Another of our venerable downtown buildings is the one at 201 Louisiana, identified now as the DiSalle Real Estate Company building, but built over 130 years ago by John Eberly.
John Eberly was born in Germany in 1822 and came to Perrysburg in 1848. He was a shoemaker by trade and presumably was working at it in 1867 when he purchased the corner lot from Dr. Erasmus D. Peck, subdivided it, and kept the northern 22 feet for a retail boot and shoe establishment -- back when much footwear was custom made on site.
The commercial brick Renaissance Italianate two-story building has a flat sloping roof and its most significant feature is the arcaded corbelled cornice in the front.
Three interior chimneys project from the north roof line, and original tall windows have been shortened with modern casement windows. One north and one east window have been bricked over. The modern Colonial motif wood paneled front has a recessed entrance.
The John Eberly boot and shoe store changed its name to J. Eberly and Son in 1876 when Frederick C. joined his father in the business. In 1889 he purchased the store and it continued in the family until Frederick retired in 1926. The senior Eberly died in 1893. For many years Miss Lena Emch operated a millinery shop on the second floor, and the building was at one time as a restaurant.
John Eberly was a respected merchant and long-time superintendent of the German Methodist Episcopal Church. He was also one of the signers of the resolution to build a new courthouse (later known as Town Hall) and give it to the county if the county seat was returned here from Bowling Green.
The Eberly Building
201 Louisiana Ave.
This commercial Italianate-style building at 203 Louisiana is said to be of architectural interest by historic building inventory assessors.
It was built in 1906, by Richard Fralic who from the late 1880s, until that year was identified with the fruit business here. In addition, he had a dray and truck line business at one time.
The building site near the southeast corner of Louisiana and East Second Streets was purchased by John Eberly in 1867. He subdivided the corner into six sites, retaining the north 22 feet for his shoe store (occupied now by DiSalle Realty Company).
Frederick Yeager, former postmaster and mayor, operated a dry goods store a few doors south and in 1869, he bought the subject site abutting the Eberly store from the second owner, Nicholas Emch.
Mr. Yeager later sold it to Fort Meigs Lodge I. O. O. F. and in 1905, Mr. Fralic acquired it for a grocery store. Whether one of these earlier owners built some sort of commercial building before Mr. Fralic bought the site is not known.
The local newspaper simply reported that he built the present version.
Interesting building details include gold-painted rosettes on the frieze beneath the cornice and beneath that a pair of corbelled panels. Under that are windows with flush brick and stone trim with keystones over them, and a stone block in the upper center engraved "R Fralic 1906".
Richard Fralic was born in Canada in 1867. It is not known when he came here, but when he died in 1937, the newspaper said he had been in business for about 45 years.
For about 30 or more years (from 1940), Perry Café was located in this building, and for some 20 years after that the Shamrock Inn was the lively occupant. In 1971, it housed McKnight’s Deli Café and it became the Rose and Thistle Pub and Restaurant in 2002.
The Fralic Building
203 Louisiana Ave.
Two destructive fires in 1891 and 1900 cloud the records as to who exactly was responsible for replacement of the original building with this Commercial Colonial Revival brick building.
It’s history is traced to 1900 when William J. Schlect was using the right side of it, first for his father’s earlier harness, collars, whips, farm implements, wagons and buggies business, and still later as the agency for Ford cars, beginning with the Model T. William Schlect was born and raised in Perrysburg. His son, Eugene Agustus “Gus”, continued the business while residing at 120 East Fifth Street.
The Schlect Building
209 Louisiana Ave.
The Palace Theatre Building
218 Louisiana Ave.
Charles F. Bayer, a harness, buggy and farm implement dealer, invested in this building. Constructed in 1921, it was Perrysburg’s first movie house. A 208-seat theatre, it offered motion picture and live entertainment until 1957. It is said to have been the first and smallest movie house in Wood County to offer “talkies”.
A 1923 alteration made space for a small shop left of the entrance and there have been several other changes as well.
Bayer was born in a log house south of Perrysburg. He moved into town to start his business in 1898 and later operated a coal and feed store.
To many people it will always be known as Broske's -- for years a favorite breakfast and conversation retreat for local merchants and politicians. But that's only the front addition to the old Second French Empire style building located at 219 Louisiana.
The brick portion of the building was built in the late 1800s, probably by Henry Lucas who succeeded his father Diedrick in the grocery business. Henry Lucas was doing business there at the turn the century.
The original part of the building, which has had many additions over the years, was a combination home and grocery.
In the early 1940s H. L. Ford and his wife Vallie operated an ice cream parlor and restaurant in the downstairs and lived upstairs. Earlier it was a grocery store operated by D. C. Whitehead.
The Lucas Building
219 Louisiana Ave.
This house, constructed ca. 1875, was possibly built by Frederick Hillabrand, who in 1887 sold it to John M. Wieland. Attractive scrolled brackets and turned posts and balusters on the porch are worth noting. Single narrow six-over-six windows are in the gables, which have Queen Anne-style fishscale siding.
It is assumed that the Wieland mentioned here was one of two brothers who operated a tannery at the river’s edge at the end of Mulberry Street, or a descendant of one of them.
The Wieland House
976 Louisiana Ave.
