“On a recent walk from the Old West Side to the State Street area,” writes Rob Utterback, May’s I Spy image “was on my mind.” Approaching 113 W. Liberty, he “looked up, and there it was, the answer.” “It’s the current site of the West Side Book [Shop] owned and operated by Jay Platt,” writes David Karl. “I believe it was called the John Haarer Building,” says Dave Bicknell, “named for the photographer who lived and worked there.”
David Karl notes that this 1888 Richardson Romanesque building was the first in the city to have a plate glass storefront, and survived a 1960s attempt to raze it for a parking lot: “It now houses an urban style apartment upstairs and Doug Price’s photo collection [within the bookstore] downstairs. So I guess you could say the building has come full circle since its beginnings in the late 19th century.”
“I have long admired both the building and the bookstore,” writes Sara Kitz-steiner. “Beautiful brick work!” adds Andre Struger, who, like Rob, discovered it while walking.
Twelve people correctly identified the John Haarer Building on Liberty, including Doug Price. Our winner, drawn at random from the correct entries, is Dawn Johnson of Ann Arbor. Dawn will enjoy her $25 gift certificate at Zingerman’s.
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To enter this month’s contest, identify the photo on the Back Page of the June issue and send your answer to the address listed at the bottom of the page.