George Pharmacy - Water Street Commercial Historic District - Sparta, WI
Posted by: 
mrjcanger
N 43° 56.694 W 090° 48.660
15T E 675665 N 4868081
Built in 1930, this Mediterranean Revival styled building was home to one of the three important drug stores in the history of Sparta, WI.
Waymark Code: WMT70Y
Location: Wisconsin, United States
Date Posted: 10/06/2016
Views: 0
In 1909, Otis Franklin George bought the D.D. Cheney drug store and ran it up until 1930. In 1930 he hired architects, Arnold Construction Company to design and build a new building at its current location. When Mr. George moved the pharmacy to the new building he changed its name to George Pharmacy. The pharmacy was housed in the larger South store front while the North store front housed the Francis Hutson Clothing Store. On the second floor was the doctor office of Dr. Sutherland and three of the four apartments were rented out. The fourth and largest apartment was the residence of Mr. George and his family. It is unknown how long George Pharmacy was in business. On May 30, 1943, the city was hit with disaster as the Great Flood of Beaver Creek tore the city in half right next to this building. During the flood the building's basement was nearly destroyed and its foundation was greatly damaged as well. During the rebuild, the State Highway Commission agreed to repair the basement and foundation by widening the channel of the creek so that it could flow partially under the building in order to control future floods. In the agreement the basement would be rebuilt smaller to only house a heating plant for the building. Also part of the construction included a wing dam that was continuous with the building's new foundation. The construction was put to the test in September of 2016 as the Beaver Creek hit its fourth highest recorded level and no damage was recorded to the building. Today the building houses the Yarn Stash (knitting store) and a local food pantry.
For more information on the building see the optional link below
Name of Historic District (as listed on the NRHP): Water Street Commercial Historic District
Link to nationalregisterofhistoricplaces.com page with the Historic District: [Web Link]
Address:
112-114 North Water Street
Sparta, WI 54656
How did you determine the building to be a contributing structure?: Narrative found on the internet (Link provided below)
Optional link to narrative or database: [Web Link]
NRHP Historic District Waymark (Optional): Not listed
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