New Renovation
Polly J. Dobbs, Attorney at Law, is making an impact in Peru, Indiana. She is currently remodeling the old brick building formerly known as the Bearss-McCaffrey Block. With renovations beginning in April of 2015, the first priority was to replace the leaky roof and freshen up the added first floor offices. As of May 2015, Dobbs Legal Group, LLC was able to open up shop in a small portion of the first floor. There’s still much work that needs to be completed, to restore this big old building to its original glory.
Purpose
Polly and her husband moved back home to the family farm in Miami County with their two children in 2011, because Steve took over management of these farms. Since then she has been working in Indianapolis and Logansport, but began to feel that it was time to make a change and help improve downtown Peru. Polly says, “While driving through town shaking my head at all the dilapidated buildings, I realized, my practice can be anywhere, why not in a revitalized building in the heart of my hometown?”
Brief History
With only half of the block still remaining, the Dobbs’ purchased 2/3 of what’s left of the 1905 Bearss-McCaffrey Block. From 1908 – 1912 it was occupied by Lenhart-Murphy Furniture and then Hammond-Murphy Furniture till 1916. Murphy Furniture took over for the next 20 years until 1936, when it became Montgomery Wards until 1965. A Montgomery Wards affiliate, Western Auto Store, ran a business until its closing in the early 1970s and reopened as Total Discount for a period of time. Oddly enough, Polly discovered interesting historic details that came to light when after the purchase was completed. The original owners, Frank Wallace Bearss and Hugh McCaffrey, happen to be relatives of Dobbs, putting ownership of 110 year old buildings back in the family.
The offices of Dobbs Legal Group, LLC are located at 52 N. Broadway, Peru, Indiana 46970.