141 No. 10th Street

Address: 141 North 10^th Street

Legal Description:

Building: Johnson Building

1890 Reed Laundry was here, proprietor R. A. Reed

1890 The property was owned by Marc Alexander.

1891 J. H. Luke owned ½ interest in the property.

1891 Margaret Farr owned the property.

1891 Peerless Laundry was here, F. M. Catron was the proprietor.

1892 The Sanborn map showed a laundry here.

1892 William Matthew and Marc Alexander each owned ½ interest in the property.

1892 F. M. Catron opened a laundry in the building.

1895 J. Peifenburg owned the property.

1896 Estey and Camp owned the property.

1897 The Sanborn map showed a vacant store.

1899 O’Hair and O’Connor painters and paperhangers.

1900 Marc Alexander owned the property.

1902 Dick Low Lee bought the Alexander property three lots north of his current location at 127 No. 10^th and ran a laundry here. Dick Low Lee moved his laundry to approx.. 113 No. 10^th.

1903 The north building of the row, opposite the hose house, was condemned and ordered torn down. The building was owned by Dick Low Lee and occupied by J. L. Adams. J. L. Adams moved his poultry and egg business into the building adjoining on the south, 137 No. 10^th.

1905 The property was sold to Chas. Shickley.

1908 J. P. Johnson purchased the lot north of Wilcox’s store and began building an automobile repair shop.

1909 In March, W. H. Lake moved his automobile garage here from 1040 G Street.

1909 In September, W. H. Lake had a Cartercar.

1909 In November, W. H. Lake surrendered his Buick automobile agency to W. C. Peterson for this year and the next.

1909 The Sanborn map showed a garage here.

1913 The Geneva Steam Laundry was here.

1920 In May, Knud Knudsen and W. R. McCullough started a paint manufacturing business under the name of Economy Paint Mills. Dr. H. L. Smith was a financier for the business.

1920 In June, they bought the property at 615 G Street, formerly occupied by Ed Pierce. They moved there and Ed Pierce moved to 145 South 10th.

1921 H. O. Emerson had an auto paint shop here.

1922 The Sanborn map indicated a plumbing shop was located here. A. E. Brabham Plumbing was here. Before going into business for himself, he was employed by Frank Bentley.

1922 Carlson & Matejka did electrical wiring and were located at Brabham’s shop.

1931 Knud Knudsen purchased the lot and had a paint store here.

1933 The Sanborn map showed a paint store here.

1934 Dave Mowry moved his repair shop here from the Union Block after it was destroyed by fire. Dave Mowry died in 1938 and his son ran the business through 1940.

1945-48 Al Owen bought the property and opened the A. R. Owen Repair Shop.

1950 W. W. “Smokey” Biegert bought the property. Smokey and Don Apley moved the old garage on the property to an acreage on F Street.

1950 Smokey then built a new building for his W. W. Biegert Body Shop. Biegert Construction also operated part-time from this location.

1954 Lloyd Hendryx opened a body shop called Hendryx Auto Rebuilders.

1957 Harlan Crisman opened a body shop and changed the name to Chrisman Body Shop.

1959 Charles Massoth bought the property.

1959 Floyd Hajny opened a body shop here.

1961 Harland “Hap” McLeary opened a shop called H & M Body and Fender Shop.

1970 Hugh Parpart changed the name to Hugh’s Body Shop.

1974 Don Apley purchased the property from the Charles Massoth estate. Apley’s Body Shop opened here.

1977 Lonnie Cargile purchased the property from Don Apley. Lonnie Cargile remodeled the space into offices and moved his CPA office from 858 G Street.

1978 Stuart Gratopp moved his insurance agency here from above the Archer Barbershop on G Street. Other businesses shared space over the years.

1979 Lindell, Cox & Kopsa, CPA’s shared office space.

1983 Larry Cox, CPA shared office space.

1984 Stuart Gratopp retired and the Gratopp Insurance Agency closed.

1985 Richard Walter opened an Insurance Agency here.

1988 The Tone Zone shared office space. This figure shaping salon for men and women was owned and operated by Vicki Zabokrtsky of Endicott and Kay Hauschel of Fairbury.

1988 Richard Walter moved to 125 So. 10^th.

1989 Mid-America Vision Center opened an office here.

1991 Stu Gratopp purchased the property from Lonnie Cargile.

1994 Michael Meacham purchased the property from Stu Gratopp.

1994 Mid-American Vision Center moved to 1004 G Street.

1996 The All-American Insurance Agency moved here from York State Bank. Stu Seward and wife Nancy (Biegert) Seward ran the agency.

2004 Stu Seward purchased the property from Michael Meacham.

2015 Stu Seward retired and his son, Martin, took over the firm, changing the name to All American Insurance, LLC.