Historic Mowrystown building converted into new auction house
By Rory Ryan
The Highland County Press
MOWRYSTOWN – An historic Mowrystown building that has been owned by the Bright Local School District for more than four decades is under new ownership.
The former Bright Local Bus Garage on West Main Street has been converted into a local auction house by Juillerat Enterprises.
Local auctioneer and real estate professional Klayton Juillerat of Nationwide Auctions and Realty and his wife, Kara, along with their young children, Kalen and Kenley, are the new owners, having purchased the building last fall from the school district.
The building, which was built in the early 1900s, was originally a livery stable and was connected to the Mowrystown Hotel, which Juillerat Enterprises purchased a few years ago.
Later, the building housed the local Ford automobile dealership. It also was home to various garages and gas stations before the school district acquired it around 1972.
For many years, Roy Booth was the bus garage mechanic for Bright Local.
According to Klayton Juillerat, Roy recently retired but still lives nearby. For many local residents, passing by the bus garage immediately brings memories of Roy and the district’s bus drivers.
The Juillerats have spent several months renovating the building in preparation for their first auction at 10 a.m. Saturday, March 28. The consignment auction will include farm and livestock equipment, tools, tack, trailers, campers and new and antique furniture.
Monthly auctions are planned in the future.
In the process of renovating the building, the Juillerats have added a bit of Mowrystown history from family photo archives and from Mowrystown historian and longtime Highland County Press columnist Jerry Pruitt. Among the many photos are snapshots of the old mill, Crystal Ice, the Ford dealership, the town restaurant and bar and many other scenes familiar to longtime local residents.
“Kara and I would like to invite the community to the March 28 auction to see the building improvements as well as get together with friends,” Klayton told The Highland County Press during a St. Patrick’s Day interview.
Klayton encouraged anyone with auction items or in need of future auction schedules to contact him at (937) 205-5256 or by e-mail at: klaytonsells@yahoo.com.