DeLand in Volusia County, Florida — The American South (South Atlantic)

First Commercial Store

1877

Photographed By AGS Media, August 1, 2011

1. First Commercial Store Marker

Inscription. Capt. James B. Jordan came to DeLand in 1876. While serving in a North Carolina regiment during the civil war, Capt. Jordan was wounded and taken prisoner in July 1863 at the Battle of Gettysburg. Following the war, he came to Florida and opened DeLand's first commercial store in a wood building on this site. A year later he sold all his goods - lock, stock, and barrel, - to George P. Dreka and John G. Kilkoff. This site, then, became the first Dreka store in DeLand. An energetic and successful entrepreneur, Dreka later built a larger store on the corner of E. New York Ave. and Woodland Blvd. in 1882. There he became DeLand's foremost retailer. The wood building that was here burned to the ground in the fire of 1886.

Erected by the West Volusia Historical Society.

Topics and series. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Industry & Commerce • War, US Civil. In addition, it is included in the Florida - West Volusia Historical Society series list. A significant historical month for this entry is July 1863.

Location. 29° 1.735′ N, 81° 18.238′ W. Marker is in DeLand, Florida, in Volusia County. Marker is on West Indiana Avenue west of North Woodland Boulevard (U.S. 17/92), on the left when traveling west. The marker is mounted on the front

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of the Landis-Fish Building, to the right of the front doors when facing the building. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 110 West Indiana Avenue, Deland FL 32720, United States of America. Touch for directions.

Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within walking distance of this marker. Landis-Fish Building (here, next to this marker); The First Post Office (a few steps from this marker); First Movie House (within shouting distance of this marker); Historic Volusia County Courthouse (within shouting distance of this marker); The Haven Block (within shouting distance of this marker); Volusia County Historic Courthouse (within shouting distance of this marker); First Public Building (within shouting distance of this marker); DeLand Vietnam Memorial (within shouting distance of this marker). Touch for a list and map of all markers in DeLand.

More about this marker. The marker is located within the Downtown DeLand Historic District (a National Historic District).

Regarding First Commercial Store. The site where Capt. James Jordan opened his store in 1877 is today the location of the Landis-Fish Building, a two-story, Federal-style, brick office building. First built in 1905 by the law firm of Landis & Fish, the building would be the firm's home for 80 years, and is commemorated with its own historical marker. (See nearby marker: "Landis-Fish
Photographed By AGS Media, August 1, 2011

2. First Commercial Store Marker
The historical marker is mounted to the right of the double-doors, opposite the "Landis-Fish Building" historical marker on the left.
Building")

Capt. Jordan decided to devote his time to citrus farming, so he sold the store to Kilkoft and Dreka. John Kilkoft was husband to George Dreka's sister, Eva. Kilkoft died shortly afterward, and Dreka used money from an insurance policy to build a new store just around the corner and one block south in 1882. Dreka built two buildings there, the second one in 1909. It is still in use today by various business and commercial interests, and is also commemorated with a historical marker. (See nearby marker: "Dreka Building")

Also see . . . "The Road to DeLand": G.A. Dreka. Historic photos of Capt. Jordan's first store, and George Dreka. (Submitted on August 13, 2011, by Glenn Sheffield of Tampa, Florida.)

First Commercial Store Site and Marker image. Click for full size.

Photographed By AGS Media, August 1, 2011

3. First Commercial Store Site and Marker

The Landis-Fish building stands on the former site of a wooden building which housed DeLand's first commercial store.

The Dreka Building image. Click for full size.

Photographed By AGS Media, August 1, 2011

4. The Dreka Building

George Dreka moved his store operations to this site at the southeast corner of Woodland Boulevard and New York Avenue. Here, in 1882, Dreka built a new two-story, department store building that eventually saw another two floors added to accommodate a hotel.

The building pictured here was built by Dreka in 1909, and was the first reinforced concrete building in Volusia County.

Credits. This page was last revised on July 22, 2018. It was originally submitted on August 12, 2011, by Glenn Sheffield of Tampa, Florida. This page has been viewed 747 times since then and 12 times this year. Photos: 1, 2, 3, 4. submitted on August 12, 2011, by Glenn Sheffield of Tampa, Florida. • Craig Swain was the editor who published this page.