Dolores in Montezuma County, Colorado — The American Mountains (Southwest)

Exon Mercantile

315 Central Avenue

Photographed by Cosmos Mariner, July 17, 2025

1. Exon Mercantile Marker

Inscription. Built 1905-1907
Dolores Historical Registry Designation 1998

Topics and series. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Architecture • Industry & Commerce • Notable Buildings. In addition, it is included in the National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) series list. A significant historical year for this entry is 1905.

Location. 37° 28.436′ N, 108° 30.291′ W. Marker is in Dolores, Colorado, in Montezuma County. It is on Central Avenue just west of North 4th Street, on the right when traveling west. The marker is mounted on the south/front facade of the building. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 315 Central Avenue, Dolores CO 81323, United States of America. Touch for directions.

Regionally, this marker is in the American Mountain West,

in Colorado Plateau,

and at the Four Corners.

Globally, it is in North America,

the Rocky Mountains,

the Western Hemisphere,

the Western World,

and the Anglosphere.

Historically, it finds itself in what was once Mexico’s Alta California.

Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within 3 miles of this marker, measured as the

Paid Advertisement

Click or scan to see
this page online

crow flies: Father Escalante (within shouting distance of this marker); Galloping Geese of the Rio Grande Southern Railroad (about 400 feet away, measured in a direct line); Galloping Goose #5 (about 500 feet away); The Anasazi (about 500 feet away); Respite Along the Dolores (about 500 feet away); The Southern Hotel (about 500 feet away); Big Bend and McPhee (approx. ¾ mile away); The Landscape (approx. 2.2 miles away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Dolores.

Regarding Exon Mercantile. National Register of Historic Places № 100009564.

Also see . . .
1. Exon Mercantile Building (History Colorado).

Excerpt: In 1896 William Exon started a small meat market, one of Dolores’s first businesses. The business grew and expanded and the Exon Building was constructed between 1906–1907 to house the Exon and Rush Meat Market and Mercantile. In 1967, the business shut down and the building was sold. Since then, it’s been home to a newspaper; two antique stores; and, more recently a bike shop. The property owners have teamed up with the Town of Dolores to apply for a grant to fund various repairs to the building
Photographed by Cosmos Mariner, July 17, 2025

2. National Register of Historic Places Marker
(mounted directly below the Exon Mercantile Marker)
This property has been listed in the
National Register of Historic Places
by the United States Department of the Interior
that were identified in a 1999 “Historic Structure Assessment.” These repairs include restoration of the masonry, foundation and storefront. This work will preserve a beautiful and well-loved historic building that reinforces Dolores’ sense of place in the past and the present.

(Submitted on December 26, 2025, by Cosmos Mariner of Cape Canaveral, Florida.)

2. Former Southwest Colorado Meat Market Building.

(by Garry Boulard) Excerpt: A one-story historic brick building in the town of Dolores, Colorado that once housed a grocery store and meat market may soon see a significant upgrade. The former Exon Mercantile Building was built around 1907 and has been on the town historic register list since 1998. Originally called the Exon and Rush Meat Market and Mercantile building, the structure some fifty years later served as the home for the offices of the Dolores Star newspaper. The building, named in honor of early Colorado settler and businessman William Exon, is notable for its decorative corbels extending across the front exterior, and side walls that slightly decline towards the rear of the property.

(Submitted on December 26, 2025, by Cosmos Mariner of Cape Canaveral, Florida.)

3. Exon Mercantile Company (Society of Architectural Historians).

Photographed by Cosmos Mariner, July 17, 2025

3. Exon Mercantile Marker

The marker is mounted below the window at the center of the south/front facade.

(by Thomas J. Noel) Excerpt: The typical corbeled brick facade and transomed glass storefronts of this relic are little altered. The typical stepped-down side walls hide a slightly pitched roof descending to a collection of stone and corrugated metal sheds at the rear.

(Submitted on December 26, 2025, by Cosmos Mariner of Cape Canaveral, Florida.)

Exon Mercantile (<i>south/front elevation</i>) image. Click for full size.

Photographed by Cosmos Mariner, July 17, 2025

4. Exon Mercantile (south/front elevation)

Exon Mercantile (<i>southeast elevation</i>) image. Click for full size.

Photographed by Cosmos Mariner, July 17, 2025

5. Exon Mercantile (southeast elevation)

Credits. This page was last revised on December 26, 2025. It was originally submitted on December 23, 2025, by Cosmos Mariner of Cape Canaveral, Florida. This page has been viewed 62 times since then and 27 times this year. Photos: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5. submitted on December 26, 2025, by Cosmos Mariner of Cape Canaveral, Florida.