are passing through state code processes before construction can start.
Because State Highway 27 through Eastman is slated for reconstruction in 2018, Colsch said she’s moving the front of the structure three feet back from the highway. She said doing so wasn’t mandatory, but it made sense for the business.
Leanne’s late husband, Larry Sr., actually grew up in the building that was torn down last week. His family resided in the living quarters above the Hilltop Bar, which his parents, Jack and Ruth, ran for 18 years.
“He lived there from the time he was 3 until we were married,” she said, noting that buying the bar was the last promise she made her husband before he passed away in 2015.
According to Crystal (Haupt) Buffington, of Eastman, her mom, Margaret Haupt, bartended for the Colschs when they owned it 40 to 50 years ago, and for Roger and Rita Martin, when they owned it for a short time. Then, Margaret and her husband, Harold, bought the bar. They owned it, and the family lived upstairs too, for more than 10 years, until Margaret’s health took a turn and they sold it “lock, stock and barrel” to the Caya family.
“The outside of the bar stayed the same as it had looked when I last knew Jack and Ruth having it, other than paint, ceiling updates, etc.,” Buffington said.
