Richardson’s Trading Post in Winslow

Brothers Claude D. and Hubert Richardson owned several trading posts on the Navajo Reservation, and they needed a railroad shipping point for their goods. They came to Winslow in 1916 and built a wholesale store and supply house on the north side of Second Street. In 1917, they leased land from the Santa Fe and constructed the building now known as the Hubbell Trading Post, across the street from their original location and just north of the Santa Fe rail line. They built a 5,000-square-foot rectangular structure atop a full basement with a concrete floor. The eighteen-inch Moenkopi sandstone foundation was built five feet into the ground, and the walls were built of red brick with lime mortar.   

Winslow’s Hubbell Trading Post & Warehouse

In 1924, Lorenzo Hubbell Jr. purchased the Richardson’s building and merchandise. He established the Hubbell Trading Post and Warehouse in Winslow as the Hubbell company’s Santa Fe distribution point in Arizona. (They also had a trading post and warehouse in Gallup, New Mexico.) In 1926, Second Street became part of the newly-commissioned US Route 66, and the Hubbell Trading Post and Warehouse were now located on the “Main Street of America.”

The north half of the building housed the display area, which featured a pressed-metal ceiling, light blue walls with gray trim, and a hardwood floor. A wall separated the display area from the warehouse in the south half of the building, which featured exposed brick walls and ceiling beams; a walk-in cooler to store perishables; a Fairbanks scale to weigh goods; and a 6-by-7-foot Kimball lift that moved large bags of wool to the basement to be cleaned, sorted, and repackaged, and then brought them back up to the main floor.

Navajo vendors unloaded freight wagons of wool, blankets, rugs, and jewelry on the west loading dock. Raw materials were processed in the warehouse and, along with finished goods, were loaded from the east loading dock onto rail cars that moved on a short spur line to the main line. Goods were then shipped to manufacturers and merchants on the East Coast or to the Hubbell’s curio shops in California.

The Hubbell Building in Transition

When Lorenzo Jr. died in 1942, brother Roman and his wife, Dorothy, moved to Winslow and managed the family businesses. In 1944, they made updates to the building’s display area that included a walk-in vault for storing valuable jewelry and pawn. The Hubbell empire stalled after World War II and Roman and Dorothy declared bankruptcy in 1952, selling all of the family holdings except for the trading post and homestead in Ganado, Arizona.

Phoenix real estate developer Kyle Bales purchased the building and most of the inventory from the Hubbells. From 1952 to 1972, Bales and daughter Patricia Bales Kinsolving operated it as the Hubbell Trading Post, which was part of the vibrant tourist trade along US Route 66. Patricia Bales Smith (now remarried) deeded the building to the Arizona Historical Society in 1986.

In October 1979, Interstate 40 bypassed Winslow’s section of Route 66 and decimated the city’s vibrant downtown businesses. But the route received a historic highway designation in 1987, and the City of Winslow planned to make the Hubbell building the west anchor of downtown revitalization. The city acquired the grounds surrounding the building from the Burlington Northern Santa Fe Railroad in 1997 and the building itself from the Arizona Historical Society in 1998.

The Winslow Visitor’s Center & Chamber of Commerce

In 2002, the City of Winslow submitted a successful nomination to have the Hubbell Trading Post and Warehouse listed in the National Register of Historic Places. The nomination described the building’s historical significance as the only intact Hubbell trading post, warehouse, and shipping center on the Santa Fe line (the Gallup location was demolished); having a high degree of structural integrity, including the interior and original equipment; and having cultural significance in “its role as a commerce link between cultures, in that it provided space for contact between Navajos and Anglos for the exchange and transportation of essential goods.”

The City of Winslow began rehabilitating the Hubbell building in 2005, which included upgrades to the roof, infrastructure, and restrooms, as well as the restoration of the porch at the original Second Street entrance. The new main entrance on the building’s west side includes a flagstone patio, a wood pergola, and a wheelchair lift donated by the Arizona Office of Tourism. The grand opening of the new Winslow Visitor’s Center was held in 2009.

The interior contains many historic elements including the wood floors, windows, and tin ceiling. Visitors can view original artifacts such as the safe, Fairbanks scale, Kimball lift, and sign rescued from the basement. Employees and workers made a tradition of signing their names in coal, and the original graffiti is still visible on the wall behind the main desk. The Chamber staff obtained the BNSF rail car and track on the east side of the building for historical displays.

As in many small towns, the Chamber of Commerce and Visitor’s Center are combined. Chamber CEO Bob Hall and Chamber Assistant Angela Gonzales Moser promote the many tourist attractions in the area and host multiple local special events. This “Community Space” is also available to the public for events and meetings throughout the year, making it an invaluable resource for Winslow residents.

Entry submitted by OTM Director Ann-Mary Lutzick. Visit the Old Trails Museum to discover more of Winslow’s rich history: www.oldtrailsmuseum.org