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Dawson Street Store
25802 Dawson Street
Bellevue, Maryland
Talbot County
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| In its original location the Dawson Street Store was located
on the north side of Dawson Street in Bellevue, Talbot County.
Built in 1917, the store sat close to the street. At the time
of documentation the building had not been used for commercial
purposes for some time. It was littered with trash and contained
odds and ends of architectural features such as doors and windows
that were leaning against walls or resting on the floor. |
| The Dawson Street Store is a small building measuring approximately
22 feet deep by 16 feet wide. Resting on a concrete foundation,
horizontal board siding sheathes the exterior of the store, fishscale
shingles cover the hipped roof, and a cupola tops the building. |
| The southwest elevation has two openings, a door and a
bay window. In the center of the southeast elevation there
is a double window. |
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The northeast or rear elevation contains a door and a small
window. |
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| The northwest elevation contains one window located in
the center of this elevation |
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| The floor plan of the store appears to be one
room. Further investigation, including examination of the floors
may allow for a clearer picture of the plan. |
| The interior of the store appears to have undergone a number
of alterations. There is evidence to suggest that the openings
for doors and windows have not been moved, but they may have
been replaced with newer or larger elements. All of the windows
appear to be replacements, including the bay window. The evidence
for the alterations is found in disturbances to the tongue and
groove paneling. There are numerous ghost marks around the current
doors and windows that suggest different framing pieces were
once present. |
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| The authenticity of the doors is less clear. It is possible
that the original doors have been replaced. There are unattached
doors in the store, but there is little evidence of where they
belong or if they are original to the store. |
| All evidence of display areas had been removed when the store
was converted to residentual use. |
| There are similarities in the construction of the stores in
this project, such as the use of horizontal board siding to cover
the exterior of the building and an overall plan that includes
a first floor with an attic. Each building has some decorative
trim on the exterior, particularly on the front elevation. The
Dawson Street Store contains a bay window, while Bucktown has
the decorative feature of the returning cornice and the porch
supported by chamfered posts. The most obvious exterior differences
are the presence of a cupola and fishscale shingles on the roof
of the Dawson Street Store. Like Bucktown Village Store, Dawson
Street Store is placed very close to the road and is in a central
or busy location within the community. The differences between
the stores are much more noticable. The Dawson Street Store is
smaller in comparison to the Bucktown Village Store. The difference
in size may be attributed to the size of the community using
the stores. The Bucktown Village Store served a large
community that appeared to be spread out over a greater distance.
The Dawson Street Store, located close to the water in this densely
populated town, was not the only store in the town of Bellevue.
Another store was located further inland near the main road into
town. The Dawson Street Store has a greater amount of wall space
taken up by windows compared to the overall floor plan. It is
difficult to determine the floor plan or display plan of the
Dawson Street Store due to its condition at the time of documentation.
Being smaller and containing so many windows would seem to limit
the amount of wall space for shelving therefore, limiting the
overall amount of display space. |
| Cory T. and Barbara H. Oliver donated both buildings, the Dawson
Street store and house, to Habitat for Humanity, who will continue
to pursue the course of action
the Olivers began: restoration to the house and store. Both funding
and a new site have been secured for the 1917 store, which will
be moved to its new location in Bellevue after a foundation is
laid. The Bellevue-Royal Oak Community Association plans to
use the store as a museum for the local community. |
| Contact Person: Lucretia Krantz (410) 820-6186 |
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