I love me some puzzle and I solved one today! 🤗

My latest Harrison history mystery started with a ghost sign, an old painted name showing through the stucco on a downtown building.

C. L. Glines.

Who was he? Where was his store? And why was his name on this particular building?

I searched old newspapers, studied Sanborn maps, and chased clues all over the Harrison square. I discovered he was a jeweler and found advertisements dating back to the 1890s, but this man ran HUGE ads without ever telling anybody where his store was!

As a marketing person, all I could think was, C.L., WHY ARE YOU BEING SO OBTUSE?! WHERE IS YOUR STORE? 😂

From everything I’ve uncovered, I believe Glines moved his jewelry store three times over the years.

I suspected he’d operated his jewelry store in the building with his name on it, but I needed proof. It was the last piece of the puzzle.

After looking high and low, I finally went to the Boone County land office today. And there it was! A handwritten deed dated November 17, 1910, showing that Glines purchased the property from The Citizens Bank of Harrison for $4,500.

Just like the last time I closed in on the mystery of a building, by the time I got to the land office, it only took me about five minutes to find the right deed.

I cannot tell you how exciting it was to find that deed and finally connect the pieces!