Walking Tour-6 North Main Street-Walking Tour
(East Side of Street)

This brick false-front building was built in 1924 by Lee McFarland. C. J. Cheeseman bought the property in the mid 1930s for an ice cream store and restaurant. In 1932 according to an article in the Clarkston News , 5/20 /1932, Cheeseman was opening two stores, one on Clarkston-Orion Rd. and one at 40 (?)S. Main. (There was an ad in a 1934 newspaper for the Polly Inn, a restaurant at this location.) An article of 6/19 /1936 said Cheeseman was remodeling the McFarland restaurant, this building. In 1938 Cheeseman's added baked goods & light lunches. English Bone China & Aladdin Lamps were among the gift items avaiable at Cheeseman's according to a 1949 newspaper advertisement. In later years the building housed an appliance store then an auto parts business.

Historically, Arthur Davis owned the property according to tax records by 1846 with an assessed value high enough to indicate a building or buildings on this site by then. A year later Jeremiah Brown owned this property & the lot to the north. The 1859 tax records listed a house & stable on his property. The house was on the site of 14 North Main Street.

The 1872 map of the Village shows the footprint of Brown's meat market & to the south the Greek Revival building which was a duplicate of the one on the northeast corner of N. Main & E. Washington St. This was the cabinet shop of Francis J. Walter in 1869 & 1861. By 1900 it was listed in tax records as the property of Wm. V. B. Vliet's estate. Vliet was listed as an undertaker. By 1914 Frank Leonard had a bakery on this site. The bakery was in the front with the family residence in the back.

John Shaughnessy, who learned the trade from Leonard, bought the property in 1920, leaving Clarkston for California by 1923. (Shaughnessy later returned to Clarkston & owned a bakery on the site of 60 S. Main). Louis Terry then ran the business. Articles regarding the building at 20/22 S. Main say that one of the duplicate Greek Revival buildings which stood on this site was moved to join that building. Tax assessment values seem to indicate that this must have been in 1924. A caption for a photo on page 52 in Heritage says the northern of the two buildings was moved in 1916 to the site of 20 N. Main by Floyd Andrews, blacksmith. Tax records seem to indicate the move was probably a year or two later). More information is needed to confirm the dates of these moves.

Official Property Description:

• Lot 6 & part of Lot 9 Block 19 Part of Nelson W. Clark's Original Plat of the Village in the Southeast 1/4 of Section 20 of Independence Township.
• Lot 37 of the Supervisor's Replat of the Northwest Addition and part of the Original Plat.

Significant Property History:

[A Synopsis Of Property Transfers Derived From Abstracts
(when available) And Periodic Changes In Ownership Or
Assessed Value Derived From Township Tax Records]

• Note: All the properties currently located in the Historic District were originally part of a tract registered by Butler Holcomb with the federal government on October 22, 1831. Thus, abstracts for these properties, when they exist, show the original transfer to be from the United States to Butler Holcomb and may also include references to then President Andrew Jackson.
• 1846 Arthur Davis, Lots 6 & 9 Block 19, assessed value $150.
• 1847 Jeremiah Brown, the west 1/2 of Lots 6 & 9 Block 19, occupied together, assessed value $100.
• 1848 Jeremiah Brown, the west 1/2 of Lots 6 & 9, assessed value $195.
• 1850 Jeremian Brown, the west 1/2 of Lots 6 & 9.
  A. Benjamin, the east 1/2 of Lots 6 & 9.
• 1855 Jeremiah Brown, the west 1/2 of Lots 5, 6, & 9, except 27 & 1/2' x 60' in the southwest corner of Lot 9.
• 1856 Jeremiah Brown, as above. Abbey & Robinson, a piece 27 & 1/2' x 60'.
• 1859 Jeremiah Brown, the west 1/2 of Lots 5, 6 & 9, except 62' x 72 &1/2' sold to Abbey & Robinson & except 42' front x 75' back, a part on Lot 9 and a part on Lot 6, "House & Stable"
• 1860 Francis Walter, "cabinet shop" on Lots 6 & 9 Block 19.
• 1861 Francis J. Walter, 42' x 75' on Lots 6 & 9, assessed value $700. "Cabinet shop".
• 1872 Map of the Village has the footprint of a building on this site, J. Brown's meat market.
• 1889 Emma Brown, assessed value $500.
• 1900 Emma Brown, Lots 3, 5 & 6, assessed value $600. Wm. V. B. Vliet, Estate, part of Lots 6 & 7, assessed value $600."cabinetmaker/undertaker.
• 1904 as above.
• 1914 Frank Leonard, the north 35' of the west 1/2 of Lot 9, & the east 20' of the west 1/2 of the south 1/2 of Lot 9, assessed value $700.
• 1918 as above, assessed value $1000.
• 1919 Avery Beardslee, as above.
• 1920 John Shaughnessy, the north 35' of the west 1/2 of Lot 9, & the west 1/2 of the south 1/2 of Lot 9, assessed value $1500.
• 1923 Louis Terry, as above, assessed value $1500.
• 1924 Masonic Temple, the north 35' off the west 1/2 of Lot 9 & the east 20' of the west 1/2 of the south 1/2 of Lot 9 Block 19, assessed value $1700, & 62 1/2' on Washington St., assessed value $4000.
• 1925 Masonic Temple, 62 1/2' on Washington St., assessed value $4000.
  Lee McFarland, the north 35' off the west 1/2 of Lot 9 & the east 20' of the west 1/2 of the south 1/2 of Lot 9 Block 19, assessed value $1900.
• 1927 Lee McFarland, Clarkston Baking Co., the north 35' off the west 1/2 of Lot 9 & the east 20' of the west 1/2 of the south 1/2 of Lot 9, assessed value $1950.
• 1930 Lee McFarland, part of Lot 9, west by Main, south by Temple & Washington St., east by Meyers & O'Roark, north by Bradley.
• 1933 Lee McFarland, Lot 37.
• 1940 C. J. Cheeseman.
• 1950 "C. M." Cheeseman, Lot 37.