History of North Maple Street building

Jane Briley

Creston Historical Commission

One of the first buildings built in Creston known as the Agnew Building located at 112 N. Maple Street.

The Agnew Building is a three-story brick building. The Sanborn Fire Insurance Maps released in 1886, 1891, 1899, 1907, and 1913 show a two-story brick building in the location known as 110-112 North Maple. The original first floor had two entrances to the building, one at 110 and the other was 112 North Maple Street. This brick building was probably built for Thomas W. Kendall in the mid-1880s.

The neighboring landowner was John Hackett and he sold 3 feet of his property to Kendall. which suggests the brick building at 110–112 N. Maple St. had not yet been built at that time. By the time the 1886 Sanborn fire insurance map was published, the new brick building was constructed.

Thomas W. Kendall died in 1893 and his heirs sold the building to John Hackett and James Griffin. Hackett owned the south half while Griffin owned the north half. They owned the building until May 29, 1918, when Katie Hackett and Margaret Griffin transferred the building to Frank E. Agnew.

Shortly after the purchase, Agnew reunited the two halves of the building and most likely remodeled the brick building. On the Sanborn Fire Insurance Map printed in 1923, the building in this location is shown as a three-story building, not the two-story building as shown earlier. This building is presently a three-story 8-inch brick building with a basement. The upper stories are clad primarily in white glazed brick, but dark green accents are used in several places.

The “Agnew” name block is located between the third-story windows and the roof. Patterned green brick also decorate the panels between the two upper stories. Today the facade features on the second and third stories still include all of the decorative elements that were placed on the building in 1920. In 1920, the building was also expanded in the back.

The trade magazine, Haberdasher, in November 1920, informs readers, “Agnew Clothing Co., will move from temporary location to a new building, now being completed, in two months.” Agnew most likely moved into the building in 1921.

In the Creston Advertiser Gazette on Sept. 29, 1922, a box advertisement read, “Office rooms are ready for rent October 1st in the Agnew Building. On Oct 14, 1922, Drs. Geo F and Lillie E. Wagoner moved their office into one of the spaces in the upper floors of the Agnew Building. During the same time period, Dr. W. J. Jones also moved his dental office into the Agnew Building. Over the years, many professionals used this building for their offices. Dr. George Waggoner and Dr. Lillie Waggoner were osteopaths, Dr. W.J. Jones, a dentist, and Dr. Al Templeton occupied rooms as well. In 1942, Dr. F.C. Armstrong joined the building as a physician. In 1948, Dr. O.E. Wilson, a dentist, took rooms in the Agnew Building. There was J.P. Healy, an attorney, in Room 4 and later E.F. Eniry was another attorney in the building. Wareham Beauty Shop was in Room 2 from 1924 through 1936 and then this beauty shop was replaced by Snyder Twins Beauty Parlor in 1942.

Other types of businesses were also in the Agnew Building, Harlan Schmuck Oil Company, the Iowa Highway Commission Office, J.W. McCue, who was an insurance dealer, and J.T. Long, a real estate agent, was located in rooms on the upper floor. May Mackin, a milliner, and Kathryn Currin with her own Ready to Wear store occupied one or more of the rooms on the second and third Floors.

Franklin E. Agnew had been born in Ohio and as a child came with his parents, Samuel and Elmira Agnew, to Iowa. Franklin along with his brothers, Joseph and Caleb, chose different paths from their father, a farmer. Franklin became a merchant, selling gentleman’s clothing; Caleb was a master mason and in later years started a successful photography business in Creston. Their brother, Joseph, moved to Des Moines and later Kansas City where he published and sold music. Franklin and Joe were known for their musical abilities and the two of them developed a band in Creston and kept it up for many years. It was stated in the Creston News Advertiser, July 2, 1935, on p. 3 “If there hadn’t been Agnew in Creston maybe there wouldn’t have been music.” Franklin E. married Elizabeth and had four children in Creston.

They had two girls and two boys. The girls were Elizabeth and Margaret (Peggy) and the boys were Franklin E. Agnew, Jr. and Richard Agnew.

In 1930, Frank Agnew leased the North 28 feet of the ground floor to the F.W. Woolworth Company. C.D. Stevens was the manager of Woolworths in Creston at that time. It was announced in the Creston News Advertiser the lease was for 15 years. The Agnew Clothing Store remained in the south 16 feet of the building. Woolworths remodeled the entrance on the front of the building and made changes to the interior starting in January 1930.

Frank E. Agnew was the merchant and tailor with Agnew Clothing from the time the Agnew Building was completed in about 1921 and until 1936. In 1936, he left the Agnew Building and started a tailor business next door in the Swanson Clothing Store through 1943.

Sometime during the 1940′s, the ownership of the building went to the Cromwell State Savings Bank and then stock shares were sold to members of the community. There were 62 shares sold. Some of the owners of the shares were prominent citizens of the community such as C.S. Rex, Margaret Griffin, George Johnston Arden McKee and Frank Streams. They became the new owners. Over the years shares were sold to other investors. In 1954, shared were transferred to Mary Duggan. Mary Duggan ended up with the entire deed for the building; she evidently had purchased all of the 62 bonds through the years. By the next year, 1955, Mary Duggan’s shares were purchased by T.M. Thompson as referenced in the Union County, IA, Transfer Book, Book 4, 1937-1978, p. 106.

In 1936, the southern portion of the building, or 110 North Maple, was taken over by Loren’s Shoe Store and F.W. Woolworth Company continued in 112 North Maple, the north portion of the building. In 1940, Loren’s Shoe Store left the building. F. W. Woolworth Company appears to have taken over the entire building but used the 112 North Maple Street address through 1971. In 1971, the F.W. Woolworth Company announced in the Creston News Advertiser they would be closing their store at 112 North Maple in Creston on Dec. 31.

Creston News Advertiser reported Oct. 4, 1972, the Gambles Store was happy to see so many customers stop in at their grand opening in the new location at 112 North Maple. Gambles was a department store a variety of different items. The following items were listed in the Creston News Advertiser in 1972. Some sale items included a dust mop for 99 cents, a 6-volt battery for $11.95, and 45 RPM Records for 29 cents each. Gambles continued business in the Agnew Building until 1979.

In 1982, Palm’s Clothing Store opened as a men’s clothing store in the Agnew Building, which continued to be addressed as 112 North Maple and was operated by Lou Palm. The Agnew Building was owned at that time by T. M. Thompson and on March 5, 1987, the building was transferred from Thompson to Dorothy T. Lape. The building to the south was a ladies ready-to-wear clothing store until 1982. Lou and Jan Palm bought the building at 108 North Maple which was addressed 110 North Maple in 1982 and they opened their own a ladies ready to wear clothing store. They encouraged customer flow between the two buildings with a new connecting interior door.

On June 2, 1999, the Agnew Building was sold to Christine and Gary VanGelder located at 110-112 North Maple which included the building to the south, formerly 108 North Maple that had been readdressed 110 North Maple. Lou Palm sold the business to the VanGelders and they sold the same clothing lines as the Palm’s Clothing and LouJans. VanGelders had a successful business at this location until May 31, 2018, when they closed the store. The building was vacant until July 24, 2020, when Rants LLC purchased it from the VanGelders.