Montgomery Ward/Tindall Storage Building

801 Grove - c.1911 (NR)

This 5 story building was constructed to house Montgomery Ward & Company's mail order and catalog operations.  Montgomery Ward occupied the building until 1921 when they moved to the old Chevrolet Plant (now demolished) on West 7th Street.  In 1929, Ward's moved across 7th Street to their landmark building that is scheduled to be renovated.  Fakes & Co. used the Grove Street building as a warehouse after Ward's moved, and may have also used the Hunt-Hawes Grocer Building next door.  After Fakes moved out, both buildings were owned by and housed the Fort Worth Paper Co.  until they were sold to Polluck Paper Co.  The buildings were soon separated and the Hunt-Hawes building was sold to Alarm Supply, Inc. and this structure was sold to Taylor Appliance and was used for warehouse sales. 

The building features and original pressed tin ceiling on the first and second floors, with upper floors housing warehouse operations with exposed wood structural members.  Like the Hunt-Hawes building next door, the warehouse features load bearing brick walls with a friction held structural system of wood columns, beams, and joists.  The two warehouses also share a common load bearing brick wall with openings between them on the first, third, and fourth floors.  Tindall Record Storage now occupies the building.  With the construction of the Intermodal Transportation Facility just a few blocks away, this warehouse will remain and could become the cornerstone of new development around the transportation hub.  

Permission to take interior photographs granted by Historic Fort Worth, Inc. and Scott Tindall.