By Bobby Bice
To begin this month’s column, I’d like to make a correction on last month’s article. For those of you who may have caught the error, I referenced the former David Mahlon Shinn house and stated its location is at the top of Mahlon Street. It is actually at the top of Clement Street. I’m sure there are a select few who are anxious to correct me, but rest assured: I caught the error.
Last month’s column featured an envelope from the Central Hotel in Shinnston. The hotel was located on the southeast corner of Pike and Bridge Streets, now the location of WesBanco. This month’s article will continue on with that same corner. After the September 1902 fire which destroyed the Central Hotel on this corner (along with most of the entire block), new structures were soon built to replace the old and progress forward.
This month’s submission is a photo postcard, owned by me, showing the Knights of Pythias building. The image was taken after a third floor addition, but the original two story structure (which replaced the Central Hotel) is visible. A prime location for a business to prosper, the two story brick building with a store front facing Pike Street was constructed shortly after the fire. I’m not certain of the first business to move into this building after its construction, so rather than incorrectly use a “best guess” judgment; I’ll state that I do know Hawker Hardware—then known as Leslie Hawker and Company—moved to this building in 1906. Mr. Hawker had purchased a hardware store in the early months of 1901 from J.D. Robinson and was originally located along the opposite side of Pike Street, near present day Harmer Funeral Home. He was eventually in partnership with his father and brother, Thomas and Homer, respectively. (Note: Leslie Hawker was the first person in Harrison County to die in an automobile accident when his car wrecked at Shinn’s Run in September 1912.) Hawker had a trap door in the floor of the store that his son, Wayne, accidentally fell through into the basement when he was a child and broke two ribs. Many locals remember Wayne Hawker.
Shinnston has been home to a variety of lodge organizations over the years. In fact, during the first twenty years of the twentieth century, Shinnston had about a dozen different lodges in town. The Knights of Pythias had a couple of different chapters along with the Pythian Sisters. It was common for lodges to add third stories to already existing buildings. Third floor additions would house their meetings where complete privacy and secrecy could be attained. The Odd Fellows, the Masons, and the Knights of Pythias each added third floors to [still-standing] buildings in town.
From 1889 until 1906, the Rathbone Lodge No. 52 Knights of Pythias rented a room in Short’s Opera House. The opera house sat on the southwest corner of Pike and Station Streets, but burned to the ground in February 1906. For several months after the fire, the lodge had no dedicated meeting space, but was soon granted permission to construct a third level atop Hawker’s hardware store. When the K of P added a third floor to the building, they changed the façade to reflect a more appealing look for this new three story building. Lodge meetings were held on this new third (top) floor and they met every Tuesday night. I own the ledger that was kept during the construction of the addition and it appears that all of the work was done during the year 1907. The contract work was awarded to Richardson and Nay, an early construction company in Shinnston. (Note: Fernando “Ferd” Richardson was the contractor for many of the buildings and homes in the immediate area, including the current First Baptist Church along Rebecca Street.) At 77 years old, Oliver William Shinn and his two sons, Robert Henry and Meigs Curtis, did the brickwork on the K of P addition and façade. The total cost for the third floor and renovating the building was $2,492.96.
On the back of the postcard is printed, “Mfg. Especially for Queen Pharmacy”. Queen Pharmacy was located in Shinnston during the 1910 era. A man by the name of George Queen was the proprietor. He left Shinnston prior to 1912 and later operated pharmacies in both Clarksburg and Masontown.
The Bell Telephone Company as well as one of the many early gas companies had offices on the second floor in the building during the 1910’s. In addition to office space, living space was utilized as some rooms also became apartments. During the late 1940’s, the Shinnston Womans Club operated a library on the third floor of this building. In 1971, the Bank of Shinnston, located in the adjacent building since 1932, purchased this building to add to their complex.
In August 2024, a glimpse of yesteryear was visible for a few days when WesBanco had some of their stucco sheeting replaced on the building’s front façade, revealing much of the same brickwork seen in this month’s story behind the photo.
