Arago: Hotel Room Key Tokens

Owney received this hotel room key token from the Plumb House hotel in Streator, Illinois. There is no additional information on when the token was given to the dog. Plumb House, located on the northwest corner of Main and Bloomington, was named for Ralph Plumb, the town’s first mayor (1882-1885). In its early days, Streator was a coal town, and grew quickly as railway lines were built to carry out the coal. Several railway lines ran through the town during Owney’s lifetime, including the Chicago, Burlington, & Quincy; the Louisville, Evansville, & St. Louis Consolidated; the Chicago & Alton; and the Peoria, Decatur, & Evansville lines.