Tepee, The
Why it's listed
Rising fifty feet above a wooded hillside on US Route 20 northeast of Cherry Valley, this gift shop takes the form of a Plains Indian tepee. Ken and Iris Gurney completed it in the spring of 1954 after a new highway bypassed the village and left their first tepee store, opened around 1950, off the main traffic. The building is a wood frame clad in galvanized steel on a concrete slab, forty-two feet across, with three decorative poles at the top. A wood-frame wing and a vestibule were added within a few years. Originally painted silver with zigzags, a thunderbird and other motifs, it now wears tan paint. It reflects the postwar boom in automobile travel, when businesses used oversized, eye-catching shapes to draw speeding motorists. Tepees were a popular roadside theme, though the form has no connection to the region. The building still operates as a shop and food stand and is known to travelers and roadside-architecture enthusiasts.
Significance in brief: The nomination argues it is a distinctive example of mid-1950s mimetic roadside architecture and is tied to recreation and tourism along US Route 20. Built by Ken and Iris Gurney as a larger replacement for their first tepee, it has become a well-known landmark that still serves its original function and retains a high level of integrity.
Machine-generated summary. This summary was generated by a language model from the official nomination document and has not been reviewed line by line by an editor. It may contain errors. Check the source document before relying on any detail. Source: nomination document (PDF) · National Archives catalog entry. NRHP reference 11000543, listed August 18, 2011. Summary generated October 2026 (model claude-sonnet-5-5, prompt v1.0-2026-10-29, confidence high).
Key facts
| Address | 7632 US 20, Cherry Valley |
|---|---|
| County | Otsego County |
| Listed | August 18, 2011 |
| Reference number | 11000543 |
| Resource type | Building |
| Period of significance | 1954-c1960 |
| Architect / builder | Ken Gurney, builder |
| Architectural style | No style |
| Criteria |
|
| Areas of significance | Entertainment/Recreation, Architecture |
| Level of significance | Local |
| Status (as stated in the nomination) | Still in use as a gift shop and food stand; original silver paint and some painted decoration have been lost, and the exterior was recently repainted tan. |
| Acreage | 2.2 |
| Coordinates | 42.80976, -74.68420 (NPS GIS) |
What listing means for this property
National Register listing is honorary: it recognises significance and does not restrict what a private owner may do without federal money or permits. It unlocks the 20% federal rehabilitation tax credit for income-producing buildings, state credits in many states, and Section 106 review when federal agencies are involved. See what listing means in practice.
General information, not legal or tax advice. Rules change; confirm with your State Historic Preservation Office or a qualified adviser.
Sources and further reading
- National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places database (snapshot May 2026), reference 11000543.
- Nomination form (PDF, National Archives) — catalog entry
- Wikipedia article (used for cross-checking only; text not reproduced here)
- Wikidata Q22061085
- This listing as JSON
Last updated October 2026. Found an error? See the editorial policy for how to report it.