Tag Archives: 119-121 Commerce Street Kingsport TN

Original Honest John’s

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As work progresses on the widening of Memorial Boulevard, the original home of Honest John’s gift shop and restaurant is going down. In 1954, “Honest John” Barker created “Kaw-Liga”, a 25-foot concrete depiction of a rather surprised looking “indian” in front of this structure. There was a speaker in the statue with which Barker would lure tourists in to shop his offerings. By 1960, the indian had been hauled up to the newly-created Stone Drive/11W/Robert E. Lee Highway where Barker continued the business until 1970 or so.
Other businesses occupied this building off and on. The only one I recall was Abe’s Pies, which supplied quite decent pies to restaurants in the city.

Back of the Theater

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This is the back of 119 – 121 Commerce Street as it looks today.  The upper door and balcony give away what it used to be: a movie theater.  It got hot in that projection room and this gave the person running the movie a way got get some relief and, probably in those days, a smoke.  I think the balcony is still in the back of the old State Theater building, too.   (later: I checked behind the old Strand Theater…no balcony there.)

This was the Center Theater.  It existed for about seven years, closing in 1955.

I note that there are three good door crops here and one that’s messed up with the power lines. Old doors can be good subjects.  They don’t move around a lot and there’s always a chance that you’ll be the first and only person to record them.  Gold star material, no lie.