01/10/2020
LOCATED ON COURTHOUSE SQUARE — This is an early undated photo of the Rothschild Hardware Store, c. 1896, which is located on Boston Row on the east side of the courthouse square in Woodville. In most recent years the building was known as The Ben Franklin Store.
Here is an article and accompanying photo published in the December 19, 2019 (Christmas) issue of the Woodville Republican Thanks to Jeretta Sturgeon for providing the photograph and to Andy Lewis, Editor and Publisher, for publishing the article,
building now owned by LLC with ties to local restorations
James Derbes and wife, Jan Katz, of New Orleans and Woodville, purchased the Rothschild building in Woodville several years ago from the late Holmes Sturgeon, an attorney and Woodville native.
Derbes has shared a narrative about the building as written by Sturgeon who purchased the building in 2003.
Below is a condensed version of Sturgeon’s three-page historical explanation.
The building is located on Boston Row in Woodville and is commonly known as The Ben Franklin Building.
In 1972 the National Department of the Interior described the building as a one story stuccoed brick structure with a curved line parapet decorated with cast-iron ventilators, corner ornaments and recessed tablets. The building flaunts the date 1869 in stucco at the very top of the parapet which would indicate the year as the date of construction. The building is listed as contributory of the Woodville Historic District as established in the National Register.
This building was always used as a store since its construction. It was constructed by Martin and Morris Rothschild, who were early Jewish businessmen who settled in Woodville after the Civil War and were instrumental in the post-war economy of Woodville well into the 20th century. They operated in this building an active mercantile business, which included not only hardware and grain supplies, but also cloth, paint, boots and just about anything else anyone would need. The family moved to New Orleans in the late 19th and early 20th centuries.
In 1893, Mr. Rothschild allowed Lee C. Schloss, another local Jewish merchant, to become a partner in the mercantile establishment, and the business ultimately became known as the Schloss Company.
Mr. Schloss died in 1934, and his business was taken over by the Anderson family who ran it as a mercantile business known as Anderson’s Cash Store. In 1964, the building was purchased by Joseph E. Best who moved his Ben Franklin “ten cents” store into this location. It continued as the Ben Franklin until it closed in 1985. Since that year the building housed the “WIC” office which distributed milk and other food items from the state health department. It later served as the pickup and delivery location for Woodville Cleaners.
Holmes Sturgeon purchased the building in 2003 with the intention of relocating his law office to this site. He had extensive renovations and repairs made to the parapet which was damaged by Hurricane Katrina and nearly demolished by Hurricane Rita.
To bring this story to the present, the current owner provided the following information.
The property was purchased from Holmes Sturgeon on July 8, 2014, by Woodville Mercantile, LLC, a company wholly owned by James G. Derbes and Jan W. Katz.
Since the purchase, $93,000 has been expended for repairs, partial restoration, stabilization and interior demolition. That work includes the demolition and reconstruction, with original materials, of the entire rear wall; restoration of the windows and entrances at the rear; extensive repair of the original slate roof with approved like-kind materials; replacement of fascia, gutters and downspouts; and the insertion of tie-rods to re**rd side-wall displacement. All of the extensive, inappropriate 20th C. partitioning, rubble and trash have been removed.
All work was approved by the MS Department of Archives and History and the US Department of the Interior; and Historic Preservation Tax Credits were obtained for the work and used by the owners.
Rothschild is the fourth Woodville historic rehabilitation project undertaken by Derbes and Katz. The other three are Woodville Lofts & Studios (soon to become the Woodville Lofts & Studios Condominiums) building and the adjoining Cumbo Store building on the same Boston Row block; and the iconic “Little Red House,” also known as the Dr. Casey Office Building, at 222 Royal Oak.
Restoration of the building remains incomplete. It’s main floor of about 3000 sq. ft. has three sets of glazed double doors at the front façade. There are four windows at the very back, probably associated with offices for the hardware store owner(s).
The main floor has no side windows. Natural light illuminates through a skylight, long gone, which should be restored. Partitioning the building into separate office or residential units is impractical, and in any case, the owners’ experience indicates that in downtown Woodville the rental market is weak and inconsistent.
In about 2015, the building was offered to the County as an annex to the Courthouse. There was initial interest from the Board of Supervisors, but no follow-up.
The owners estimate that in order to complete the restoration, additional expenditures in excess of $150,000 will be required. Among the many items yet to be undertaken are restoration of the skylight and atrium; construction of the rear stairway; heating and AC; floors, interior ceilings and walls; electrical and plumbing; rest rooms; finish carpentry and painting.
James G. Derbes
December 9, 2019
The building sits vacant and unfinished at this time.
