A daily feature from our surrounding historical societies.
Downtown Lansdale has seen a lot of transformations over the years. While the town looks drastically different than it did 150 years ago, some of our historic buildings are hiding behind “newer” more modern facades. These changes, however, did not happen overnight. A great example is the building located at 1 - 5 W. Main St.
Originally built in 1877 by Tobias D. Koffel, this structure began as a modest general store. By 1889, it was owned by Bean & Slifer, who operated a store on the right side and leased out the space on the left to George Scheid for his bakery. This is when the first major alteration took place. An article dated March 3, 1892 describes the transformation: “a very radical change now being made in the front of Scheid’s bakery in Bean & Slifer’s building at the corner of Main and Broad streets. Workmen are putting in a large show window, similar to that in the store of Messrs. Bean & Slifer. Besides, the stairway has been removed, giving Mr. Scheid an additional space, several feet in width in his salesroom.”
The next significant renovation came in 1912 after Slifer became sole proprietor. The changes included the installation of 500 square feet of French plate glass, weighing 2,400 pounds, for use as show windows. Other updates included a cement stairway, iron side guards, and stained chestnut wood. Shortly after, barber Will DeTurk, whose shop was located under Bean and Slifer’s store, joined the renovation effort by erecting a large barber’s pole on the corner of Main and Broad, along with two smaller ones at the entrance of his shop.
The most extensive remodel came in 1928 when it was owned by John T. Daub. He expanded the structure to furnish more room for his hardware store and changed the entire front of the building. The store floors were lowered so the entrance would be at street level which also gave additional space for height inside the store rooms. This was no easy task and there were a couple of incidents that could have meant disaster and would have changed Lansdale’s downtown as we know it. First, a partition had caught fire while workmen were using a torch. The fire alarm sounded for the central business section and the Fairmount Fire Company was called to the building. Luckily the fire was able to be put out quickly and there was little damage. Then the next month there was a failure to sufficiently support the wall on the Broad street side during renovation work. This was also caught quickly and the work crew was able to avoid collapse.
After construction was finished, The Reporter ran a picture of the building that was taken in 1895 when it still had its old facade. The caption read, “No street corner in Lansdale, where the original building is still standing, has changed more completely than Daub’s Corner at Main and Broad streets in the last three decades.”
