Edit: The historic building pictured below was known as the Browne Block / Peck Building, and was situated along S. Burdick and
E. South Streets, not Lovell St. It had an interesting history - it was notably financed by a woman developer, Ella Drake Browne, granddaughter of Benjamin Drake, one of the founders of the city, and step-granddaughter of Henry Brees, a local investor.
It was built in the 19-oughts by a prominent local contractor, Henry Vander Horst, when he was just 31 years of age. The block featured a base-shaft-capital design that was so common at the time. The inheritance that Ella used to fund it led to a court case that went all the way up to the Michigan Supreme Court - some claimed that she obtained the inhereitance money illegally. But she fought for it and managed to obtain a 'not guilty' verdict and keep the funds, only to sell the building shortly after its completion to Charles Peck, a local capitalist, who renamed the building for himself.
Walgreens occupied the ground floor for over 30 years. Many other retail and service businesses rented space there at one time or another. It was ultimately razed in 1975 when Fidelity Bank purchased it with the intent of constructing a new building (the lovely little 1970s gem that sits there today).
(All of the above info was gleaned from
Kalamazoo Lost & Found, Houghton / O'Connor)
Quote:
Originally Posted by deja vu
3. A block formerly housing Walgreens (the name of the building escapes me), situated along S. Burdick and Lovell St. (today's Kalamazoo Mall):
It was demolished to make way for a parking deck (background) and this building in the foreground that houses an insurance agency today. Sharon Ferraro, Kalamazoo's Historic Preservation Coordinator, is holding the historic photo:
Source: MLive
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