The Hart Store is a small commercial property located on a heavily vegetated and well-shaded stretch of Brewer Road in close proximity to the current commercial core of the small northern Arizona City of Sedona. The nominated property consists of approximately .243 acres, upon which is situated the store building, a tin storage shed, and a water wheel. Neither the water wheel nor shed are considered contributing elements of the property and are thus described only cursorily in this nomination. Built in 1926, the Hart Store is a wood framed one story commercial building and was the first “big” store to serve the inhabitants of the then substantially smaller community of Sedona (Oral Interview, Nellie May Smith Hart, March 28, 1985). When the realignment of Sedona’s major commercial intersection away from Brewer and Ranger roads occurred in 1939, the Hart Store ceased to function in its current location, and the business was moved to the newly constructed intersection of State Highways 179 and 89A. At this time, the Hart Store building was converted into duplex housing for employees of the new, relocated Hart Store business. Rehabilitation work in 2002 restored the function of the building to retail commerce; however, the sensitive retention of much of the 1940 remodel’s historic fabric conveys the building’s historic transformation for use as worker residence.
The Hart Store is recommended eligible for listing in the National Register under Criterion A at the local level for its association with commerce and community planning and development in Sedona Arizona. The 1926 construction of the original Hart Store at what was once the primary vehicular intersection of the sleepy little town of Sedona reflects the earliest roots of commerce in the City. The subsequent relocation of the Store and concomitant conversion of the building into worker housing in 1940 reflects the significant impact the construction of the interchange at Highway 179 and 89A (familiarly known as “The Y,”) would have on the commercial development of the City. The period of significance for the property extends from 1926, the date of the building’s construction, until 1940, the year in which the duplex conversion occurred. As the building’s conversion into a duplex reflects the important reorientation of the building’s function, it is highlighted as a significant date for the history of the building.
The Hart Store is located on a quarter-acre parcel in southeastern Sedona, immediately southwest of the intersection of Arizona State Highways 179 and 89A, at the intersection of Brewer and Ranger Roads. It is accessible from Highway 179 via Ranger Road or from Highway 89A via Brewer Road. In the past, Brewer and Ranger roads were the main access roads through Sedona and the intersection of these two roads was the community’s main intersection. Today, this intersection is again a busy one, owing to the cut-through traffic attempting to bypass the now congested “newer” (1939) intersection of State Highways 179 and 89A (familiarly known as the “Y”). In the area of the Hart Store, Highway 179 parallels Oak Creek for about one mile.
The Hart House Story
This area is characterized by lush foliage and mature trees, a riparian environment fed by proximity to Oak Creek. The land on which the Hart Store is situated is relatively flat, although the rear (northeast) portion of the property is undeveloped because of the presence of a steep cut rising behind the Hart Store. This rise separates the flat portion of the property from the hilltop and traffic above. Native plant material has been removed from the inundated surroundings of the Hart Store and the grounds have been planted with a lush residential landscape, including irrigated non-native deciduous trees, shrubs, ground cover, and flowers, along with a picket fence and paths. These landscaped features help to maintain the original “rural country store” setting and feeling despite the encroaching commercial development in the area. Landscape features include a small tin storage shed and a small water wheel. Little to nothing is known about these elements, including their dates of construction, and they are included in this nomination as non-contributors. Advertising signs for commercial products such as Coca-Cola are conspicuously attached to the building, where they have remained for decades. The eastern portion of the property, which lies outside the nominated boundaries of the National Register property, consists of a steep slope from west to east and north to south and is characterized by high desert native vegetation.
The Hart Store is situated in one of the few remaining historic enclaves of Sedona, surrounded by fairly modem development. On the west side of Brewer Road (named for the Charlie and Lydia Brewer family, who lived at the south end of the road) is the 1914 Brewer (Sedona) School. To the east of the Store on Ranger Road is the eponymous Sedona Ranger Station, established in 1905. Farther east along the more recently constructed State Highway 179, newer residences and commercial properties face the highway.
Other historic properties in the area include the Black Ranch, the old post office, the Sally Black Home, the Pearl Coons Home, and the USFS/Delia Hart Pumphouse, which is on the east side of highway 179 opposite the intersection with Ranger Road. The Schnebly home and the first Sedona post office were also located in this area.