City Directories and History: 1908 – Neely and Moore Livery Stables (W.J. Neely and F.H. Moore), 1917 – Vacant, 1922/23 – Sadler – Neely Motor Company @#128 E. Black St., Rock Hill Roller Shop, and C.H. Hailey Livery Co., 1936 & 1938 – H and B Trucking Company (Moving and Hauling), American Oil Company, (rear) Rock Hill Roller Shop (Textile Manufacturing Supplies), 1963 – Farmer’s Exchange, A.B. Poe and Company, Farmer’s Feed and Milling Company
The Herald contained an ad on Sept. 17, 1902 – ….for a new livery stable stating that W.J. Neely is now operating a new stable on Black Street. His slogan is “Good Buggies, Good Horses, Fair Prices.”
The Rock Hill Record reported on April 23, 1908 – “That Mr. C.F. Sheek of Wadesboro, N.C. has purchased the livery business of Neely and Moore and will operate at the old stand. Neely and Moore will continue in the sales business and will soon erect a new building. Mr. J.B. Heath who had charge of the livery dept. will continue in his position. Mr. Sheek will shortly move his family and has rented the Ratterree House on East Main Street.”
The RH Record reported on Aug 6, 1908 – “Dr. Crawford is having offices erected on his lot on East Black Street near Sheeks Livery Stable. They will be occupied by the Messenger Newspaper, and a colored insurance agent.”
The Rock Hill Record reported on Aug. 10, 1908 – “J.J. Keeler and Co., have drawn plans for a handsome two story building for Neely and Moore to be used as a sales stable. The new building will be on East Black Street between the old building with their livery and Hampton Street. It will cost between $3-4,000.”
The RH Record reported on Oct. 1, 1908 – “The brick work on the new stables of Neely and Moore is almost completed. The building will be three stories.” Also – “Mr. F.H. Moore has purchased the livery business of Mr. C.F. Sheek, who some months ago bought out Neely and Moore.”
The Rock Hill Record reported on Oct. 21, 1908 – “The new building for Neely and Moore Stables is nearing completion. It was designed by Mr. N.G. Walker, architect of the J.J. Keller Company, which is building it.”
The RH Record contained an ad on Jan. 1st 1909 – “Grand opening sale at W.J. Neely’s big new sales stables. Offered are horses, mules, a big line of buggies, wagons and harnesses.”
The Herald contained an ad on Jan. 10, 1919 for the “Anderson Service Station at 126 Black Street provides service for Anderson Motor cars and has tools especially for Andersons. We also sell Standard Gas and Firestone Tires.”
An ad in the Herald on Feb. 16, 1924 for Sadler – Neely Motor Co., featured the 1924 Anderson Aluminum Six.
The Herald reported on Sept. 8, 1942 – “A new business, Farmer’s Exchange will open at 122 E. Black Street in the three story brick building recently occupied by Polk Motor Company. Bynum F. Poe is the Prop., he is also owner of Farmers Feed and Milling Company. The new operation will be under Victor Sturgis, experienced feed and poultry man and J.A. Barber, well know farmer and businessman. A complete line of feeds, farm and garden seeds, flour, garden supplies, dog food, and lawn grass will be available. The business will open on Sept. 9th.”
This is the location at which the A.B. Poe and Company began operations before later moving to South Cherry Road as a result of the urban renewal program.
The City of Rock Hill began their urban renewal project to transform the city in the late 1960s and it continued into the early 1970s. It
involved the demolition of hundreds of homes and private businesses in the African American area as well as the East Black, West Black, Johnston, Hampton, and Trade Street corridors were all affected. Within a short span, nearly 40% of Rock Hill’s older downtown buildings were destroyed to provide economic opportunities, benefiting a few businessman. As part of this action, the railroad lines were moved and a new bridge crossing over Black Street was built to also alleviate traffic jams created by trains but in doing so, the old Rock Hill Depot building was also razed.
But the most transformative aspect of the move was to add municipal buildings to the landscape; the Rock Hill City Hall, the Center for Aging, the Library and the Rock Hill Police Department buildings.
Also see the Urban Renewal image for a 1950’s look at the area.
From the Rock Hill Herald, June 18, 1968: City Landmark Waits Demolition
One of Rock Hill’s older downtown structures – the Roddey Poe Mercantile Company’s Farmers Exchange Building on Black Street – has been vacated to clear the way for demolition. The history of the 15,850-square-foot property has been as varied as the steady growth of Rock Hill since the turn of the century.
The Roddey-Poe Mercantile Company, now headed by A. Bynum Poe, has turned the property over to the City Housing Authority, with demolition tentatively scheduled for next month. This will be part of the clearing for the pedestrian plaza, possible site of the future civic center building and massive parking lot for the new city hall. Bynum Poe recalls that Ed Roddey had the building erected around 1900, at the same time that the Main Street structure occupied by the Raylass Store was built. A few years after the structure was erected, it was sold to Wayne Biggers, and had “about fifteen” intervening owners before the Roddey-Poe firm bought it back and Bynum Poe began operating it as Farmers Exchange 28 years ago.
Bynum Poe’s father and uncle bought the building from Biggers in 1910 and turned it into a warehouse. Later it served as the sales agency of the Sadler-Neely Motor Company, selling the Rock Hill-produced Anderson automobile. It was later a body shop and storage area before the Roddey-Poe firm came back to it for the third, and last, time 28 years ago. The Farmers Exchange is now in its new location at 322 S. York Avenue / Cherry Road. Feed storage facilities on the property still have to be advertised for sale and the property will then be cleared when the Housing Authority’s demolisher moves back into town for the second major clearing effort in the 40-acre civic center area.
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