Samuel Russell Reasin (1874-1932, and a Harford County Commissioner) and Norma Reasin owned a parcel of land that included “A Brick Steam Grist Mill” as well as the lot on which this building was constructed and sold it in 1903 to Samuel Reasin Jones (1870-1916). The grist mill ceased to exist by 1924 when the Havre de Grace Banking and Trust Company was built over the foundation of the old mill (and is now MacGregor’s Restaurant). And Jones sold this part of the property in 1911 to John William “Will” Bauer (1862-1930)—it was most likely Bauer who constructed this building.

In the late 1920s into the early 1930s this was the Havre de Grace Billiard Parlor run by John D. Franko (1889-1976). Franko, who was born in Greece, served in the US Army during WWI . His daughter, Margaret Franko-Dawson, still lives in Havre de Grace. John W. Bauer’s estate sold the property in 1933 to the Consolidated Gas Electric Light Power Company of Baltimore (later named Baltimore Gas & Electric).

Cheryl Moretz says her Dad, Ernest E. “Ernie” Neeper (1921-2011) was the office manager and a fixture in this building for all of her childhood and even early in her married life. She used to walk here from school each day and wait for five o’clock to come so she could walk home with her Dad. He was a WWII veteran who retired from BG&E after 32 years and her Mom, Dorothy, died just three years after her Dad. The inside of this building was actually very pretty, Cheryl says, with a tin ceiling and plastered patterned areas on the walls along with the drop lighting fixtures. This is where people paid their electric and gas bills and bought appliances. Sally Leiske Daigle says she thought she was “big stuff” dropping their payments off here and talking to Cheryl’s Dad. BG&E owned the building until 1972 when they sold it to Noel B. Dooley (1929-1977).

Noel Dooley, who had moved to Havre de Grace from Dublin, Maryland, was a self-employed locksmith here who died at the age of only 48. His estate sold this property in 1978 to Toni C. Correll and her mother, Monteen V. Camarata. During the time they owned it, they had a craft shop where Toni taught macramé and silk-flower arranging classes. In addition, Toni Correll became a staff volunteer for the Havre de Grace Chamber of Commerce in 1984. Toni sold this building the following year to Clovis R. Bolen and Dr. Dalia R. Hirsch, who were part of the group of citizens who did some renovations to the old State Theatre next door and tried to re-establish it as the Lafayette Theater.

In 1994, Dick and Debbie Race ran a silk screening and embroidery business in this building called “Your Name Here.” In 1996, “Antiques at St. John” was here followed by the “Mustard Seed” in 1998. Later, it was “Another Daffodil,” then “Precious Pet Pleasures,” followed by the “Button Lady” (who was the late Dee Foe) with “Art Pantheon.”

Since 2008, the property has been owned by St. John D Investments, LLC, which is also the current owner of the State Theater next door at 325 St. John Street. Having been unoccupied for some time, in 2018 it became the home of Flawless Foto Photography, with Kymberly L. Griffin. In mid-2020 this is the home of My Gossip Girls Consignments, a high end designer consignment store.

County Records
Built 1920. 1672 sq ft commercial retail store, 2849 sq ft lot.