Bradley, South Carolina, is located on the southwest border of Greenwood County. The unincorporated town’s population is 160. If you’ve ever driven 221 south, you drove right past the Smith Steifle Grocery Store.
Ruben Smith Steifle ran the store for over 50 years. Stifle passed away in 2021, and according to his obituary, he was “a friend to many.” I am uncertain if the store is open.
Constructed in 1958 at 181 W. Brooks Road, Presley Gulf Station appeared in the 1963 and 1966 Green Book.
The history of this building is limited, and what is out there seems somewhat contradictory. According to the Early Coke website, the bottling plant was opened in 1906. This photo on the Encyclopedia of Arkansas website does not look like this building, so I don’t know if two buildings were built or if this one was modified and expanded over the years. Another website identifies it as being built in 1937, which I believe. I love the details with the Coke bottles.
If anyone has additional information, please let me know.
According to what I can find, researchers at Middle Tennessee State University were told by community members that this building once served as a fraternal lodge, funeral home, and store for the Black community of La Grange, Tennessee. They later found purchase of land in 1912 by the National Mosaic Templars of America, a Black benevolent organization.
The Bank of Sparta is located on the main thoroughfare of Broad Street in Sparta, Georgia. Despite applying for a charter fifteen years prior, the Bank of Sparta was approved to open as a bank in February 1904.
The bank was only for a few years. By April 1921, it was closed by state bank regulators when it was determined that the bank leaders were mishandling bank deposits. John D. Walker first served as the First National Bank of Sparta president. He then came to serve as the president of the Bank of Sparta. By 1921, he escaped to Texas to avoid prosecution for mishandling and the embezzling of bank funds. Depositors lost all of their money.
An interesting part of the sidewalk in front of the building is that there are still some vault lights. Vault lights were created to provide lighting in basements. The surface area is flat, but many of the vault lights would be angled to guide light into other basement areas.
While most of the glass appears clear, the glass can take on a purple hue. This (dis)coloration is caused by manganese dioxide, which will begin to change colors in response to sunlight. Silica was the main ingredient of the vault lights. Manganese dioxide was added to refine and set it.
So the next time you are walking in a historic downtown area, look down to see if you can locate any vault lights.
