Stringer's Corner 1856
The first business we know of in this building was The Stringer and Anderson Co. Later the name was changed to The Stringer Company. We know it existed by by 1856. Over the years it became known as Stringer's Corner. By 1866, this building was occupied by Copeland, Harwell & Co. operating a dry goods business. In 1878 we see that John M. Copeland was operating a dry goods business still at this location.
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In 1886 Henry J. Booker seems to have been operating a hardware store here and sold the building to Thomas W. Stringer in 1887. The building housed the J.M. Gant Co. (later W.P. Gant) until 1905. One of the salesmen was E.L. Norwood. In 1905 it became E.L. Norwood and Company was located in this building and sold clothing, footwear, and hats until 1939. In 1929 Mrs. Thomas Stringer had sold the building to Allen Wilkerson. In 1939, Emmitt Norwood decided to retire and closed the E.L. Norwood Company. In 1943, Allen Wilkerson sold the building to William H. Young who operated Young's Department Store. Young's closed in 1973 and Cato's Ladies Store opened in the location until 1981.
Many other businesses were shown to have operated out of the building over the years during which the previously mentioned businesses were located there. It can be assumed many of these businesses operated out of the basement, rear, or upstairs of the building.
Western Auto
In 1886 this locations was occupied by a small one story building that housed a shoe maker. By 1897 the current two
Grainger Building ca 1907
Roxy Theater 1938
On the lot that is currently the location of the Roxy Theater, in 1886 there was a small square masonry and wood building built right up to the street that served as a dwelling and possibly a storefront. By 1892 the building had been replaced with a traditional wood siding dwelling with a small front yard on Main Street. Between 1926 and 1939, the residence was razed and the lot became home the the Palace Diner, also known as the "Dog Wagon".
In 1937, the Crescent Amusement Company paid $6500 for the lot and the Dog Wagon had to move across Main Street. and in 1938 the Roxy Theater was built. The Roxy Theater closed in 1959 and in 1962 the City of Franklin purchased the building and a lot at the rear of the building for $40,000 and converted it into a municipal center.
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Main Street Garage 1926
In 1926 H.G Guthrie was the proprietor of the Main Street Garage. They were a dealer for Hudson autos. In 1938 Paul Payne located his Chevrolet dealership in this building. In 1942 Claud Austin bought the building. Ed Lanier bought the Chevrolet Dealership from Paul Payne in 1944 and it became Lanier Chevrolet. In 1961 Joe Lane and Charles King bought the business and it became Lane-King Chevrolet. In 1967 Lane-King Chevrolet moved from the building.
Overall Factory 1917
In 1917, Stewart Lumber Company contracted this building for $10,000 on what was called the Herrington lot at the intersection of South Main and East Madison Street. There was a house on the lot that was torn down between 1908 and 1913. It was being constructed as an overall factory that would employ 40 people. In 1918 it was reported Mrs. C. J. Cunningham who had come to Franklin with her husband when the factory opened, was arrested by federal marshals and taken to Bowling Green to appear before a Federal Commissioner on charges of making disloyal remarks. It was said that she was immensely German in her sympathies and her words were so distasteful that a number of women walked out of work and reported her to authorities. In 1919 the building was sold and it became Franklin Wholesale Grocery. Franklin Wholesale Grocery was started by JW James and ER Peebles. It was later bought by EM Tarpley. In 1936 the building was again empty and listed for rent. About 1943 it became a Grocery Store for PV Hunt. In 1946 it became the home of Eldred Hardware. In 1952, A & P Grocery Store moved into the building with WRECC operating out of the rear of the building. In 1957 it became Cassaday Furniture Company and in 1961 it became Friendly Furniture.
Standard Oil Station 1936
Since at least 1886, this was just an empty lot at this location on the northwest corner of Madison and Main Street. In 1936 H.G. Guthrie opened Guthrie Standard Service Station selling Standard Oil products. Other employees were John Milliken, Hatton Cline, and Pete Hinton. In 1943 it became Walker Service Station operated by brothers, Otho and Beckham Walker. In the 1950's it became Atwood Chevron owned by brothers Joe and Alton Atwood. It remained as such until 1987.
Town Towers 1963
This lot had a wood frame dwelling on it as late as 1901. The dwelling was two story in front but only one story in the additions built on to the rear of the building. It was built next to the street and the alley beside it so it wouldn't have been a typical home with a lawn and landscaping. Possibly it was used as a combination dwelling and business. In 1908 there was a wood frame warehouse for a hardware store located here but from the shape of the building it was possibly the old house that had been converted into a warehouse. The warehouse was still there but it was an empty lot by 1937 because the Palace Diner, (Dog Wagon) was moved into the location. The Dog Wagon was a streetcar that had been converted into a cafe. It started its life in Bowling Green, was moved to Franklin where the Roxy Theater is now located before being moved to this location.
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The dog wagon remained here until 1963 when it was moved to Cross Plains, Tennessee and the Town Towers Restaurant was built here. About 1966 Town Towers became the Golden Chef restaurant. In 1968 and 1969 it was a store called the Value House. and then became a restaurant again named Mary's Little Chef owned by Mary Hendrickson. She later owned a restaurant named Mary Lou's but it could not be confirmed that this location was ever had that name. The building later became the Townhouse Restaurant.
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