Intersection of Court and Fifth Streets
Although some facades have been altered, the buildings pictured on this week’s postcard can still be seen on the west side of Court Street in the block north of the Court House. The oldest, completed in 1872 and currently occupied by Brooklyn Pizza, is the first public structure erected in Fulton by noted local architect M. Fred Bell who had settled in Callaway County the previous year.
The card is postmarked August 31, 1910, but the photo was probably taken slightly earlier. Between 1910 and 1912, the (often muddy) dirt streets downtown were replaced with brick, leading to the area’s present designation as “The Brick District”. It’s likely that the sender of this card didn’t spend too much time downtown late that August, however, as he enthusiastically recounts how much fun it is to be in Fulton when the circus, a carnival, the fair, and a chautauqua are all going on at the same time!
Many of the buildings in this postcard are a recognizable part of downtown Fulton in 2020. One exception is the building on the northeast corner. Constructed in the second half of the 19th century, it housed several dry goods and clothing stores, including The New York Store in the late 1800s, Henderson-Maughs at the time of this photo and Tutt and Sons in the 1950s. Gambles was the last occupant before the building was demolished to make room for the Callaway Bank in 1971. We’ve found several versions of this postcard – some black and white, some tinted, but all appearing to be from the same photo. The most interesting variations are those from which the street light and power poles have disappeared, even though we believe the postcard pictured here to be earlier.* If you examine the other versions carefully, you can detect a line across the Henderson-Maughs building where the electric line seems to have been erased, Apparently some preferred to promote the charm of downtown Fulton over its modern conveniences!
*In the United States until 1907, by law, only the address was allowed on the back of a postcard. The card we are posting this week only has space for an address, but the other versions are all divided cards with a place for the address and a message, indicating that they were printed after 1907.