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Another
photograph of "Mule Day". Judging from the truck,
this one was taken many years after the previous
photograph.

Photograph of the J.H. Churchhill and Brother
Undertaker shop taken in the late 1800's. This
building was located near the intersection of Third
and Maple Streets not far from the present day J.H.
Churchill Funeral Home who advertise their business
as "J.H. Churchill since 1886".

Stubblefield Drugstore located on the corner of 5th
and Main Streets where Lewis Drake is currently
located. Note the names of the various people in the
photograph.

Another
photo of the Stubblefield Drugstore. This one was
taken several years after the previous photograph.
Note: At one time there were four drugstores on the
square at once. It was where you went on Saturday
night just to “people watch”. Everyone had a
favorite store or story about goings on at the
square. It was a busy place!

Photograph of the Bank of Murray on East Main Street
where the Union Planters Bank currently resides.
This photograph was most likely taken about 1920
judging from the Ford Model T parked out front.

A.B.
Beale and Sons Hardware store was a very popular
store but finally closed in the late 1970's. Murray
Appliance currently resides at this location on the
corner of Third and Main Streets.

This is
a picture of the West side of the Court House
square. The Bull Pen is now housed in the building
with the balcony near the center of the block. The
adjacent alley which was later bricked in and
eventually became Wimpy's Shoe store and Shoe
Repair. Note the presence of the First Christian
Church in the background.

An
important photograph of a stationary "Honor Roll"
erected adjacent to the Court House and listing the
many names. Most likely it was taken shortly after
the conclusion of the Second World War.

What is
believed to be a parade marking one of Murray State
University's homecoming celebrations. The band is
seen going west on Main Street. Note the presence of
Corn Austin (right center), another of Murray's long
time business establishments.

An early
1940's photograph of the North side of the Court
House Square. Note the Junction KY 95 sign which was
later removed when the current Rt. 641 came into
existence.
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This
photograph of Stubbefield and Sledd was located
where McNutt Insurance stands today. It was most
likely taken in the late 1800's.

Every
fourth Monday of every month was one of the biggest
and busiest days of the year in Murray. It was also
referred to as "Trade Day" or "Mule Day", when
people for miles around brought their Mules and
other goods to town for sale or trade. Medicine Men
shows were often side attractions. The First United
Methodist church is in the right background.

Late
1800's photograph of a horse and buggy in front of
the Love and Miller Coffin Shop.

South
side of the Court Square circa late 1800's which was
later totally destroyed by fire. The H. Wear Drug
store on the left.

Rudy's
Restaurant, still a landmark after all these years!
Rudy's Restaurant was located in four other
locations before finally moving to the current
location of Fifth Street downtown.

A Court
House photograph taken in the early 1940's. This
3-story brick Classical Revival structure still sits
in the middle of the town square. It was constructed
of buff-color brick with stone details, such as
quoins, window lintels, and belt courses. Each of
the four sides has a 3-story Classical portico with
Ionic columns supporting a frieze and triangular
pediment. A bracketed cornice runs around the
building. On top of the building is an 8-sided
cupola with a dome top and dormer clocks on four
sides. The only original features on the interior
are the iron staircase banisters and marble
wainscoting. A stone Confederate War memorial with a
statue of Robert E. Lee stands at the northeast
corner of the square.

A
photograph taken of the interior of the luxurious
Varsity Movie Theatre on West Main Street taken
about 1938 shortly after it opened. Sadly, the
theatre burned down on a cold winter day nearly 30
years ago from unknown causes. Twin Lakes Office
Supply currently resides there. If you look closely
you can still see remnants of the art deco fade on
the exterior of the building.

Is this
a great photograph or what!!!
The
little boy feeding the dog ice cream in the picture
with this caption is W.J. Pitman, a long time Murray
resident.

This is
a recent photograph of the Confederate Memorial on
the Square. This rather complicated monument
consists of a granite slab base supporting a
four-columned canopy topped by marble ball on each
corner. Atop the canopy is a base supporting a
life-sized marble statue of General Robert E. Lee.
Beneath the arches formed by the canopy and in the
center of the Doric columns, a porcelain drinking
fountain rests, with an ornate iron light fixture
featuring four incandescent bulbs above and iron
fence enclosures around. The drinking fountain was
operated by a step pedal. The total height of the
monument is approximately 16.5 feet. Note: This
statue was carved in Italy from world renowned
carrara marble. |