Palace Drug Building

Palace Drug Building. . Built in 1895, this is one of the oldest buildings on Main Street. Originally, there was a curved parapet on the roof which had been removed by 1932. By 1909, this building become the home of the Palace Drug Store where you could purchase the modern medicine of the day including: Dr. King's New Life Pills, Chamberlain's Stomach and Liver Tablets, and Bucklen's Arnica Salve as well as a "choice line" of Perfumery and Cigars and Tobaccos. By 1924 the building held Lowary's Cash Grocery with a bakery in the back. The store carried "the very choicest of the season's offerings in Fruits and Vegetables... Which go toward helping you prepare good meals." In 1928, the store was given an exemption to the Sunday closing law and was allowed to open for business to support the "traveling public." , , The building served many commercial uses through the years until in 1962 it became the home of Hugh's Cafe. Hugh Cheever had opened a very successful cafe further up the block that had become a community institution. After his building was destroyed in the 1962 Main Street fire he relocated to this spot. A 1975 ad read "Next time you call your wife and announce that you're planning on bringing guests home for dinner, give her a break and add - “to dinner at Hugh's Cafe.” While Hugh Cheever closed his cafe in the late 1980's this site continues to be both a home for thriving businesses and a powerful example of historic preservation.