The Old McGraw Store

Located at 2 East Main Street is a modest brick building, now painted white, constructed for Joseph McGraw Jr. (1812-1892) in 1840. McGraw was the son of early Irish immigrants to the region and was raised in the Irish settlement of the Dryden township. From this convenient location on the southeast corner of the crossroads, McGraw operated his mercantile business for several years. The shop was purchased by Cyrus French in 1860, thenceforth serving as the home of French Brothers Furniture until the 1890s. The building was then used as a hardware store for the first part of the twentieth century. The exterior features many Federal-style architectural details, such as the elliptical motif beneath the gable on the north façade. This building is one of the only brick-masonry commercial structures in downtown Dryden. The Old McGraw store at 2 East Main Street is a contributing structure of the Village of Dryden National Historic District.

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