Reverend Dennis B. Clary, a pioneer Methodist minister born in Maryland on September 1, 1822, immigrated to Nebraska in 1885 and received the final patent for his homestead on March 22, 1899. Using a horse-drawn cart fashioned from available materials, he hauled stone to this site for a two-room home. For years the homestead was a landmark in Ash Hollow and marked the location of Windlass Hill. It became a popular stopping place for settlers traveling from the North Platte Valley area to the railroad at Big Springs, about twenty miles to the south. The wagon road used at that time is still visible nearby, and the Oregon Trail passed here. The area surrounding the house was used by early travelers to repair damage caused by the hazardous trip down Windlass Hill. On July 29-30, 1967, this site was used as the state setting for the Ash Hollow Centennial Pageant, when a nearby sod house was reconstructed.