I’d like to write now about two buildings from Rochester’s past that are very close to my heart. In fact, these two buildings are the impetus behind the birth of Gonechester; researching the mysterious buildings made me appreciate the depth of history, as well as the wealth of information available if one is so inclined to seek it out. That seeking led me down particular avenues, which ultimately led to me foisting these blog posts upon you.

Look, if you will, upon these five-story buildings to the left of this photograph above. Those buildings are (or rather were) 37 and 39 East Main Street, in the year 1918. I first started to notice this pair of buildings while looking through historic photos of the Four Corners area; tall and dark, they stood out–and yet were seemingly always at an oblique angle, in the incidental background of some shot of another centrally-focused building, or barely-rendered in some turn-of-the-20th-century postcard or other. They were coy, and it enticed me to discover their nature.

What is so special about these two buildings, you well may ask. Come here, check this out:

This 1892 Sanborn map confirms that the dark, ornate fronts of Nos. 37 and 39 East Main Street were in fact galvanized iron!

A fashionable choice for business owners in the late 19th and early 20th centuries was the galvanized iron or cast iron storefront: inexpensive and highly customizable, iron fronts were available in a number of designs with architectural details imitating wood or stone. They provided additional structural support to upper storeys. They could be cast at the factory, shipped, and riveted onto the brick or frame building with relative ease. Long-lasting, durable, paintable, and fireproof, you can see the benefits for yourself. In cities all over America these iron edifices popped up along commercial streets.

Rochester had several iron fronts, and some remain, but most specimens were ground-floor only, perhaps with metal cornices to match. But as far as I can tell, these two buildings were the only full, bottom-to-top, five-storey iron fronts complete with iron window boxes. Far from accenting or reinforcing the buildings they were installed upon, these iron fronts represented a complete revision of the façade.

I wanted to know more about these unique buildings: whose business was this? When were the iron fronts installed? When were they removed? I dived into my research to tease out the story as best I could. So let us start at Buffalo Street in the 1870s.

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Buffalo Street, 1870s

No. 11 Buffalo Street in the above photo was the building eventually to become No. 39 East Main Street.  At the address was Flour City Spice Mills, the business of John J. Van Zandt & Co, which would become Van Zandt Bros. Teas Coffee & Spices, proprietors John J., Benjamin B. and Maxcy N. Van Zandt.  The business would later be known as M. N. Van Zandt & Co.

No. 13 Buffalo Street, to become No. 37 East Main Street, was the hardware store of Ferdinand Seifried:

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Installation of Iron Fronts

Nos. 11 and 13 would eventually receive the iron front treatment, but when?

Curiously, in this photograph above one of the buildings appears to have been upgraded first. 13 Buffalo Street, (37 East Main Street) seems to have the peaked iron front with the arched window whereas its adjacent neighbor to the immediate east, 11 Buffalo Street (39 East Main Street) does not. When could this photograph be set?

It’s most likely between 1886 and 1888, and I’ll lay out my case as to why.

The lots are labeled “MILLYARD & MILL LOTS” due to being the former site of Ely family mills, powered by the race which flowed under the boards of these streets.  The cast-iron fronts do not appear to have yet been added to the buildings, as seen in the 1892 Sanborn map. 

Building 3, No. 37 East Main is owned by John Weis. 

Building 4, No. 39 East Main is owned by Mary A. Wheeler, in business with Alice May Wilson–wife of Joseph C. Wilson–as Wheeler & Wilson, Pawnbrokers:

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Wheeler & Wilson

Wheeler & Wilson began as Wheeler’s Loan Office, in the Masonic block, corner of Exchange and West Main.  The proprietors were George N. and H. Wesley Wheeler.  Joseph Chamberlain Wilson became junior partner in 1879.

In 1886, the second location, at No. 39 East Main Street, was purchased in 1886, and were apparently “elegant new quarters, just completed”.

The above sketch from “Ye Citie of Rochester” was published in 1888. It portrays the galvanized iron fronts, bottom left.

Below, an etching from an 1888 Daily Graphic shows an incredibly-detailed rendering of the iron fronts; it supports the above drawing’s architectural details. It’s possible to see in both that the bay windows had not yet been installed onto No. 37, which bore instead a curved metal sign with a circular adornment, that was likely a clock, on the front.

It seems logical that the iron fronts were installed in 1888, judging by their absence in the 1888 plat map [before/while they were being installed], presence in the above 1888 sketches [after installation], and presence in the below 1892 Sanborn Fire Insurance map:

But maybe the exclusion of the iron fronts in the 1888 Plat Map was a mistake, and the iron fronts were part of the 1886 renovation. I can’t be 100% certain until I find visual or textual evidence of the intervening years.

The above photograph from the 1890 “City of Rochester Illustrated” shows the buildings fully clad in cast iron.

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The Clock

The above photograph is from History and Commerce of Rochester, published in 1892. While the buildings are not visible in the photograph, a clock reading “Wheeler & Wilson, Pawn Brokers” is present to the left.

This distinctive clock stood out in front of No. 39 East Main Street. The clock would have been brand-new in the image, having been installed in May of 1890:

The ornate clock was created by the Seth Thomas Clock Company in Thomaston, Connecticut.

For many decades, the distinctive clock would be central to advertising the location. “At the Sign of the Clock” was where J. C. Wilson Co. could be found, No. 39 East Main Street, second floor.

Apparently some sixteen to eighteen feet tall, the imposing clock was a black face in a black bezel mounted atop what seems to be a six-foot wrought-iron pillar upon a five-foot rectangular plinth. The frame of the east face of the clock bore the words “J. C. WILSON CO.” at top, the address “39” at the three- and nine-o’clock positions, and “JEWELERS” at the bottom. The west face was the same save for the words “DIAMONDS, WATCHES” at the bottom. The numerals were Roman. An ornamental finial topped it off.

The above photograph found on flourcitypost.com shows the clock to the left, with J. C. Wilson Co. Jewelers branding.

East Main Street at Aqueduct Street looking towards Graves Street.  During flooding, as you may have noticed.  The J. C. Wilson Co. clock is at center.  Nos. 37 & 39 East Main Street are at right, with a sign reading “Rienzi | Frank B. Warren” over the door.  The iron front under the bay window bears the embossed words “J. C. WILSON CO. | WATCHES”. I suspect it reads “DIAMONDS” as well on the far side of the window.

This shot of the base of the clock reveals the little door for servicing the timepiece, as well as a sign reading “DIAMONDS | WATCHES | JEWELRY | SILVERWARE…” and then several more I’m unable to read.

The above photograph by photography pioneer Charles C. Zoller shows the J. C. Wilson Co. clock, center, set against the Powers Building. Also visible are the two tiers of pawnbroker’s balls, sets of three golden balls which traditionally serve as an occupational symbol and signage for pawnbrokers.

The clock is peeking in from the right side in the above parade photo.

At some date prior to 1943, the clock had been replaced with a more modern design bearing brand signage for C. S. Forsythe Jewelry Co. The clock had a white face in a black bezel atop a column. The numerals were in Arabic numerals instead of Roman numerals.

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J. C. Wilson

So who was J. C. Wilson of J. C. Wilson Co.? The answer turns out to be fairly interesting!

Photographed above for publication in the 1902 Notable Men of Rochester and Vicinity, Joseph C. Wilson was by that point a well-established pawnbroker, as well as City Assessor. And his political career had only just begun.

The above excerpt indicates J. C. Wilson took ownership of Wheeler & Wilson, changing the name to J. C. Wilson & Co. Presumably, three years later in 1888 he undertook a major overhaul of his storefronts, in the form of full iron fronts emblazoned with the J. C. Wilson &. Co. branding.

Joseph C. Wilson would become Rochester’s 52nd Mayor from 1927-1930.

He was father to Joseph R. Wilson, who in turn was father to Joseph Chamberlain Wilson, founder of Xerox, namesake of Joseph C. Wilson High School and Wilson Boulevard.

And to bring it back around to No. 39 East Main Street, above is the wife of Joseph C. Wilson, Marie (“Peggy”) Curran Wilson at C. S. Forsythe, Inc. Jewelers, formerly at No. 39 East Main Street, in 1967. By this point, the old iron storefronts of her husband’s accomplished grandfather were twelve years or more gone.

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Rienzi Cafe

A large oval sign decorates the storefront in several photographs during the 1910s, declaring the ground floor entrance at No. 39 as belonging to Frank B. Warren’s Reinzi Cafe:

The flood photograph from earlier again, this time to highlight the oval “Rienzi | Frank B. Warren” sign above the entrance. Signs in the window say “BAR”, “FRANK B. WARREN”, and “Bartholomay Bock”

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Adjacent Buildings

The pawn shop of Wheeler & Wilson and, eventually, J. C. Wilson Co. shared the East Main Street block between Aqueduct and Graves Streets with two other major businesses; to the east, Nos. 41-45, a shop selling wallpapers, paints, varnishes, and oils; to the west, Nos. 31-35, a shop selling hardware.

The entire block colloquially became known as “Hardware Row”, after the hardware store which operated continuously since the 1840s on the corner of Aqueduct Street, itself known as “Hardware Corner”. By the 1890s, ads would refer to “The Old ‘Hardware Corner’” with quotation marks, which would eventually give way to just “The Old Hardware Corner”, no quotation marks. Really gives you a sense of the age, doesn’t it?

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Nos. 41-45 East Main Street

In the old Buffalo Street days, part of this building served the Democrat newspaper, an “ancestor” of the modern Democrat & Chronicle.

The painted window to the right says Wheeler & Wilson, Pawn Brokers. A sign states that the two upper floors were to let, inquiry with Wheeler & Wilson.

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Nos. 31-35 East Main Street

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Nos. 37 & 39 Through the Years

Nos. 37 & 39 are at far left. As per my theory, this was year 1 of the iron fronts being in place.

As noted in the earlier that No. 37 East Main seems to not yet have bay windows. In its stead, a circular sign is installed across the second story, with a circular adornment. Could it be another clock? It’s still too unclear to count it for certain, but I believe it to be. Perhaps the installation of the bay windows necessitated the removal of the sign and its clock, at which point the post clock would have been installed on the street curb.

The three gold balls of the pawnbroker’s trade can be seen; just one set, for now.

The above shows Nos. 37 & 39 East Main Street at center.

The gabled roofs of Nos. 37 & 39 are clear at bottom right, yet the front is too lost in darkness to discern.

The peaked roof of 37 & 39 can be seen topped with a J.C. Wilson Co. sign, at left.

One can see the peaked roof of Nos. 37 & 39 midway down the right side, just above the foremost streetcar.

The above image shows East Main street’s south side as viewed from the Powers Block.  One can see Nos. 37 & 39 in the center background, above the four clustered trolley cars. 

37 & 39 East Main Street are visible at left, with a bit of the J. C. Wilson & Co Jewelers sign poking out above the white building (which is 41-15 East Main).

31-37 East Main in 1918 was sold to Guildford Drug Co. New larger windows were installed on the second storey during this time.

Nos. 37 & 39 are in the mid-background in the photo above, behind the building marked “HARDWARE” which was formerly Weaver Hardware, Nos. 31-35 East Main, to become Guilford Drugs in late 1918. That’s most likely what the giant sign on the front is about, but I can’t read it.

An advertisement for War Savings Stamps graces the wall of Guilford’s Drugs. The view is from the Powers Block, and the dark buildings in the center background are 37 & 39 East Main Street.  The building in front of it, with the DRUGS sign is Guilford Drug Co., 31-35 East Main Street, opened at this location this year, 1918.  The clock in the foreground is the Western Union Telegraph clock in front of Reynold’s Arcade.

This unusual shot, above, is an aerial photograph taken by Albert R. Stone from an airplane as it flew over various sites in the city of Rochester. The vantage point in this photo would have been somewhere over Race Street looking north over the tops of Nos. 37 & 39 East Main Street. The perspective lends us some insights: it appears as though the original Buffalo Street “Hardware Row” buildings were augmented by adding additional floors with peaked gable roofs; onto the façade of these additions, the cast-iron fronts were installed.

Nos. 41-45 East Main had undergone renovations by this date, changing the style of the façade.

A curiosity about the above photos is how No. 39 appears dark but No. 37 appears light. Were one or both of the cast iron fronts painted at some point? They seem normal in the 1932 photograph, so perhaps it was a new paint-job to spruce up for the 1934 Centennial? Just theories, ones I likely won’t ever be able to prove.

Nos. 37 & 39 are visible in the above aerial photo from the 1940’s [or 1950, according to the D&C]:

This photograph also has the dark-colored No. 39 and light-colored No. 37, which leads me to believe they were definitely painted at some point.

This 1950 Sanborn map makes it seem like the iron fronts have been removed by that year, as they have been covered over with the “brick” legend color.

However this aerial, apparently from the early 1950s, shows the peaked gables from behind. It’s possible this photograph was dated incorrectly, but…

There’s also the matter of the below postcard, which is dated “1950-1959”. The iron fronts still appear to be on Nos. 37 & 39 as of whatever year this is. So when were they removed?

My theory can’t account for the 1950 Sanborn map, but as far as I can tell those iron fronts must have remained affixed until 1955, when Columbia Banking Saving & Loan Assn. expanded their offices, overhauling Nos. 37 & 39 East Main Street to fit a uniform aesthetic.

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Columbia Bank Renovations

The Mainstreeter was located at No. 31 Main St. East, but extended under No. 37.  It was to remain open according to this article, however an obituary for the owner contends it was closed in 1955.

Yet another clock enters the picture, putting total up to four, perhaps five: The No. 11 Buffalo Street clock, the possible 1888 clock, the Wheeler & Wilson/J. C. Wilson Co. clock, the C. S. Forsythe clock, and now the Columbia Banking clock. So many lost clocks! Time is a thief of timepieces.

The above 1963 photograph looking east along East Main Street’s south side shows the Columbia Banking building with the sign in front. The expansion to Graves Street had not yet been completed at this point. No. 41 also seems to have been glued to Nos. 43 and 45 at some point–judging by the roofline–and updated.

Another angle looking west along East Main Street’s south side shows the Columbia Banking building with the sign in front.

In the above cropped aerial image from 1965, the buildings on Main Street bridge can be seen at left.  The first cross street where the bridge meets the river bank at center is Graves.  One can see Nos. 37 & 39 are gone, replaced by the present-day building at 31 East Main Street. Note the distinct difference in shade where the new building replacing Nos. 37 & 39 meets the original No. 31 East Main.   

The “Landmark Clock” makes its appearance again in the above article about Four Corners clocks being way off from one another.

Below, the final piece of visual evidence of the Columbia Banking clock:

By the next Google Maps update in 2022, the clock was gone, and the pavement in front of No. 31 East Main Street was redone.

Above, the structure in the present day.  As one can see, the structure at Nos. 41-45 was also annexed into the block and merged stylistically with the rest.

A view from above: one can clearly see the distinct rooflines of the buildings.  The original Nos. 31-35 building at left, the dark-roofed replacement for Nos. 37 & 39 which indents outwards in the middle, and the building[s] at Nos. 41-45 which was/were annexed later, on the right.

So, there we have it; the life of a block of buildings which boasted a set of handsome iron fronts between approximately 1888 and 1955. A business belonging to of one of Rochester’s mayors and grandfather to a businessman whose impact would change Rochester itself. These venerable façades stood in the center of our city’s downtown for nearly seven decades, and yet I never would have known they existed if not for photographs.

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