Rogers Department Store

Last updated
Rogers Department Store
Rogers Department Store in Florence.jpg
The building in April 2014
USA Alabama location map.svg
Red pog.svg
Usa edcp location map.svg
Red pog.svg
Location117 N. Court St., Florence, Alabama
Coordinates 34°48′3″N87°40′36″W / 34.80083°N 87.67667°W / 34.80083; -87.67667
Arealess than one acre
Built1910 (1910)
ArchitectHulsey & Hall
Architectural styleArt Deco
NRHP reference No. 98001025 [1]
Significant dates
Added to NRHPAugust 14, 1998
Designated ARLHAugust 25, 1994 [2]

Rogers Department Store was a department store chain based in Florence, Alabama. Founded in 1894, the company grew to include locations across the Tennessee Valley. The original building, constructed in 1910, was listed on the Alabama Register of Landmarks and Heritage in 1994 and the National Register of Historic Places in 1998. [1] [2]

Contents

History

Benjamin A. Rogers and his sons came to Florence in 1894 during a boom in the local economy driven by the construction of a canal to bypass the Muscle Shoals on the Tennessee River. The family erected a two-story frame building to house a department store. The store was one of the first in the area to clearly mark prices on items, rather than leaving the purchase up to negotiation.

Benjamin Rogers died in 1902, and the store burned in 1910, leaving the Rogers sons to rebuild. They erected the current two-story building, which was expanded to three stories and partially rebuilt after a fire in 1946. [3] Rogers opened other locations, including in Muscle Shoals, Decatur, and Athens. The company remained in the family until 1998, when it was sold to The Dunlap Company, who closed the downtown Florence location in 2001. The store in Athens was closed in 1996, the Decatur store in 2006, and Muscle Shoals location (at Southgate Mall) was closed in 2007. [4] As of 2013, the Florence building is occupied by an Asian fusion restaurant, Jos. A. Bank, and Alabama Outdoors on the ground floor, while the Martin Supply Company offices occupy the upper floors. [5]

Architecture

The building is a three-story Art Deco structure, with over 65,500 square feet (6,100 sq. m) of interior space. It was originally constructed of solid brick, with some concrete block and poured reinforced concrete walls dating from the late 1940s expansion and post-fire restoration. The rear of the building, separated from a parking garage by a narrow alley, retains its original brick, with evidence of arched window openings on the two lower floors, along with twin chimneys.

The front and side façades are covered in beige limestone, with decorative carved ram's heads on the chamfered corner and on the side of the building. There are two entrances at the front and side, and large aluminum-framed display windows line the front. A row of polished pink granite lines the base of the building. The building's Art Deco character is derived from the two upper floors. Each bay is recessed, and contains three-part windows with a central casement surrounded by fixed panels. Projecting limestone panels between the bays rise slightly above the parapet line, further visually separated by scored panels above the third-floor windows. In the center of the front façade and twice on the side, a further recessed bay is flanked by panels that project further above the roofline.

The first and third floors feature mezzanines. The store was one of the first in North Alabama to have elevators, along with central air conditioning and heat. [3]

The building sits across Mobile Street from Southall Drugs, also listed on the National Register.

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Muscle Shoals Sound Studio</span> Recording studio in Sheffield, Alabama

Muscle Shoals Sound Studio is an American recording studio in Sheffield, Alabama, formed in 1969 by four session musicians known as The Muscle Shoals Rhythm Section. They had left nearby FAME Studios in Muscle Shoals to create their own recording facility.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Albany City Hall</span> Municipal government building in capital city of U.S. state of New York

Albany City Hall is the seat of government of the city of Albany, New York, United States. It houses the office of the mayor, the Common Council chamber, the city and traffic courts, as well as other city services. The present building was designed by Henry Hobson Richardson in the Romanesque style and opened in 1883 at 24 Eagle Street, between Corning Place and Pine Street. It is a rectangular three-and-a-half-story building with a 202-foot-tall (62 m) tower at its southwest corner. The tower contains one of the few municipal carillons in the country, dedicated in 1927, with 49 bells.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Philip Livingston Magnet Academy</span> United States historic place

The former Philip Livingston Magnet Academy is located along Northern Boulevard in the West Hill neighborhood of Albany, New York, United States. It is a large brick building predominantly in the Colonial Revival architectural style, with some Art Deco touches inside, erected during the 1930s. Additions were made in the 1960s. In 2014 it was listed on the National Register of Historic Places as the Philip Livingston Junior High School, the only purpose-built public school building in the city so recognized.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bristol Customshouse and Post Office</span> United States historic place

Bristol Customshouse and Post Office is a historic two-story rectangular Italian palazzo style brick building that was used as a post office and customshouse in Bristol, Rhode Island, United States. The land for the site was acquired for $4,400. The building was designed by Ammi B. Young and completed in 1858 for a cost of $22,135.75. The building roughly measures 46 feet (14 m) by 32 feet (9.8 m) and is constructed of deep red brick and has three arched openings on each of its sides and stories that are lined with sandstone moldings. The archways protrude from the side of the building and the center archway serves as the first floor with the adjacent archways housing large windows that are barred with iron. As it typical of the style, the second floor is more elaborate with a shallow balcony of iron supported by iron brackets and the paneling of the upper facade's surmounting entablature is elaborately decorative. The sides and rear are similar to the front facade, but include blind recesses and the molding is of a browner sandstone.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cass Park Historic District</span> Historic district in Michigan, United States

The Cass Park Historic District is a historic district in Midtown Detroit, Michigan, consisting of 25 buildings along the streets of Temple, Ledyard, and 2nd, surrounding Cass Park. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2005 and designated a city of Detroit historic district in 2016.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jefferson–Chalmers Historic Business District</span> Historic district in Michigan, United States

The Jefferson–Chalmers Historic Business District is a neighborhood located on East Jefferson Avenue between Eastlawn Street and Alter Road in Detroit, Michigan. The district is the only continuously intact commercial district remaining along East Jefferson Avenue, and was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2004.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Chesterton Commercial Historic District</span> Historic district in Indiana, United States

The Chesterton Commercial Historic District is a historic district in Chesterton, Indiana.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Blair's Ferry Storehouse</span> United States historic place

The Blair's Ferry Storehouse is a historic brick structure in the U.S. city of Loudon, Tennessee. Originally built as a storehouse for the burgeoning riverboat trade in the community of Blair's Ferry in the 1830s, the structure was eventually renovated and used for a variety of functions throughout the 19th and 20th centuries. The building is one of the region's earliest surviving examples of a structure designed specifically as a warehouse. In 1977, the building was placed on the National Register of Historic Places.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Galveston United States Post Office and Courthouse</span> United States historic place

The U.S. Post Office and Courthouse, also known as the Galveston Federal Building, is a post office and courthouse located in Galveston, Texas, USA. The building serves as the federal court for the Galveston Division of the United States District Court for the Southern District of Texas. Constructed in 1937, and added to the National Register of Historic Places in 2001 as Galveston U.S. Post Office, Custom House and Courthouse, the building is home a number of federal agencies, and at one point housed the Galveston Bureau of the National Weather Service.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Winsor Building</span> United States historic place

The Winsor Building is located in Asbury Park, Monmouth County, New Jersey, United States. Built in 1904, it was added to the National Register of Historic Places on September 13, 1979.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">John Archibald Campbell United States Courthouse</span> United States historic place

The John Archibald Campbell United States Courthouse, also known as the United States Court House and Custom House, is a historic courthouse and former custom house in Mobile, Alabama. It was completed in 1935. An addition to the west was completed in 1940. It was added to the National Register of Historic Places on October 8, 2008.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Southgate Mall (Muscle Shoals)</span> Shopping mall in Muscle Shoals, Alabama

Southgate Mall is an enclosed shopping mall in Muscle Shoals, Alabama. Around 2005 the inside of the mall closed and the businesses that remained moved to the outside of the mall. Opened in 1968, the anchor stores are Tractor Supply Company, Walgreens, Genesis Jewelry, Pet Supplies Plus, Hibbett Sports, and Burke's Outlet. There is 1 vacant anchor store that was once Rogers. Walmart was a tenant of the mall at one point, but now has its own free-standing store next to the mall.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">E. Janssen Building</span> United States historic place

The E. Janssen Building at 422 First Street, Eureka, California, is a two-story Italianate commercial building. It was built in 1875 to be a hardware and general merchandise store. In 1973, it was the first building in Eureka to be placed on the United States National Register of Historic Places, and it was listed as a contributing property of the National Register Old Town Eureka Historical District in 1991. From 1998 to 2016, the building housed the HSU First Street Gallery, an art gallery run by Humboldt State University.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dunnavant's Building</span> United States historic place

The Dunnavant's Building is a historic commercial building in Huntsville, Alabama. It was built in 1905 by dry goods company Terry Brothers & Rogers. P. S. Dunnavant took control of the company in 1925, and the store remained in its downtown location until 1975. The third floor and roof were damaged in a fire in 1940. The ground floor on the Washington Street façade is framed by large brick piers with polished marble bases. Large display windows flank a recessed entry with a central column flush with the façade. All other windows are one-over-one sashes. A row of small, evenly spaced arched windows line the ground floor along the Clinton Avenue side. On the second floor façade there are two groups of four windows, each group sharing a stone sill. Third floor windows are smaller, and joined by brick arches. Windows along the Clinton Avenue side are similarly treated. The building is topped with a simple, denticulated cornice, with the roofline stepping down towards the rear of the building. The building was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1980.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">First National Bank (Huntsville, Alabama)</span> United States historic place

The First National Bank is a historic bank building in Huntsville, Alabama. The temple-form Greek Revival structure was built in 1835–1836. Designed by locally famous architect George Steele, it occupies a prominent position, facing the courthouse square and sitting on a bluff directly above the Big Spring. It was the longest-serving bank building in Alabama, operating until 2010 when Regions Bank moved their downtown branch to a new location. The building was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1974.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Southall Drugs</span> United States historic place

Southall Drugs is a historic commercial building in Florence, Alabama. It was built in 1900 to house the pharmacy of Charles Morton Southall. The pharmacy operated until 1979, and was renovated in 1982 to have loft apartments on the second floor and retail on the ground floor.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Stiefelmeyer's</span> United States historic place

Stiefelmeyer's is a historic commercial building in Cullman, Alabama. The store was founded in 1888, and occupied a two-story frame storehouse until it was destroyed by fire in 1892. Although brick had already become the material of choice for commercial buildings in the town, the current Stiefelmeyer's was built in 1892 of wood. An addition was constructed in 1900, expanding the building to its current size. As other wood commercial buildings were destroyed by fire and replaced with brick structures, Stiefelmeyer's remains the only example of the once-dominant building material in Cullman's commercial district.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">New Center Commercial Historic District</span> Historic district in Michigan, United States

The New Center Commercial Historic District is a commercial historic district located on Woodward Avenue between Baltimore Street and Grand Boulevard in Detroit, Michigan. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2016.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Wallace Block</span> United States historic place

The Wallace Block is a commercial building located at 101-113 South Ann Arbor Street in Saline, Michigan. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1985.

The E.J. Bullock Block is a historic commercial building at 7012 Main Street in Readsboro, Vermont. Built in 1891, it is a prominent local example of Second Empire architecture, with a long history of commercial, social, and civic uses. The building was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2021.

References

  1. 1 2 "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places . National Park Service. July 9, 2010. Retrieved January 17, 2015.
  2. 1 2 "The Alabama Register of Landmarks & Heritage" (PDF). preserveala.org. Alabama Historical Commission. June 13, 2014. Archived from the original (PDF) on August 19, 2014. Retrieved January 17, 2015.
  3. 1 2 Stancell, Pat; Trina Binkley (April 10, 1998). "Rogers Department Store". National Register of Historic Places Registration Form. National Park Service. Archived (PDF) from the original on January 17, 2015. Retrieved January 17, 2015.See also: "Accompanying photos". Archived (PDF) from the original on January 17, 2015. Retrieved January 17, 2015.
  4. Williams, Kendra (September 13, 2007). "Historic Shoals retailer closes". TimesDaily . Florence, AL. Archived from the original on June 6, 2022. Retrieved January 17, 2015.
  5. Palmer, Robert (January 28, 2012). "Martin Supply bringing headquarters to downtown Florence". TimesDaily . Florence, AL. Archived from the original on June 18, 2022. Retrieved January 17, 2015.