By Staff
I told you something about the city of Brewton last week and now I want to get to each building.
According to the Albama Historical Registry, there are 33 building listed on the historical district in Brewton.
212 Belleville Avenue.
It was built between 1903 and 1910 and is a two-story brick building with a flat parapet with corbelled cornices and two recessed rectangular panels above three windows with feature corbelled segmental arches. The first floor has been altered several times with the latest being a double door entrance with two side windows on either side. It housed the first telephone office, The Brewton Telephone Company, on the second floor. The first floor has been used as an office and a tailor's store. It served as the telegraph office from 1922 to 1930. It was later the office of Dr. Rosemore, a local eye doctor and the second floor was rented to Jim Hart, a local attorney. Today, the office is occupied by Hart's son, Jim Hart Jr., who is carrying on a family tradition of practicing law.
206 Belleville Avenue
This building is not listed as being part of the historical district. It houses McMillan Wingate Antiques.
210 Belleville Avenue
This is not a historical building. It was built about 1950. It was used as a retail store until Old Willie's took it over as part of their restaurant. The building faces both Belleville Avenue and St. Joseph Avenue.
200-208 Belleville Avenue and St. Joseph Avenue corner
This building was built in 1900 and is a two-story, rusticated cement block structure with a trapezoid shape. It has a flat parapet with plain molding. The second floor has two windows on the corner and eight windows along the sides. The first floor has been filled in with paneling. In 1929, when floodwaters filled downtown, the building was a drug store and post office. There have been several drug stores on this spot. It was first known as Star Pharmacy, then the Palace Pharmacy, Brannon, Holman Pharmacy, Sowell Drugs and Mason Drug Company until October of 1977. During the early 1940s there was a dentist's office on the second floor. It became a restaurant, Old Willie's for a number of years.
In a 1911 picture it is listed as People's Drug Store and it is known historically as Mason Drug building. It was sold in 2006 and is now a restaurant, Willie's.
I include photographs of 212 Belleville Avenue, then and now. I have already shown some old photos of 200-208 Belleville and St. Joseph Avenue, which is Willie's Restaurant.