457 South Driver Street

35.980261, -78.878869

457
South Driver Street
Durham
NC
Year built
~1940s
National Register
East Durham
Neighborhood
East Durham
Use
Grocery
Building Supply
Woodworking
Building Type
Commercial
Industrial
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457 S. Driver, 1980

When 457 South Driver Street was built is unclear to me; the addresses and parcels shift a lot over the course of the 20th century in this ~1/2 block.

The Home Cash Store grocery may have been located in this building as of 1934, becoming Henry Overman's grocery as of 1940. More likely, these businesses were located in a frame structure that sat on the same footprint, preceding the current structure. The structure was clearly in place by the late 1940s, and housed the Burnette Home Supply Co. by 1950. This was the Home Insulation Co. by 1955, and the Harris Printery was in the structure in 1960.

Sometime later, it became part of Garland Woodcraft, and it remains under their ownership.


457 S. Driver, 10.02.10

(Below in italics is from the 2004 East Durham National Register listing; not verified for accuracy by this author.)

1-story buff brick building with intact facade with paneled and  corbeled cornice. The center bay contains a double door. Flanking bays contain single doors. The 1913 SM shows a frame building on this lot. 1930 CD: Home Cash Store Grocery. Later it was the East Durham Post Office brance. It was purchased by Garland Woodcraft Company after 1947 and is now a part of the company complex.


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35.980264,-78.878867

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Comments

Submitted by Kwix (not verified) on Tue, 5/10/2011 - 4:03am

I love the lines on this building -- in particular the placement of the doors and doorways. A study in how to place several entrances in an area which is almost too narrow for them without making them look cramped. It has its own "narrow" aesthetic. It wouldn't work without the soaring doorways above the side doors.

And of course these odd placement of doors makes one wonder what their original purpose might have been: why need so many egresses at once? The central double doors look too narrow for a delivery vehicle, but I might be wrong.

Submitted by Toby (not verified) on Sun, 5/15/2011 - 4:03am

@kwix: I agree with you regarding the narrow aesthetic, and I would add that the lintels over the three doors are both functional and pleasing to the eye.

However, I think the central double doors must have been used by delivery vehicles, as evidenced by the curb cut directly in front of them. Perhaps this functioned as the loading/unloading dock for adjacent buildings?

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