Livery and Dance Hall in Silverdale

In the early part of the twentieth century, John Emel cleared brush making way for new streets and roads in the Silverdale area. He saw a need for more transportation and built this two story building between 1911 and 1913 to house a livery.  The second floor became a lodge and dance hall.  Emel hired Clarence Benbennick to drive a team of horses pulling a two-seated buggy, to pick up passengers from boats, at the local dock.  Benbennick took passengers wherever they wanted to go, sometimes as far as Seabeck.  Emel was the first resident, in Silverdale, to own an automobile and the first to operate a jitney (taxi) service in the area.  Emel’s building still exists on Byron Street and is home to the Old Town Pub & Eatery.