Dobbins Drug Store

Generations #3

Photographed by Cosmos Mariner, May 22, 2022

1. Dobbins Drug Store Marker

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York,

York,

Lakes,

Area.

Northeast,

Lakes,

Mid-Atlantic.

America,

Hemisphere,

World,

Anglosphere.

Confederacy,

Netherland,

Colonies.

Photographed by Cosmos Mariner, May 22, 2022

2. Dobbins Drug Store Marker & Mural

The marker is mounted on the left side of the mural.

From the National Register Nomination prepared by Katie Eggers Comeau, 12/17/2017:
Lyons grew from a small cluster of dwellings at the head of navigation of the Clyde River into a thriving village along the Erie Canal, serving as a hub of transportation, commerce, and industry during the years the canal fostered the rapid growth of communities along its path. Lyons was selected as the Wayne County seat in 1823, just before the Erie Canal officially opened; the courthouse and county offices, located in the center of the downtown business district, brought additional prominence and growth to the community. The arrival of the railroad in the mid-nineteenth century solidified the village’s prominence as a hub of industry and transportation, a position it retained well into the twentieth century.

A particularly important figure in the growth of Lyons was De Witt W. Parshall, a lawyer who was born in nearby Palmyra in 1812 and settled permanently in Lyons in 1840. He was responsible for the construction of many of the brick commercial buildings along William and Canal streets, a number being distinguished by their mansard roofs.

Architectural styles common in the second half of the nineteenth century are well represented in the commercial architecture of Lyons. A notable cluster of commercial buildings at the west end of Canal Street, developed shortly after the Civil War by DeWitt Parshall, display Second Empire, Stick Style, and Italianate characteristics, including mansard roofs, ornate window hoods, and whimsical wood detailing, some of which has been lost due to updates. Notable late nineteenth-century commercial buildings include the remaining two stories of the Parshall Memorial Building.

52-58 William Street, 1881
Parshall Memorial Building
Two-story brick commercial building. Storefronts on the first floor retain traditional orientation of recessed entrance flanked by display windows; these are separated by square brick and stone piers. Brick bulkheads with diamond patterned brickwork; individual storefronts display various alterations including metal doors and metal-framed display windows. Shingled mansard overhang (not original) spans facade above storefronts. Second-floor front divided into four bays by wide brick piers with vertical bands of recessed brickwork; within each bay are paired (center two) or triple (outer two) 1/1 double-hung windows with jack-arch lintels; above each set of windows is a brick arch with keystone, within which the tympanum displays patterned brickwork. Band of trim above second-floor windows appears to be missing and may have been removed when third floor was removed.

The Parshall Memorial Building was constructed in 1881 in memory of DeWitt Parshall, a leading citizen of early Lyons responsible for developing much of Canal Street and other parts of the village. Center of second floor exterior has decorative cast stone memorial plaque dedicated to Parshall. It had an opera hall on the third floor. The interior of the building was destroyed in a 1916 fire, but the exterior walls were saved; the third floor was rebuilt to house the Masonic lodge. The third floor was removed in 1960 after another fire.

Photographed by Cosmos Mariner, May 22, 2022

3. Dobbins Drug Store Mural

Excerpt:  In 1943, Bill Dobbins and his family moved to Lyons and opened a drugstore on 42 William Street, thus beginning the operation that is still serving the citizens of Wayne County nearly 70 years later.

After Bill’s son, Winston, graduated from Albany College of Pharmacy in 1958, he joined his father’s business. Knowing that more space would be needed for the growing operation, Bill bought the Parshall Memorial Building, a structure on 52-56 William Street the following year. The new location provided additional room and also allowed for later expansion.

When Bill retired in 1961, Daniel Barnes bought his half of the business. A card and gift section was added to the remodeled store in 1964 and was expanded into the 58 William Street store space in 1993. Bill’s old pharmacy fixtures were used for shelving, prompting the store to be named the Old Pharmacy Gift Shoppe. Winston’s son, Sean, a graduate of Albany College of Pharmacy, purchased Daniel Barnes’ half of Dobbins Corporation in 1992 and his father’s half in 1996, the year before Winston retired. Today, Sean Dobbins proudly provides various pharmaceutical and business services and unique gifts to the customers of Wayne County.

Photographed by Cosmos Mariner, May 22, 2022

4. DeWitt Parshall Memorial Plaque

(on 2nd story of Dobbins Drug Store façade)
Erected to the memory of DeWitt Parshall,
who died May 12th 1880, aged 68 years.

(Lyons Rural Cemetery, Lyons, Wayne County, New York, USA) Excerpt:  DeWitt Parshall received his education at the Canandaigua Academy, where he was for several terms a classmate and roommate of Stephen A. Douglass. Choosing the law as a profession, he entered the office of the late Gen. William H. Adams, at Lyons, where he industriously prosecuted his studies and was admitted to the bar in 1838. He opened his first law office at Lyons, but in 1839, having formed a co-partnership with the late Judge Theron R. Strong, he moved to Palmyra, but feeling that there was a better field for his activities at the County seat, the partnership was dissolved at his own request and he returned to Lyons, where he continued to reside for the remainder of his life. In addition to his law practice he became extensively engaged in real estate transactions and continued until his death the most extensive dealer in and owner of real estate in the county. The Village of Lyons owes much of its prosperity to his enterprise and public spirit. In 1852, he established the Palmyra Bank, of Lyons, the name of which was changed to the Lyons Bank two

Photographed by Cosmos Mariner, May 22, 2022

5. DeWitt Parshall Memorial Building / Dobbins Drug Store

years later and again in 1865, it was converted into the Lyons National Bank, under which name it has ever since enjoyed prosperity. He served as Supervisor of his town several terms, and later was President of the Village of Lyons. In 1868, he was elected to the Legislature of New York State, where he served one term.