Rusk Street Tour Locate on map Continue to Rusk Street. Before turning right, note the modern clinic to your left that was built in the 50’s by Dr. A.W. Brazda. At times after his death, it stood vacant but not always. Dr. Luther Gohlke opened his office there and called it the Walnut Clinic. For a period only physician’s assistants and nurse practitioners saw patients and referred them on to out of-town specialists. Now Dr. Philip Webb, formerly of Kerrville, has taken over the operation of the clinic, and Ranger once again has a resident physician. This lot was the original location of Traders’ Grocery before it moved to Main Street. A little farther north there was also a live poultry produce house located on that block where customers could buy super fresh chicken. Turning right, note the west corner grocery that was for many years owned by the Mills family and afterward the Aishmans and then the Robinsons. Perhaps there were other families who operated this grocery. Across the street on the east side is the location of the Southern Ice Company, a business that was extremely important when many a home still had a genuine icebox rather than a refrigerator. Glancing back over your shoulder in front of the ice company, you can see Burton- Lingo Lumber Yard on the northeast corner. It had apartments on its second floor. Beyond the grocery is the Ranger Furniture Exchange, more commonly known as Brashier’s. Three generations of this family have operated the store that includes the Terrell Building. Contrary to speculation, this is not where the Terrell family doctors operated their clinic; that was on Main Street. There were apartments on the second floor of their building, however. The business that abutted on the alley was a job printing concern operated by Mr. MacDonald.
Go ahead and cross Main, again passing between the Commercial State Bank and the Corner Drug Store. Before the alley on the left is the original site of Capps’ Photography Studio. Continuing across the alley is the location of the former Liberty Theater, which for many years was no more than a ruin. On the west side of the street is where Dr. A. W. Brazda opened his first personal clinic. There was a Bourland’s music store next to the alley and behind the Corner Drug. One could buy a piano there. Somewhere in this block was also Buddy Vinson’s TV shop. He sold the first TV to many Ranger families. He also had a busy TV repair business in the days when tubes were a primary concern. Next to him on the corner was the Ranger Farm Store or John Deere dealership operated by the John Tibbles family. Also on this block was, at one time, another florist shop other than those already mentioned. Across the street on the southeast corner of the intersection and adjacent to the Liberty ruin was Bagwell-Roberson Motor Company, who sold Ford cars. The Dr Pepper Bottling Company, a distinctly Texan product was east of Bagwell’s and next to the alley before the Second Baptist Church. The manager of this soft drink plant was M. L. King.
Instead of turning left toward the depot, turn right and pass the farm store. Behind Tibbles was an auto mechanics shop owned by Vernon Deffebach. Across the street is the Killingsworth Funeral Home. Next to the funeral home is the relatively new telephone office. Mae Carr was a long-time manager of the city office of Southwestern Bell. End Tour