Historic home relocated to Bryan East Campus

LINCOLN, Neb. (KOLN) - The historic Williams Jennings Bryan home was successfully relocated to the northeast corner of Bryan East Campus at 52nd and A streets on Saturday.

“Relocating the William Jennings Bryan home wasn’t just about moving brick and mortar,” said Bob Ravenscroft, system vice president and chief marketing and development officer. “It was about being reverent of the original gift from over a century ago that allows Bryan Health to provide care to the people of our region. We’re deeply grateful to everyone who poured their expertise and passion into making this move a reality. It’s important to preserve this unique aspect of our origins and put the home back into use while elevating its prominence and balancing emerging health care needs at Bryan East Campus.”

Bryan Health said final preparations to move the William Jennings Bryan home earlier this week were extensive. On Monday and Tuesday, roughly 2,300 tons of gravel and rock were delivered to Bryan East Campus for the relocation. A truck delivered a load about every 15 minutes.

On Wednesday and Thursday, the gravel, rock and steel plates were formed and leveled on 52nd Street and Sumner Street. to create the temporary path. On Friday evening, the home moved about 150 feet in roughly 90 minutes in preparation for its route.

According to Bryan Health, the William Jennings Bryan home began its journey Saturday morning at 8 a.m. The home traveled east on Sumner Street before arriving at the intersection of 51st Street. At around 9:15 a.m., the house traveled northeast across a surface parking for just over two hours. At 11:30 a.m. the home emerged onto 52nd Street and briefly traveled north before moving west.

It entered the 5055 Building parking lot shortly before 2 p.m. and was backed into its new location, reaching its final destination at 4 p.m. The estimated 2.3-million-pound home traveled just over a third of a mile to its new location.

Overall, 35 dollies with eight tires each moved the historic William Jennings Bryan home.

Hundreds of spectators watched the historic William Jennings Bryan home relocation at Bryan East Campus. Multiple viewing areas staged on top of the Sumner Street parking garage provided an up-close perspective as the structure passed by at approximately one mile per hour.

Guests were also able to view contents of the William Jennings Bryan home in-person. Furnishings are from the 1990’s when the house was restored. The items are available to purchase via online auction until Sunday at 7 p.m.

History of the House

In 1922, William Jennings Bryan, a Nebraska businessman and politician, donated his home and surrounding farmland to the Lincoln Methodist Association for the site of a new hospital. Four years later, Bryan Memorial Hospital opened its doors, named in Bryan’s honor after his death. That same year, Bryan’s house opened as a student dormitory for the Bryan School of Nursing. It was home to hundreds of future medical professionals for nearly 40 years.

A century later, an expansion project is moving forward on those very same grounds. The William Jennings Bryan home is being relocated to accommodate increasing patient volumes, campus growth and facility updates to a landlocked Bryan East Campus.

Specifically, plans include an expansion to:

• Emergency department
• Neonatal intensive care unit (NICU)
• Bryan College of Health Sciences

The new location of the William Jennings Bryan home will be the centerpiece of the expansion of the Bryan College of Health Sciences to create a campus setting with two education buildings and green space. The move will increase visibility of the home, create a welcome center for students and provide a functional working space for BCHS administration and support services.

For more, visit www.BryanHealth.org.

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