311 ST LOUIS STREET

Walking downtown on Park Central East in Springfield, you most likely pass by a piece of history.  Marx Clothing Store, currently where you see the patio for Big Whiskey’s Downtown, was part of the Marx-Hurlburt Building.

In 1949, the storefront to the Marx store was designed by our Firm.  “The Modernistic design and materials of this storefront was promoted nationally by Pittsburg Plate Glass Company stating, ‘This progressive look is especially important today when competition is so keen, customers more critical.  To give their stores an inviting, up-to-the-minute look, many alert merchants have modernized with attention-getting Pittsburgh Plate Glass and Pittco Store Front Metal.’”  ¹

So, next time you are downtown, stop by to take a moment to sit on the Big Whiskey’s patio and take a look at the old storefront.  Maybe you can catch a glimpse of the past.

311 St. Louis Street., Springfield, MO  (1949)

311 Park Central East, Springfield, MO  (2016)

¹National Register of Historic Places Continuation Sheet, Section 8, Page 18, Max-Hurlburt Building [preferred]