Snapshots of History

By Editor | January 29, 2025 |

North side of the Mount Ayr square about 1900.

By Mike Avitt
This week’s photo was probably taken around 1900 because of where the photo was taken from.
It was taken from the upstairs window at 107 S. Fillmore in Mount Ayr, which was the photographic studio of professional photographer M. G. Maxwell from 1899 until about 1902.
We will continue with a tour of the square as described by editor J. S. Shepherd in his Mount Ayr Journal newspaper from December 1893.

We are now at 114 W. Madison, the current location of Aunt Jennie’s Attic. This was a wood-frame one-story building which served as the barber shop of R. Woodmansee. The building would serve as a millinery before it was torn down in 1902.

Next building west was The Palace of Sweets, a bakery and cafe, owned by Amos “Fatty” Collins. Mr. Collins would build a brick building here in 1902.

At 120-122 W. Madison was the big two-story brick building housing Huggins & Saville dry goods store. Their store occupied both storefronts. The building was erected in 1882. Attorney F. F. Fuller and Dr. S. Bailey occupied the upstairs. Across the street was Kinsell’s Hardware Store. This was where the post office is today.
J. F. Wall was located at 101 S. Fillmore as we head south on the west side of the square. Wall’s Grocery was one of the casualties during the February 1894 fire. Mr. Wall and his son would have a grocery store in Mount Ayr for over 40 years. Fuller Brothers, to the south of Wall Grocery, had a line of gifts, notions, fancy articles, and other items.
At 107 S. Fillmore was William Towle’s boot and shoe store. A picture of his building appeared in last week’s Snapshots of History.

The February 1894 fire got this business and the next one. Now we come to John Horne’s Drug Store. John was the brother of Dr. William Horne and the father of future drug store owner “Barney” Horne. After the fire, John Horne rebuilt and, interesting, the September 1927 fire would start in the new building. That fire, too, would take out half a block. Ed Baker had a restaurant next to the alley.

South of the alley was the fire department and city council meeting room. The 1894 fire did not reach across the alley. At 115 S. Fillmore was the harness shop of J. H. Seevers. Mr. Seevers was involved in many business ventures and he also built the house at 604 W. Madison in 1916. Seevers, along with his partner Jacob Rabb, put up the building at 110 W. Madison, which also still stands.

Mrs. M. J. McKahan had a millinery at 117 S. Fillmore in December 1893. A millinery was a women’s clothing store and there were always at least two in Mount Ayr 130 years ago. On the corner was the large, brick implement store of A. A. Huggins. This three storefront building was constructed in 1891 and had the expert mason H. U. Greenlee as the brick laying contractor. The local Masonic Lodge took possession of this building in 1920.
Where the Christian Church is today, was a lumber yard for a few decades. In 1893 it was owned by T. J. Cook & Company with a Mr. Stormfeltz as manager. Where the Mount Ayr Public Library is today was a very large, two-story brick building with several businesses in it.

The Mount Ayr Bank, owned by brothers George and John Allyn, was on the corner with their banking and abstract business. On the east and south side of the building, Ingram & Hickman had a clothing and dry goods business. The basement housed a barber shop and the upstairs was the law office of Henry & Spence. It is likey other upstairs rooms were rented out to other businesses and organizations, like fraternal orders and secret societies.
On November 14, 1900, this building burned to the ground. Although made of brick, the floors, ceiling, stair cases, and roof were wood and once the fire gained momentum, it couldn’t be stopped.
This was the second time in eleven years that the Mount Ayr Bank burned out.
We will continue next week.

Posted in Snapshot of History by Mike Avitt