est. 1890
Formerly known as,
The Old Show Room.
in Christopher, Illinois
The building that is now home to our venue is one of the oldest standing buildings in Christopher. The buildings were financed and built in 1890 by Nelson Browning. The Show Room as we know it today was originally built for a total of $22,000. Our brick building has formally housed three different business through the years. One of those businesses being that of "Browning & Jones Company", which was a very large fashion retailer at the time. They sold mens and women's fashions and had items tailored in the upstairs portion of the building. The shop to try on all of these luxury clothes was once called "The Old Show Room"; hence why our name today tributes it as a "fashionably historic wedding venue".
The smaller of the two buildings which is at 117 W. Market was originally the First National Bank of Christopher from 1909 until the time of the depression of 1929. The upstairs of 117 was used as doctors offices, lawyers office, and even a dance studio. The upstairs also served as the home of the city switchboard for years.
After WWII, an economic boom swept through the U.S. and men and women were starting families and building homes. Many new appliances were available and the former bank served these needs as an appliance store. It was at his time that a small doorway was made to connect the two buildings, which we now know as the Show Room and the Show Room Bar. The last use for 117 was as an ice cream parlor. Ye Old Ice Cream Shop and Parlor was open for a short time in the 1980s. Both buildings were closed and boarded up in 1992. From 1992-2018 the building sat, waiting to be rescued.
We take pride in sticking to the original layout of this building, only refinishing what is absolutely necessary. The bones of this place has so much history, we honored it by keeping most of it as original as possible. We believe that the character that has built up over the last century is enough beauty to speak for itself! We know you will love it too.
