198 Commercial Street SE
198 Commercial on September 9, 2006.
This corner is just inside the boundary of the Salem Downtown Historic District, though the building itself is not historic. The site itself does have historical significance, however. In the fall of 1847, Thomas Cox arrived in Salem from Wilmington, Illinois with a stock of merchandise. That winter, he built Salem's first store building on this corner and opened Salem's first store. This building also served as Salem's first post office. Later, the Union Hotel operated here, but was destroyed in an 1863 fire. Later, this corner was the site of the Buren Building, containing the Zosel Tire Shop, and the Liberty Theater next door. They were demolished in 1955. The Buren Building included a plaque explaining the site's history. This building, the home of Fidelity National when photographed in 2006, was built in 1956 and extensively renovated in 1990, and makes no mention of the site's past. The building now houses a variety of offices.
Additional Links:
Liberty Theatre at Puget Sound Theatre Organ Society
Historical Photos:
Buren Building, 1920 (Salem Public Library)
Buren Building, April 22, 1955 (Salem Public Library)
Marker Removed, April 1955 (Salem Public Library)
Buren Building site after demolition, 1955 (Salem Public Library)
Historical Marker, 1958 (Salem Public Library)
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