The Building at 604 West Washington Street Has Served Many Roles

Before the Erie County Chamber of Commerce moved to its location at 604 West Washington Street, this building was home to the Frey-Groff Funeral Home for several decades.

According to the Ohio Historic House Inventory for Erie County, in 1906 R.E. Schuck, a partner in the Gilcher and Schuck Lumber Company, built a house in the 900 block of Washington Street (later the 600 block of West Washington Street, after street numbers changed in 1915). He had the former Spencer-Phelps home razed in order to make way for his fine, sturdy house built from limestone. After the deaths of Mr. and Mrs. Schuck in 1910, publisher A. J. Peters resided in the former Schuck home. Later, Herbert Farrell, founder of the Farrell-Cheek Steel Company lived at this address. 

Fred Frey, Jr. moved his funeral home from Market Street to this location in the mid-1920s. F. Leo Groff joined the business in 1939, and in 1973 the name changed to the Frey-Groff Funeral Home. Now the later generations of the Groffs operate the Groff Funeral Home on East Perkins Avenue. The former downtown chapel is now home to the Erie County Chamber of Commerce. 

This old hitching post reminds us of the early days of this building and before, during the era of horse-powered transportation.