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The
building now known as Wire Hardware store was built for William
Wallace Welsh as a general store in 1895. Mr. Welsh came to
Rockville after the Civil War, clerking in John Higgins’ store and
marrying his daughter. In 1884, Welsh built a frame store close to
the B&O Station, taking advantage of new access to the railroad for
many of the grains, fuels, implements, and groceries that he sold.
When the store was destroyed by fire, Welsh erected this building.
In
rebuilding, W.W.Welsh considered not only safety but also design.
The all-brick store is in the Queen Anne style, with an ornate
cornice, stepped façade, and patterned slate roof. The cast iron
storefront, shipped from the Geo. Mesker Co. in Evansville, Indiana,
adds solidity and style.
By
the 1890s, the business was doing well enough for Welsh to buy out
his partner, to build a large residence next door (demolished in
1978), and to subdivide an 8-acre parcel northeast of this property
into a new development for black homeowners that he called “Lincoln
Park.”
After
Welsh died in the influenza epidemic at the close of World War I,
Frank and Porter Ward operated the business for two decades. Paul
F. Wire and his partner Ben J. Lanier leased the store in 1944, soon
adding a one-story annex. Mr. Wire bought the business 20 years
later, continuing to offer a wide range of goods – agricultural
implements, clothing, food, seed, shoes, coal, lumber and hardware
materials, appliances, and more. His three sons worked in the store
over the years, one buying it when the senior Mr. Wire retired in
1982. When the business relocated in 1990 and the fixtures were
auctioned off, Peerless Rockville acquired the shelving, counters,
and rolling ladders. By agreement with the family, these items
remained in the building where they belong.
Although the Wires sold to a new owner (who ultimately succumbed to
the economic woes of the 1990s), the old store stood neglected until
Peerless stepped in again. After signing a contract as the
purchaser of last resort, Peerless had to sue the family to honor
the contract when they selected another buyer who would have
“gutted” the interior. By the time the Maryland Court of Special
Appeals ruled favorably for Peerless, the store had deteriorated
terribly.
Peerless took title in 1993 and performed emergency repairs for 18
months while looking for a new owner who would accept protective
interior and exterior easements. A partnership of local businesses
-- Investment Properties and Insurance Associates – employed vision
to restore, renovate, and revitalize this local landmark. Insurance
Associates conducted business here for twelve years before recently
outgrowing the space. Currently, the building is offered for lease.
Although the Wires sold to a new owner (who ultimately succumbed to
the economic woes of the 1990s), the old store stood neglected until
Peerless stepped in again. After signing a contract as the
purchaser of last resort, Peerless had to sue the family to honor
the contract when they selected another buyer who would have
“gutted” the interior. By the time the Maryland Court of Special
Appeals ruled favorably for Peerless, the store had deteriorated
terribly.
Along
with St. Mary’s Church and Cemetery and the B&O Station, Wire
Hardware store is designated as a Rockville Historic District and
listed in the National Register of Historic Places. In Peerless
Rockville’s archives, scholars can find a century’s worth of
business records from the store, which have been cleaned, organized,
and safely stored for future generations.
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