The Mckusick building

Narrative

by Robert Molenda

The McKusick Building was built in 1880. You have to exercise your history detective skills in order to see the ghost of the old building hidden in the building today.  Presently, it is a two story building that has a marble facing. It covers the masonry brick frontage of the old building, but with a little effort, you can see the ghost of the old building that originally stood at this location. 

The building was once a three story affair. There was a fire in 1928 that necessitated the removal of the top floor to leave the present two story building. At one time, it was the Norwest Bank and the Norwest Insurance Building. The present building shows a storefront that has been altered and covered with the marble facing. This is a good opportunity to look at the "Time Tunnel" photo (Main and Commercial Street Photo) and see where the old building merges with the present building.

Just imagine the view outside the Main Street window of the McKusick building in 1914 viewing toward the Union Depot, Main Street, Streetcars and the St. Croix River.

Of interest here is the fact that the north/south division line for Stillwater is at Myrtle Street and Main. Was the original bridge crossing to be located at Myrtle Street as opposed to Chestnut Street? Another mystery of Stillwater.