East New Market

Property Reports

101 Main Street

Johnson Store & Dwelling (ca. 1866-1915)

(Also known as Webster & Reid)

In 1866 Levi Johnson purchased a house and lot from Mary Bramble.  Mary Bramble was listed with one house in an 1852 tax record.  This house was the Bramble House.  Therefore it is not likely there was a house on this lot at that time.  From 1853 through 1866, her taxable real estate decreased in value from $1100 to $900 and only the one house was noted.  The 1867 tax assessment lists her with $1350 in real estate and Levi S. Johnson with $1600 in real estate.  This record marks the first year that Levi Johnson was listed.  Therefore it is believed that Mary Bramble has the house built in 1865 or 1866 and sold it to Levi S. Johnson upon its completion.  By 1876 the property was listed as a house and store house combined.  The store & dwelling were shown on the 1877 map as E.S. Johnson.

The Johnson Store & Dwelling was destroyed in a 1915 fire.  This was not the big fire of 1914, but another fire less than a year later.  About a year after this fire, a two story brick structure called Millenson's Department Store was built at this location.  The store was later converted to a service station, and restaurant, a tavern, and finally the East New Market Fire Department.  Another part of the E.S. Johnson property was sold to the Eastern Shore Trust Company who built the East New Market Bank.  In the 1980s, the East New Market Volunteer Fire Department united part of the property again by buying the bank property.  However, they soon thereafter they destroyed the Bank to the dismay of most residents.  

Cambridge Chronicle - 1915 - Another Fire at East New Market -

Sunday morning about five o'clock a fire was discovered in the general store of Webster & Reid, East New Market, which completely destroyed the store building and stock of goods, and the home of Mr. Harrison Webster, who lived in the house which adjoined and was a part of the store building. The loss is estimated at from $4000 to $5000, as follows:  Stock of goods, from $1500 to $2000; the store building and residence, from $2000 to $3000.  The store was owned by Harrison W. Webster, Esq., and Edward Reid, while the building was owned by Mrs. Margaret Johnson.  The losses on both stock and building were partially covered by insurance. See 1915 Fire for the complete newspaper article.