Leonard Cash told the story of the early days of block 7, lot 21, in last week’s issue of the News Letter Journal with particular emphasis on the Washburn-Bettis store, a local grocery. This week, we continue with the timeline of the property with the end of the Washburn-Bettis era and the start of the Berry Hotel.
Washburn-Bettis was open for business in the fall of 1917, and a concrete sidewalk was soon put in outside of the store, along with a cellar behind the building, according to the News Letter Journal. A house was also located on the lot to the rear of the store and warehouse—Cash thinks there were three buildings behind the larger grocery, which all must have been small structures to fit in such a tight space. Cash also said the house was later moved out by Newcastle Motors.
When Washburn-Bettis initially opened, S.V. Washburn continued to sell coal and ice for several months through his new grocery venture. He soon sold that part of his business to Ira S. Bowker so that Washburn could focus solely on Washburn-Bettis, according to Cash’s records.