Hello Girls!

Hello Girls!. Historic Sailfish Trail. Travelers arriving in Stuart in the late 1800's knew they had reached a civilized town when they saw the steeple of Stuart's first church standing next to the railroad in the Potsdam Subdivision. Built in 1895, the 12-member congregation represented over 10 percent of the city's population – yes, there weren't even 100 people in Stuart yet!, The charming two-story structure in front of you was built in 1914 for the local Pineapple Camp No. 150, Woodmen of the World with H. A. Carlisle's Feed Store on the first floor. During the Spanish Flu epidemic of 1918, the building served as a hospital. Stuart's City Hall was even a tenant!, By far, the longest tenant downstairs was the Southern Bell Telephone Company, taking up residence in 1924 along with their friendly operators known as "Hello Girls.” Southern Bell moved out in 1959. By then the telephones had used dial tone system, and Hello Girls were no longer needed., By 1950 meetings were no longer held at the Woodmen Hall. Age weighed heavily on the building, and in 1994 it was condemned. Just before it was scheduled to be burned as a firefighter training exercise, Stuart Main Street stepped in, securing state historic preservation status for the building., Woodmen Hall continues to thrive in Downtown Stuart thanks to a loving restoration by Stuart Main Street and Masterpiece Builders in 1996. Masterpiece Builders brought their restoration expertise to many other notable downtown buildings, also helping to save local landmarks including the Flagler Recreation Center (former World War II Servicemen's Club) and the Stuart Feed Store (now home to the Stuart Heritage Museum)., Captions: , (Top) The distinctive red roof an the steeple of Stuart's first church was easily seen by rail passengers. The building later served as a restaurant, newspaper office and chamber of commerce before being moved around the corner to 3rd Street in 1930. , (Bottom, left) Around the corner from where you are standing on the north side of the street, is an otherwise nondescript building with unmistakably church-like windows –Stuart's very first church. , (Bottom, right) The Stuart Band plays in front of Woodmen Hall circa 1915., For more local history, visit the Stuart Heritage Museum in the Stuart Feed Store building (www.stuartheritagemuseum.com) or the Elliott Museum (www.elliottmuseum.org)..