One of the oldest
structures in the Theater District, the facade is fine example
of Neo-Classical
commercial design. It can also be described as Beaux Arts
Classicism. It recalls the general appearance of the
former Otto-Kent Building) presently Theater Place, and may have
been designed by the same architect, Edward Kent.
The building was originally erected c. 1895 as
the factory and sales room of A. E. Perron Company,
manufacturer of carriages (automobiles), sleighs and
harnesses.
The Poppenberg Company bought the building c. 1905.
The company manufactured pianos, player pianos, bicycles, and
carriages (automobiles) in their factory on the northeast
corner of Main and Carlton. 674 Main was their showroom.
The Wurlitzer Company
bought the building in the 1930s for a showroom, offices and
studios.
For 66 years, it was the major retail outlet in Buffalo for
the musical
instruments that the internationally known Wurlitzer Company
manufactured in its Tonawanda factory. In the 1960s, school
children
would take field trips there for chamber music concerts. The
business
closed in 1996.
In 1997, Washington Surplus bought the building. After
W.W.II, the armed services sold surplus clothing and
equipment. The father of present (2002) co-owner Charles
Kushner, a veteran, started the company and bought the
building at Washington and Seneca Streets.
In June of 2002, Mayor
Anthony Masiello and the Buffalo
Preservation Board gave an award to Charles Cushner and
Larry Maxick of Washington Surplus for their efforts "in the
exemplary restoration of their very elegant neoclassic
building."
Presently (July 2002), the first floor is used as retail space
for Washington Surplus, and the upper floors are being
converted into 12 apartments which will boast a glass atrium
with roof top garden.
