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>A Tour of Richardson's Historic Heart
Author photo taken January 2022.
On October 1, 1916, Charles C. Traphagan and Virgil Huffhines opened the Twentieth Century Garage in this specially-constructed building at 107 East Main Street--50 feet wide by 125 feet long, with concrete floor and special lighting and a curved pediment on the top left front of the building. The Traphagan-Huffhines partnership did not last long though. In August 1920, the business, which by this time was known as the Tourist Garage, was sold to the firm of Thompson & Hendricks, who turned around and sold it to the Stratton Brothers--Bill, Kenneth, and Jim--in December. (See vintage photos below.) A little more than a year later, in September 1921, John W. Blewett bought the building, partioned it, turning the west side into a cafe run by John B. Jordan and the east side into a grocery store operated by himself. In 1932, he moved back into the same building he had previously occupied, in the middle of the same row. As of this writing, the premises are occupied by the Jasmine Café.
Author photo taken January 2022.
Contemporary view of 107 E. Main. Author photo taken January 2022.
This vintage photo of 107 E. Main was taken about 1920, when the Stratton Brothers opened their new garage. Courtesy Richardson Public Library.
This is a photo of the interiior of the Stratton Brothers' garage. Courtesy Richardson Public Library.
Below: The historic heart of Richardson, from an 1878 map.
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