About Searcy's Downtown Searcy Ar

We give a lot of attention to the grand old buildings and stores and architecture in Searcy but we have not looked at this little building located downtown on Market Street. I'm hoping the Searcy Sleuths will be able to give us some history. I can remember a little of the history. Seems it was turned into a restaurant by someone who served Cajun food. That didn't last.

After that a lady decided to open a cookie store! A cookie store!! Was she out of her mind? Who ever heard of a cookie store in Searcy Arkansas? She made it! She made the best cookies in the state and the restaurant still stands.

Just look at it now. It seems largely unchanged outside but the side wall appears to have once has a door.

This little building does have nice lines and The Cookie Basket has kept it looking historic. Let's do down on Tuesday for their famous Poppieseed Chicken!

So many photographs of this building exist.

Probably lots of paintings too.

But this Pollard painting done in 1997 showed up in my files as I was looking for something else. If you have never seen it you'll love it! I believe it was done to dedicate the White County Veterans Memorial on May 30, 1998. 172 names are on this Memorial.

Glenn Pollard is a Searcy artist with a studio at 1213 East Race in Searcy Arkansas. Stop by to see his magnificent art work.

A few weeks ago I did a blog bragging about the murals that are on the side of a building on Spring Street in downtown Searcy Arkansas. Here's the blog. Go back and review that blog.

Now they have finished another one. It's in my favorite color....blue. This one seems to be publicizing ASU, Arkansas State University, along with Harding University. The mural is done by Harding University so it shows our comraderie in our little town. I think they are all lovely.

The old country song that brags about being back in the saddle again keeps running through my mind after attending open house and ribbon cutting at the Choate Law Firm which is now located at 402 East Race Street in what is known as the historic Tom Watkins house built in 1923 and listed on the National Register of historic Homes. Just a few months ago it looked like this. I even wrote a blog about it and its history.

Now it looks like this.

It has been painted up, spruced up, spiffed up and the new owner, Penny Choate, has located her law firm in it. She is tall and stately just like the house....I snapped her as she posed for a more important photographer at the open house.

I blogged about the house as she started restoring it by trimming a lot of overgrown trees. As I toured it I admired the fact that she didn't try to make a new house out of an old house, which is never successful, but just cleaned up, spiffed up and saved all the old features. It's a really big house and if you're in town, stop by. I'll bet she'd love to show it off! Thanks again, Penny Choate, for putting this old house "back in the saddle again!" It is alive again and going places!!

P. S. If you read the other blog you'll note the mistake I made in calling this house the Lightle House. I was corrected by my astute Searcy Sleuths. They know their history.

I've done two blogs with Stott's Drug store featured. The drug store has been in Searcy at the same location for many years. Going inside is also interesting because they have collectibles from the drug business all over the top shelf in the store.

They have recently remodeled the front to make it look old again!

And looking through an old 1976 Searcy High School yearbook I found their advertisement and this picture. The children of Roger and Virginia Williams proudly pose in the family drug store. Nancy is now a druggist herself and manages the drug store. Lindsey is in law enforcement and both make Searcy their home.