11.47.2

John Cole, a Civil War veteran, came to Ames in 1865 at age 19. He became a builder and erected this building on Onondaga (Main) Street in 1895 at the commission of Professor Joseph L. Budd, head of the Horticulture Department at Iowa State College. The building's first occupant was the Fair Store, founded by Joseph Jacobs in September, 1895. Located on the south side of Main Street, east of Kellogg Avenue, the building was acquired by Jacobs in 1915. In 1921, Jacobs sold the store to his partner (since 1900), E. W. Valentine. It ceased operation as a complete department store (including groceries) in about 1927. It continued as a fabric store, under different management, on the north side of Main Street. Shown here (around 1913) are E. W. Valentine, Joseph Jacobs, three unidentified male clerks, Catherine Cole, Ethel Meeker, and Kate McMichael (later Mrs. Lew Cole). (See also: 118.647.5-6; 118.648.5)