501 Houston Street, F.W. Woolworth Co., 1926; 1954. Adjoining the newly completed Sanger Brothers store (CBD 88) on the east side of Houston St., the EW Woolworth Co. building was constructed on land purchased by J.J. Jarvis in 1872 and leased by Woolworth in 1925 from the Jarvis family. Architect Wiley G. Clarkson, who also designed the adjacent Sanger Brothers store, drew plans for this building that were carried out by James T. Taylor, general contractor. Woolworth’s remodeled the ground floor in 1954, installing new “see through” windows which allowed pedestrians to see merchandise displayed inside the store. Windows on the two upper floors have also been replaced. Woolworth’s closed its downtown Fort Worth location in January 1990, and the structure has been vacant since that time. Plans for redevelopment are incomplete. Constructed of concrete, steel, and brick faced with white Texas limestone, the three-story building has an elaborately carved stone frieze beneath the cornice. The original F.W. Woolworth Co. signage was, unfortunately, removed by the Woolworth Co. when the store closed.
