🧱 Bodega aka Chase Block

Address: 611 North River Street, Hot Springs, SD

Built: 1892

First Occupant: I.H. Chase Clothing Store

Later Uses: Saloon, gambling hall, bordello, law office, dry goods store, bakery, grocery, restaurant, taxi service, newspaper office

Current Status (2025): Privately owned; gutted and awaiting restoration

Sandstone Quarry: Unknown

Architect: Unknown

Contractor: I.H. Chase

Architectural Style: Early commercial Lakota sandstone with denticulated cornice; flat-topped lintels with voussoirs over second-story windows

📜 Historical Overview

On December 4, 1891, it was announced that a fine two-story stone building would be erected just north of the Minnekahta Block by businessman I.H. Chase, who would occupy one of the lower rooms with his clothing store. Completed in 1892, the Chase Block quickly became a cornerstone of River Avenue commerce.

By the mid-1890s, the building was housing liquor establishments, and by the late 1890s, it had evolved into the Bodega Saloon under A.D. Field, later joined by Felix H. “Billy” Cavanaugh. For over 23 years, the Bodega was known as Hot Springs’ most popular saloon and gambling hall, serving rare wines, whiskeys, brandies, imported sherries, Fred Krug beer, Havana cigars, and choice tobaccos.

The building’s upstairs north rooms were reputedly used as a bordello, while the main level hosted card games and social gatherings. The Bodega changed hands multiple times — notably to Connell & Bingham in 1914 — and adapted to other commercial uses in the decades that followed.

📍 Later Uses

• 1917–1918: T.W. Van Wie’s bakery, later the Model Bakery
• 1930s: Hummel Grocery before conversion to a restaurant
• 1945: Purchased by William Knowlton, housing the Nifty Café; at various times also housed the Hot Springs Star newspaper under A.T. Johnson, a law office, dry goods store, and City Taxi Service

🏛 Architectural Notes

• Lakota sandstone façade with denticulated cornice
• Second-story windows with flat-topped lintels and voussoirs
• Commercial storefront modified multiple times over its history

🏚 Decline & Current Status

The building was purchased in 2011 by out-of-town owners intending to rehabilitate it but was gutted and left exposed to the elements. On March 1, 2021, ownership was transferred as payment for facade support engineering to the current owner, who has not yet obtained funding for restoration.

🔍 Research Notes & Requests

Save Our Sandstone is still seeking:

• Confirmation of the original quarry source
• Photographs of the Bodega interior during its saloon years
• Documentation of the building’s bordello and newspaper eras

QR Code Info: Built in 1892 by I.H. Chase, the Bodega became Hot Springs’ leading saloon and gambling hall, offering rare liquors, cigars, and a rumored bordello upstairs. Over the decades, it hosted a bakery, café, grocery, law office, and more. Gutted in 2011 and left exposed, the building remains privately owned and awaits restoration.