Listen to this article
The Lawyerâs Title Building at 209 W. Washington Street has a long history in downtown Rensselaer. The original building may go back to 1881, but a fire in the 1920âs altered the building in what was then the Ellis Opera House.
According to my notes, it has also housed Ben Fendigâs Shoe Store, Porterâs Menâs Clothing Store, Homer Hendriksonâs Grocery, John Michaelâs Grocery Store, and the JC Penney Store, then a JC Penney Catalog Store was next door.
The building was purchased by Scott Lucero from the Grow and Hoover families in 1995. In 1997, construction began by totally gutting the building, and it has been renovated inside and out.