Current home of PET EMPORIUM
East Fifth and Main Streets (Block 12)
500 N. Main Street
W.P. (Cub) Williams had a small frame building on the southwest corner of Block 12. This building was connected to a “Blind Tiger”. A Blind Tiger was a type of saloon for that time period. This is where a contraption named “the wheel” was first put into use. A customer would put their money into the device located on the wall of the establishment. The wheel would rotate and a bottle of liquor would appear. Neither buyer nor seller would know each other. This is how the Blind Tigers would slip around the liquor laws of that time. Eventually, there were laws enacted that closed the Blind Tigers.
Another business on this site was the Ozark Garage. The garage was run by W. L. Wofford and his son Ray. The garage was 96 foot by 63 foot being built by W. R. Peck in 1925. This garage eventually became the Land Equipment Company. On March 21, 1957 a fire destroyed the entire block. The heat was so intense that light poles across Main Street caught fire. Glass windows broke out due to the heat. Adding to the danger, rifle and shotgun shells were exploding from one of the businesses on that block. Land Equipment Company, Sandy’s Tobacco Store, Stevens Produce, Ozark Hotel and a tavern were destroyed by this fire.
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