McBRAYER BUILDING
SECTION OF
THE PILOT
THE PILOT
CONGRATULATIONS
TO OWNER AND
TENANTS
SPECIAL SECTION
Southern Pines and Aberdeen, N’orth Carolina, Friday, September 21, 1934.
FOUR PAGES
FINEST A&PSTORE
IN TWO CAROLINAS
OPENS HERE TODAY
The New McBrayer Building on West Broad Street
Completely and Lavishly Equip
ped and With All New Stock
To Greet Public
NO PERSONNEL CHANGES
What officials of the Great Atlan
tic and Pacific Tea Company call their
“finest store in the Carolinas" opens
this morning, Friday, in the new Mc
Brayer Building oa West Broad
street, Southern Pines.
Completely and lavishly equipped
with the "last word’ in fittings for a
store of this kind, and stocked with
all new provisions, the A. & P. will
receive their many Sandhills friends
eager to inspect the model grocery
and market today, and will operate
at the new location from now on.
In their many years in Southern
Pines the A. & P. have occupied three
stores. They opened originally in
what is now Ed’s Cafe. Later they
moved two doors farther north on
East Broad street to occupy larger
quarters. Their latest move is their
first to the west side of Broad street,
and gives them a more central loca
tion and the advantage of better park
ing space for customers and a rear-
door platform for the unloading ot
the huge trucks which bring in much
of their stock.
The new store was designed and
laid out according to specifications
given Dr, L. B. McBrayer, owner ot
the building by the Atlantic & Pacific
company, and is modern in every re
spect and a model for future stores
of the company. It is provided with
the maximum of light, with the scien
tific floor plan for display of goods
as worked out by A. & P. engineers;
it is equipped with the very latest in
cooling devices for meats, poultry,
dairy products and fresh vegetables.
Atmosphere of Cleanliness
The counters and fittings, in an
attractive green metalware, lend an
air of cleanliness as well as a distinc
tive background for the display of
goods. The .itore here will carry as
complete a line of groceries and
meats as is handled in any A. & P.
store in the south.
Despite rumors to the contrary, the
store which until today has been occu-
pied by the company wilt not contin
ue to operate. Its stock of goor'.s is
being shipped to another store in the
state, a complete new line coming
into the new store.
The personnel here will continue the
same as it has been, much to the grat
ification of the large number of pa
trons who have become pleasantly ac
quainted with Manager George H.
Buttry and his corps of assistants.
Mr. Buttry has been in Southern Pines
for eight years and has made a host
of friends throughout the Sandhills.
He is in charge under the assistant
superintendent for this district, R. A.
Brindell, equally popular here where
he makes his home and his headquar
ters.
F. P. Inman continues as manager
of the Meat Department, assisted by
W. L. Page. In the Grocery Depart
ment the following familiar faces will
be found in the new store: E. P. Lee,
J. J. Hatch, Howard Hassel and Rob
ert T. Henderson.
McBrayer Building Opens,
Rebuilt, Refurnished After
Disastrous February Fire
Home Talent
Local Contractors and Labor
Used in Construction of
New McBrayer Bldg.
Owner—Dr. L. B. McBrayer.
Contractor—E. V. Perkinson.
Plumbing & Heating—L. V.
O'Callaghan.
Glass and Paint — Highland
Hardware House.
Electric Wiring Norman Day.
Furniture — Colonial Furniture
Company Co., West End, N. C.
Labor—All Local.
Finest A. & P. Store in Carolin
as, New Drug Store, Offices
and Apartments Ready
ALMOST 100'; OCCUPIED
NEW DRUG STORE
TO OPEN IN NEW
McBRAYER BLDG.
Sandiiill Drux Company Or>;an-
ized by E. E. Merrill and
J. T. Overton
Site of McBrayer
Scene of Two
Building the
Disastrous Fires
One of Oldest Business Blocks of
Southern Pines First De
stroyed in April, 1921
By Charles Macauley
Twice arising, Phoenix-like, from
flame and ash, the rebuilt McBrayer
Building stands on one of the oldest
business sites on Broad street. Delv-
ing into ancient history we find that
a two story and attic frame building
was erected for C. T. Tarbell in De
cember, 1895 and stocked with dry
goods and clothing by the owner and
groceries by Thomas Shaw, of New
York, giving a department store to
the growing town.
Shaw died shortly afterward and
his stock was sold at auction. The
firm became Tarbell and Taplin, the
latter remaining but a short time.
The stock and store was sold to C. T.
Patch in January, 1897, he having
been induced to vl3it Southern Pines
for lhat purpose by his brother,
James Patch.
At that time there was a small an
nex on the south side of the building
used by Chatfield & Messer in their
undertaking business, but the new
proprietor soon needed that room and
added 20 feet to the rear of the
store, which was really the front, as
most all of the business came in from
the Bennett street side and not the
porch side on Railroad avenue now
West Broad street. In 1902 another
addition was built on the north side,
bringing the building out to the al-
' ley (then known as Paradise Alley)
line, this addition to house the groc
ery department which was bought by
I John N. Powell and Frank Jones m
i 1906. A year later Powell bought out
j Jones, and in 1910 J. N. Huntress be
came a partner, buying out Powell in
! (Pleas» tui n to Page 11)
In Other Days
Many and Varied Have Been
the Shops on Site of the
McBrayer BIdg.
New Building Active
Here During Summer
Dr. Daniels’ Office Under Way
and New W'oolnough Res
idence Soon To Start
The site of the McBrayer Building
has had many occupants since Its
first building in 1895. Here is a list
of ground floor tenants;
C. T. Tarbell, dry goc ds.
Thomas Shaw, groceries.
Tarbell & Toplin, dry goods^
C. T. Patch, dry goods.
Chatfield & Messer, undertakers.
Powell & Jones, groceries.
J. N. Huntress, groceries.
C. T. Patch & Bro., dry goods.
Patch & Richardson, general store.
Hamlin’s City Market.
Home Furnishing Company .
Louis Merusi, Fruit.
Harry Howe, jewelry.
H. A. Lewis, groceries.
C. M. Grey & Son, men’s shop.
Blue Bird Shop.
Putnam’s Photo Shop.
Wright’s Candy Store.
E. C. Stevens, Insurance.
Western Union Telegraph.
Roth’s Barber Shop.
The completion of the new Mc
Brayer Building tops cff a summer
of building activity in Southern Pines.
In addition to this construction in the
business section, Dr. L. M. Daniels
h:iz under way a new building on
With the opening today of the
Great Atlantic & Pacific Company’s
store, to be followed next week by the
opening of the Sandhill Drug Com
pany store, the McBrayer Building on
West Broad street, Southern Pines
again takes on an air of activity after
seven idle months.
The fine building new except for
the outer walls left safely standing
after the disastrous fire of last Feb
ruary, again takes Its important place
in the heart of the busy town’s bus
iness section. In addition to the large
space occupied by the A. & P. store
and the quarters of the new drug
store, the building contains the spa
cious offices of Dr. L. B. McBrayer,
owner of the building; the office of
the North Carolina Tuberculosis As
sociation. the office of the Medical
Society of the State of North Caro
lina, the music studio of Mrs. Claude
F. Hafer, and five apartments, all
completely furnished and equipped for
housekeeping.
No sooner had the smoke stopped
curling skyward from the gutted in-
The opening of the new McBrayer tgrjor of the former Grey Building’
Building will also mark the opening ^^an Dr. McBrayer, owner of the
of a new drug store for Southern building, laid the plans for the pres-
Pines, the Sandhill Drug Company, gjjj. improved structure, now called
which is to occupy the quarters at i McIIrayer Building. No time was
the right of the A. & P. store. jogt jn drawinj specifications. In en-
The Sandhill Drug Company was , gaging a contractor and in starting
OPENING IS DELAYED
organized recently by two young men
well known in Southern Pines, E. E.
Merrill and J. T. Overton, both of
whom have been previously affiliated
Pennsylvania avenue west of Broad | another drug store here. Mr.
street, to be used as dental offices,
The summer has marked the comple
tion of extensive improvements to
the residence of Kenneth Trousdell on
Indiana avenue near the Highland
Pines Inn, the former Welch house.
A. Marland Woolnough of Toronto,
Canada has recently let the contract
for a fine new residen''** on the. site
of the present Heyward house on Mas
sachusetts £ venue, and proposes to
move the Heyward house acd rebuild
It on another site. The old Christian
Science Chapel on Maine avenue has
recently been transformed Into an at
tractive residence. Many new homes
have undergone repairs and remodel
ing, many additions built. Other new
construction is In prospect.
Merrill is a lifelong resident of South
ern Pines. Mr. Overton, a native of
Mt. Gilead, came here from Rocking
ham several years ago. He has been
in the drug store business since 1918,
in Richmond, Anson and Moore coun
ties.
actual work, with the result-that to
day Southern Pines has a fine new
edifice to dedicate.
Brisk Demand For Space
That there was need of the prompt
rebuilding of the structure after the
February fire has been demonstrated
by the demand for space both on the
ground floor and the second floor.
Leases were signed some time ago by
the Atlantic & Pacific Company for
what is claimed to be the best equip-
LOCAL. L.\BOK EXCLUSIVELY
USED IN NEW BUILDING
Local labor was exclusively sup.
plied in the reconstruction of the Mc
Brayer Building, producing a large
payroll throughout the usually dull
summer months for a large number
of carpenters, masons, painters and
other artisans here.
Mr. and Mrs. E. C. Eddy and fam
ily returned Monday after spending
the summer in New Hampshire.
PERKINSON HAS BUILT
M.XNY HOMES IN SANDHILLS
modern fixtures throughout, and a
soda fountain of the latest and most
improved design, equipped with hot
water for the rinsing of glasses and
dishes. The young proprietors will
carry standard pharmaceutical lines,
and specialize in Park Davis and Lilly
products in their prescription depart
ment. All the usual side lines of the
modern drug store will be carried in
stock, with a number of specially
featured lines of merchandise.
Messrs. Overton and Merrill expect
to open the new store next week. The
' shipment of brand new fixtures was
E. V. Perkinson. general contrac- delayed at the factory or would have
tor In charge of the reconstruction ^ been in place by now, as it was hoped
of the McBrayer Building after the to open the drug store simultaneously
fire of last summer, has built many ^ with the opening of the A. & P, store,
of the fine homes of the Sandhills. He The new fountain Is enroute and will
was the contractor for The Paddock, \ be in place the first of the week. A
a fine example of residential archi- j cordial Invitation to all to pay an in-
tecture on the outskirts of town. H?; spectlon visit to the store as soon as
built the attractive Cape Cod house it is open is extended by the proprle-
owned by Mrs. Clara Pushee on Knoll- tors.
wood Heights. He has had a hand In
the construction of several important i Miss Laura M. Jenks and C. Edith
downtown blocks as well as In sev- i Titus arrived in Southern Pines Sep-
eral houses In the Weymouth Heights | tember 20th, after spending the aum-
section. | mer In northern New York.
The new store is to have new and pgd a. &. P. store In the Carolinas,
and by the newly organized Sandhill
Drug Company of which J. T. Over
ton and E. E. Merrill are the proprie
tors. Of the three ground floor stores,
the former leased two, throwing them
Into one to provide sufficient space
for their purposes, the latter taking
the north store. Of the five attrac
tive apartments on the second floor
four have already been leased for im
mediate occupancy, leaving but one
available and with prospects Inspect
ing this each day. These apartments
are steam heated. They are complete
ly furnished, even to Tennessee Val
ley Authority electric stove and re
frigerator combinations. The furni
ture for the rooms was made by the
Colonial Furniture f^ompany at West
End, a thriving Moore county con
cern. Simmons twin studio couches,
all wool blankets. Forest City sheets
and pillow cases, everything for the
comfort and convenience of the ten
ants, equip the apartments.
For Year ’Round Oorupanry
The owner has provided for the
comfort of his tenants In summer as
well as winter. The building has a
(Please turn to Page 11)
Town of Southern Pines
DORSEY G. STUTZ, Mayor
HOWARD C. BURNS. Clerk
COMMISSIONERS
GEORGE W. C-\SE CHARLES S. PATCH
L. V. O’CALLAGHAN
FRANK WELCH ' A. B. YEOMANS
A CIVIC ASSET—
Southern Pines welcomes the new McBrayer Building* on West Broad
Street as it welcomes any improvement to its business and residential
sections. '
It is an indication of progi'ess, of moving forward, of growth, of an ap
preciation of Southern Pines on the part of those who live here, of an
attempt on the part of citizens to enhance the beauty, value and use
fulness of their property for the enjoyment of all.
It Bespeaks Civic Pride, a Community's Greatest Asset.
The TOWN of SOUTHERN PINES WeleomesthisFurther Indication of Belief in its Future,
I ^
and Congratulates Those Who Have Played a Part in the Enterprise.