The Allison Block

The Allison Block. . , S. E. Allison opened a drugstore in a new building after the fire of 1884 and became the first office for the Bell Telephone Co. a year later. Allison vacated his store and rented it until 1897, then sold his drug store operation to T. C. Nicolls. Nicolls expanded the merchandise to include newspapers and stationery along with drugs. , After graduating from the Ontario College of Pharmacy, S. E. Allison's nephew C. H. Allison, purchased the drug store from Nicolls, thus returning the Allison name to the store. The building was destroyed in the 1901 fire. It was one of the most severely damaged due to an explosion caused by the chemicals kept in the store. , After rebuilding, Edward B. Flint established his rival drug store on the old Allison site. In June 1912, Flint sold the business to Orval Byers who in turn sold it to P. G. Morrison in May 1919. During Mr. Morrison's ownership of the drug store business, he sold the building and in 1928 relocated immediately west of the Post Office. , The Royal Bank of Canada moved their branch into this building in 1929 but closed only three years later. After the Royal Bank's departure, Gordon McKee opened the Superior Grocery Store. This store was purchased by Jack Hope who acquired an IGA franchise in 1953. He operated from this location until 1961 when he moved into a new store near the United Church. , George Stone operated a mens' store here until 1963. He sold his business to Don Carnegie, who renamed it Don Carnegie's Men's Wear. In 1976, Mr. Carnegie closed his store and it became a Becker's Milk store for the next decade. The property was next purchased by the Don Forder family in 1995. He undertook an extensive restoration of the building his daughter Dana moved her jewellery store, Dana's Goldsmithing here later that year. Dana purchased the building from her family in 2000.