Kearney Mural Receives Refresh

Judy Pence commissioned artist Melissa Feris to refresh the mural on the west side of the Pence Appliance store. Melissa has repainted the faded 2014 mural in the exact style of the original artist.

The mural on the side of the Pence Heating, Cooling and Appliance building at 105 W. Washington Street is based on three different photographs located in the Kearney Historic Museum. It mainly shows how Washington Street looked in the 1930’s. It also depicts Kearney’s most famous residents, Frank and Jesse James.

The mural shows a view of Washington Street, looking west towards the railroad tracks where box cars can be seen. The railroad was an integral part of Kearney’s history because hundreds of thousands of heads of cattle went through town in its early days. The piece also shows other prominent locations in Kearney at the time like the gas station, drug store and Hotel Kearney.

The mural was a gift to the city by the late Bob Pence, and was painted in 2014 by Kelly Poling of Chillicothe. The Pence name is well known around Kearney, going back several generations. Two Pence ancestors rode with the James gang and with William Quantrill.

Bob’s widow, Judy Pence noticed that the mural was beginning to look worn, so she looked into having it repainted. The original artist, Kelly Poling had died in 2019, but Judy found Melissa Feris who creates and restores murals professionally.

“Melissa did a great job,” Judy said. “When I turned from the post office the other day, I didn’t have to get down the street very far. I could see the blue and said ‘Oh my gosh, she has really, really brightened it up.’”

Melissa began power washing and priming the wall to recreate the Washington Street scene on Monday, September 5, and completed the project on September 12. Several residents watched her work during the week including Mack Porter.

Mack checked on her every day and shared some Kearney history with her. “Kearney grazed more cattle than anywhere else,” he said. “All that area by the depot was bluegrass and white-faced cattle.”

Melissa will be doing some finishing touches and applying a sealant to the wall before she moves on to her next project. She has been painting and restoring murals for over 20 years. More of her work can be seen at MelissasMurals.com.

KPGZ News - Brian Watts contributed to this story