About Crestview's Crestview Main Street Business District

In building value, how do you account for historical value? I do not know for certain but I have always kept in mind that pricing is an art, not a science. I would think you would go about it in much the same way as looking at a regular building's value.

 

    1. First, if possible, find a similar historical building in a smaller footprint, taking an estimate and multiplying with the decreasing factor of price per square foot with a larger footprint to get a starting basis.

    2.    Does the current owner have a business? Is there a "net sheet" (how much they make, in other words) and can that be continued with a new owner/

    3.    Is the building currently being used at its highest in best use?

    4.    Does the building have current tenants? What does that take in for the owner? What would a buyer be able to expect as an ROI (return on investment)?

    5.    Is the property a landmark?

You might ask, how could you prove a property has historical value? One way to show that would be to determine that it is in the National Registry of Historic Areas. That, I feel, would give you cause to show the property has historical value.

If the property is a landmark, on the other hand, I feel you would have to show that the property has impacted the surrounding properties in the area for the better over time. That could be accomplished in many ways and measured in just as many. That said, you could certainly say the property could bring tourists and traffic to a slow moving area for historical landmarks. Some things could end up just as important over time but not show as immediate an impact. One example would be to renew interest in the area by restoring an old historical building in an historic area which in turn could spur an association. As an example, in Crestview, Florida there is a Crestview Florida Main Street Association.

 

 

 

 

 

 

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If you are reading my blog in order you will see just some of what it took to just send in the application for the National Historic Register on the part of Crestview. You can see there was alot of work done on the part of everyone with the city. It is a great thing to preserve historic heritage. I am a big fan of historic buildings and areas I guess that is one of the things that brought me here too.

 

I wanted to list what I had on information that I aquired over time from people with the City of Crestview and if there is any Realtors part of any association like a Main Street Association in Florida and were wondering where to start this I hope will help.

 

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1.         Crestview's Main Street - Late 1990s time period

Southern portion of the West side of the North 400 Block

Facing Northwest from the intersection of N. Main Street and West Beech Ave.

Slide taken by City of Crestview staff in late 1990s

 

 

 

2.         Crestview's Main Street - Late 1990s time period

Southern portion of the West side of the North 500 Block

Facing Northwest from the intersection of N. Main St. and West Pine Ave.

Slide taken by City of Crestview staff in late 1990s

 

 

 

•3.                  Crestview's Main Street - Late 1990s time period

Northern portion of the West side of the North 200 Block

Facing Northwest from the East side of the 200 Block of N. Main St.

Slide taken by City of Crestview staff in late 1990s

 

 

 

4.         Crestview's Main Street - Late 1990s time period

Northern portion of the West side of the North 100 Block

Facing Northwest from the East side of the 200 Block of N. Main St.

Slide taken by City of Crestview staff in late 1990s

 

 

 

5.         Crestview's Main Street - Late 1990s time period

Middle portion of the West side of the North 100 Block

Facing Northwest from the intersection of N. Main St. and E. Industrial Dr. (just N. of RR tracks area)

Slide taken by City of Crestview staff in late 1990s

 

 

 

6.         Crestview's Main Street - Late 1990s time period

Northern portion of the West side of the North 400 Block

Facing Northwest from the East side of the 400 Block of N. Main St.

Slide taken by City of Crestview staff in late 1990s

Florida Real Estate with Brandon Jordan, your Northwest Florida Realtor and ActiveRain featured Realtor for Okaloosa County since 2007. We provide this information and much more on our site for you at no charge, so please remember us when you're looking to buy or sell real estate.

NPS Form 10‑900a                                                                                                                                                                             OMB No. 10024‑0018

(Rev. Aug. 2002)

 

United States Department of the Interior

National Park Service

 

Crestview Historic Business District Crestview, Okaloosa County, Florida Geographical Data

National Register of Historic Places

Continuation Sheet

 

Section number    10       Page      1

                                                                                                                                                                       

 

 

 

 

 

 

Verbal Boundary Description (Continuation Sheet)

 

This historical district can generally be described (rough boundaries) as:  North on Wilson Street from CSX Railroad tracks to U.S. Hwy. 90; then east on U.S. Hwy. 90 to Cedar Avenue; then west on Cedar Avenue to Main Street; then south on Main Street to Beech Avenue; then east on Beech Avenue to State Hwy. 85; then south on State Hwy. 85 to CSX Railroad Tracks; and then west along CSX Railroad tracks back to Wilson Street.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Boundaries Justification (Continuation Sheet)

 

This is a commercial district that generally excludes residential and non-commercial buildings.  Crestview's historic downtown district was first established on Main Street (later designated also as State Hwy. 85 through the community until the 1970's when Hwy 85 shifted one block to the east) and expanded little beyond its original boundaries over the years.  The district now is largely defined by its traditional Main Street commercial core that is confined on the east by the State Hwy. 85 (Ferdon Blvd.) thoroughfare, the residential area west of Wilson Street, the U. S. Hwy. 90 (James Lee Blvd.) thoroughfare to the north, and the CSX Railroad tracks to the south.

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SUMMARY

 

The City of Crestview Historic Business District is significant at the local level under Criterion A in the areas of Commerce and Community Planning and Development.  The area's first map was the Crestview Station map drawn from surveys done by Colonel W.D. Chipley, Major W.J. Van Kirk and W.T. Wright of the survey team employed to map the route from Pensacola to River Junction (Apalachicola River at Chattahoochee).  This map was completed in 1881.  (See Appendix 1, Railroad Station Map, Crestview: the Forkand excerpt, page 30.) ¹  By 1887 W.B. Wright, a wealthy sawmill operator, incorporated the Yellow River Railroad to build a logging railroad between Crestview and Florala, Alabama. ²  Once the railroads lines were complete, Crestview Station became a major trade hub and the original commercial center of the City of Crestview.  (See Appendix 2a and 2b, copies of 1908 State of Florida map).

 

HISTORICAL CONTEXT

 

The State of Florida donated land to the Pensacola and Atlantic Railroads, a land grant railroad owned by the L&N Railroad, in order to allow the linking of West Florida to the Atlantic Ocean. ³  After creation of the Pensacola and Atlantic Railroad Map of Crestview Station in 1881, the second and third recorded documentation of the community are plats recorded in 1913 of First Addition to Crestview and in 1914 of Second Addition to Crestview.  Both were surveyed and platted by G.K. Grimes, engineer for "The Crestview Land Company."  (See Appendix 3 and 4 copies of plats.)  These early plats incorporated Van Kirk's original area of the P&A Railroad's Crestview Station map.  H.J. Brett, C.B. Ferdon and W.J. Rice formed the Crestview Land Company.  They planned for a city by including in their plats a site for a courthouse and park areas.  However, the parks were not dedicated to the public in the plats and the park designation is not included for Blocks 50, 51, 53, and E of a later plat surveyed by T.W. Coleman and recorded in 1929.  (See Appendix 5, copy of 1929 plat.)  The 1929 plat reflects the properties much the same as they are today and is referred to on most deeds within Section 17, also known as the "Original Town of Crestview."

 

In 1881 Crestview existed only as a station on the Pensacola and Atlantic Railroad.  "The Hub City" began in 1881 when the Pensacola and Atlantic Railroad began building a track between

 

 

                                                                                                                                               

^1.    Curenton, Betty, and Claudia Patten, Crestview: the Forkland, privately published, 2002, available from Mayor of Crestview's office, p. 30.

^2.    Ibid. p. 38.

^3.    Ibid. p. 38.

Pensacola and the Apalachicola River.  It was the first passenger and freight railroad track laid in Northwest Florida. In the winter of 1883-1884, the number of passengers transported by the train was in excess of 8,000.  In 1887 the Yellow River Railroad completed another line from Crestview to Florala, Alabama. ⁴  The coming of the railroad produced the first big growth spurt to the wilderness of Florida.  With transportation now available for export, the region became accessible to the timber industry and turpentine stills as well as rosin (naval stores). ⁵  The City of Crestview soon grew from a "railroad whistle-stop to county seat". ⁶

 

HISTORICAL SIGNIFICANCE

 

The first map of Crestview Station was a total of twenty blocks consisting of five blocks east to west and four blocks north to south.  There are four structures indicated on the map that include three section houses and the station masters house. (See Appendix 5, page 30 of Crestview: the Forkland.) ⁷

 

The coming of the railroad brought settlers to the area.  Homes began to spring up around the station.  In 1883 the Wardville Post Office north of Crestview Station was moved to the Station and the name changed to the Crestview Post Office.  At the time the railroad completed the Pacific and Atlantic rail lines in 1883, the post office served a population of 300 with 50 being residents of Crestview Station.  Hammer F. (Doc) Powell, the first resident of Crestview Station, was the postmaster and the stationmaster.  He also constructed the stationmaster's house and later built the first hotel/boarding house named the Powell Hotel on the southeast corner of Woodruff Avenue and Main Street.  The hotel, located at 189 - 197 N. Main, was replaced with the Lamar Hotel in 1926 and is now the site of Desi's Restaurant (see photos #8 and #22).  The hotel was the resting place of many railroad travelers.  Mr. Powell also owned a livery stable, at what is now 198 N. Main Street, which later became the location of the first City Pharmacy (198 N. Main Street) in 1928.  If there could be a founder of Crestview named, it most likely would be Hammer F. Powell. ⁸

 

 

 

 

                                                                                                                                               

^4.      Curenton, Betty, and Claudia Patten, Crestview: the Forkland, privately published, 2002, available from Mayor of Crestview's office, p. 30.

^5.    Ibid. p. 39.

^6.    Golden, Pam, "Prosperity, Fame, Disaster Part of Tale of Okaloosa's Hub City," Northwest Florida Daily News, Dec. 17, 1990.

^7.      Curenton, p. 30.

^8.    Ibid. p. 31.

Prior to the railroad coming, the few settlers in the area sent word to relatives and friends of the expansive forests and good climate of the area, but until the coming of the railroad many "would-be-settlers" were afraid of the Indians.  The coming of the railroad seemed to calm their fears and the first big boom came to northwest Florida.  Various types of settlers came.  There were timber and naval store operations, cattlemen, herders, farmers, merchants, laborers and land companies.  Many came on ox-drawn wagons from Alabama, Georgia, and South Carolina.  Others came by train in response to advertisements placed by the L&N Railroad in northern publications.  They elaborated on the pleasurable climate and warm winters.  The large timber companies became interested in the area.  Therefore, most of the males in the settlement worked either for the timber companies who stripped the land of its vast timbers or for the railroad. ⁹

 

With the additional freight and passenger traffic from the railroad, Crestview continued to grow and by 1889 the census population of the Crestview Station (Precinct 15) was 165 people.  The 26.35 miles of Yellow River Railroad track between Crestview and Florala, Alabama supported the local timber operations.  It was completed and opened in May of 1894 to passenger and freight traffic. ¹⁰

 

In 1890 the P&A railroad constructed a depot in Crestview and removed the boxcar that had been set off used as a station.  A two-story building to be utilized for a store and meeting room for the Farmer's Alliance was also constructed. ¹¹  In response to the need for lodging and food for travelers the Woodruff Café and Okaloosa Hotel were constructed on the northwest corner of the intersection of the railroad tracks and Pearl Street (now Ferdon Blvd./S.R. 85).  These buildings were wood and brick construction and no longer stand.  A bridge was constructed over the Shoal River three miles south of town that enabled train travelers to travel by ox and wagon to Camp Walton (Fort Walton Beach) to the beaches and summer places in south Okaloosa County. ¹²

 

In addition to the timber companies and the sawmills, around 1900 the turpentine stills were prevalent and remained a vital part of the area industry until about 1940.  Housing communities built around the sawmills and residents shopped in the Crestview Station business district.  Roads were being constructed in the State and the Florida Midwest Highway traveled through Crestview Station on what is now Main Street.    By 1912 the Crestview population had grown to 200 according to the R.L. Polk & Co. Florida Gazetteer and Business Directory, but the growth was only beginning. ¹³

 

                                                                                                                                               

^9.      Curenton, p. 32.

^10.    Ibid. p. 38.

^11.    Ibid. p. 40.

^12.    Ibid. p. 44.

^13.    Ibid. p. 46-49.

Okaloosa County was created in 1915 after Representative W.H. (Bill) Mapoles, with support from Senator B.H. Lindsey, submitted his second county bill creating Okaloosa County from parts of Santa Rosa and Walton Counties to the state legislature. Crestview followed suit with their incorporation in 1916. The Okaloosa News Journal, (owned from 1933 to 1946 by Congressman Robert F. Sikes) established its office in Crestview and began its campaign for Crestview to become the county seat. Crestview succeeded in winning the referendum vote against Baker and Milligan and became the County Seat in 1917. ¹⁴  The courthouse was built in 1920 on the 14-acre site designated as Block 60, Civic property on the plat of Second Addition to Crestview, recorded in 1914.

 

The Crestview Land Company promoted the City of Crestview by distributing pamphlets to entice settlers to move to Crestview.  They touted the "pleasant climate, the right lands for cultivation, and the great source of lumber, fish, and game throughout the area."  They pointed out that the city is the geographical center of the County with a railroad and highway center.  They also noted the availability of a paved hard road to DeFuniak Springs (U.S. Hwy. 90, and a north, south highway (S.H. 85, formerly the Camp Walton Highway) to Camp Walton (Fort Walton Beach) and Laurel Hill.  They indicated that there is room for a thousand families and opportunities exist for "farming, stock raising, producing fruits, raising cane and making Florida syrup, for which there is unlimited demand at good prices, and the cane this land will produce passeth understanding."  They also called the city the "Hub City" for its location as the highest point on the Old Spanish Trail (U.S. Hwy. 90) between the Mississippi River and Atlantic Ocean. ¹⁵

 

By 1918 the first Bank of Crestview was located on Main Street (the building is gone but the steel vault remains in an attorneys office at 115 Courthouse Terrace, on the corner of Main and Courthouse Terrace).  The first automobile dealership, a Ford dealership, was located on the corner of Main Street and Oakdale Avenue.  (This wooden structure no longer exists.)  In 1920 the American Legion Post was founded and the first county jail constructed on land designated as civic land for courthouse on the plat of the First Addition to Crestview.  (This structure no longer exists.)  The first movie house was constructed at Main Street and Oakdale Avenue (297 N. Main Street, now Crestview Plumbing and Hardware).  Movies were shown using a Delco Light System (battery) and the theater drew movie patrons from several miles to see the "new marvel of the age". ¹⁶

 

                                                                                                                                               

^14.    Curenton, p. 64-67.

^15.    Ibid. p. 64-65.

^16.    Ibid. p. 83.

 

A number of commercial buildings had been constructed along Main Street by the mid-1920's.  Of the early structures, several remain substantially as they were in the 1920's.  The Pecan Packing Company was located at 192-194 N. Main Street.  It is a one-story brick structure with stucco completed in 1918.  Bower's Ladies Wear and Dry Goods Store was located at 209 N. Main Street.  It is a one-story structure completed in 1920.  Vaughn's Grocery was located at 211‑215 N. Main Street and was completed in 1920.  The Farmer's Exchange (with the City Animal Control facility in the east side of the building) was located at 301 N. Main Street.  It is a brick structure completed in 1920.  Vaughn's Dry Goods Store was located at 307 N. Main Street and that structure was completed in 1920.  Berman's Dry Goods was located at 321-335 N. Main Street and that structure was completed in 1920.  Livewire Grocery Store was located at 337 N. Main Street and that structure was completed in 1924.  McLaughlin Mortuary was located at 432-440 N. Main Street and that structure was completed in 1925.  Garrett's Grocery was located at 450-452 N. Main Street and that structure was completed in 1926.  Okaloosa News Journal Publishing Office was located at 468-470 and that structure was completed in 1926.  Cox Grocery and Wallace Confectionery was located at 102-104 N. Main Street.  It is a two-story brick structure that had a dentist office and rental rooms located upstairs.  It was completed in 1925.  Hutto Barber Shop and Adams Drug Store were located at 106-110 N. Main Street in a one-story brick structure completed in 1925.  An Auto Repair Shop was located at 172 E. Woodruff Avenue and that structure was completed in 1929.  The buildings still intact are a good representation of the community services Crestview had available during the 1920's and into the 1930's.

 

By 1936, a postcard advertising the local Douglas Drug Company boasted that Crestview was a "fast growing, financially sound city of over 1,200", is the county seat, and has "modern convenience, natural 99½ per cent pure deep well water, accredited high school, three others in county; 5 churches, hospital, dentist, Kiwanis Club, American Legion, Masons, Garden and Woman's Clubs, Teachers Association, PTA; beautiful rustic community house fully equipped, fine dance floor, 2 newspapers, picture show, curb market, bank, 3 hotels, 2 boarding houses, 2 real estate dealers, 4 cafes, 3 beauty parlors, 1 shoe shop, 1 jewelry repair, 2 barber shops, 2 general hardware, 2 drug, 4 grocery and meat, 8 grocery, 6 dry goods and general merchandise stores, exclusive ladies dress and millinery shop, 2 pool rooms, 2 undertaking parlors, cleaning and dying plant, 2 auto sales and service stations, 4 garages, 3 wholesale gasoline plants, farmers and producers association, wholesale grocery and feed company, 1 sweeping compound and 1 insecticide factory, ice plant, novelty wood working shop, builders supply and planing mill,  Blueberry canning plant and winery close by, Satsuma, pecans, cattle, finest beach resorts, add to county revenue." ¹⁷

 

                                                                                                                                               

^17.    Curenton, p. 136.

By 1935 the timberlands were stripped of a major portion of the harvestable timber and the naval stores and turpentine stills were producing less.  The City fathers were looking to other sources of income for the citizens.  Congressman Robert F. Sikes, a resident of the Crestview area, worked to direct a variety of test and development missions to Eglin Air Force Base and making Eglin into the largest military base in the world.  This made a great economic impact on the City of Crestview as well as the communities south of Crestview. ¹⁸

 

Mayor Author Hodges moved to Crestview in 1900 with the Savage Turpentine Company.  Over the next several years he saw the resources for that industry greatly decline.  This caused him to seek other means of bringing employment to Crestview.  He and the other City Fathers saw the need for an industry in the community to provide good paying jobs for the area citizens.  They worked toward the goal of building a factory by issuing bonds in the amount of $25,000 to construct a textile factory.  The Crestview City Attorney, and builder, Purl G. Adams was the contractor for the project.  It was completed and opened in 1937 with 200 employees beginning immediately with the ability to employ 600 total.  The first tenant was Smith-Johnson, a garment company.  The City also retained a portion of the building for City Hall with the City Clerk being located in the northeast corner of the building.  The City fire horn still remains on the corner of the building as a reminder of times when early warning systems were very primitive.  This building was one of the largest single unit buildings in the state being a 100 feet by 200 feet two story structure and containing approximately 150 large windows.  The opening of the factory and the new city hall was a gala affair attended by local, county and state dignitaries, but the opening of the building created another need in the community.  A large number of available jobs were created immediately.  Within the next two years the factory created approximately 400 additional jobs.  This created a housing shortage and the need for affordable housing to be constructed. Requests for local builders and property owners to construct affordable housing near the factory were met with enthusiasm and a building boon occurred in Crestview.  Local businessmen constructed affordable housing near the factory.¹⁹  Even though Smith-Johnson, the original tenant of the factory building left after a couple of years, the Alatex Textile Company moved in soon after they left and continued their operation until the 1980's.  Rainbow Apparel then operated the factory until the mid 1990's.  All occupants made their significant contribution to the financial stability of the citizens and businesses in and around the City of Crestview. ¹⁹

 

 

 

 

                                                                                                                                               

^18.    Curenton, p. 168.

^19.    Spann, Ann, "Okaloosa's First Factory Helped Develop Crestview," Baker Block Museum News, Vol. 1, Issue 4, 2002.

 

 

 

Mayor Hodges had already received state and federal aid for the City to pave 90 blocks of street and to improve the water and sewer system. With the construction of the factory site and the building up of Eglin AFB in the 1930's, Crestview was on its way to the community it has become today. ²⁰

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

                                                                                                                                               

^20.    Spann, Ann, "Okaloosa's First Factory Helped Develop Crestview," Baker Block Museum News, Vol. 1, Issue 4, 2002.

Florida Real Estate with Brandon Jordan, your Northwest Florida Realtor and ActiveRain featured Realtor for Okaloosa County since 2007. We provide this information and much more on our site for you at no charge, so please remember us when you're looking to buy or sell real estate.