Name/Title
John Koning Hardware 1904Entry/Object ID
2021.87.07Description
557 KB digital image of the John Koning hardware store
Digital original at 2021.72.02
439 Butler Street, Saugatuck
Shortly after the fire we see John Koning’s new store of 1904, of the now familiar red brick, with white bands of galvanized iron. Koning’s Hardware Store (founded as Nies Hardware in 1868) is Saugatuck’s oldest existing retail business. The new “John Koning Hardware” was the ultimate in modern for its day—complete with one of Michigan’s earliest “counter-weight” elevators. The unusually tall brick building was crowned with a bold cornice and with the village’s largest plate-glass windows—giving it a definite “commercial Italianate” appeal. Today it is Wilkins Hardware store and looks much as it did in 1904, with an agreeably designed addition to the rear—and it still offers about anything one would need, including good advice.
The upper floor was used by various renters, including the local Christian Science Society before they built their own structure nearby on the village square. Architect: J. H. Daverman and SonPhotograph Details
Type of Photograph
DigitalSubject Person or Organization
439 Butler/Butler Pantry/Wilkins/Koning/Nies HardwareCollection
Commercial businessesCataloged By
Winthers, SallyAcquisition
Accession
2021.87Source or Donor
Sheridan, John "Jack" O. 1938-Acquisition Method
DonationLocation
Filing cabinet
Files PropertiesRelationships
Related Person or Organization
Person or Organization
Koning, John 1858-1927Create Date
November 28, 2021Update Date
February 15, 2024
