Tour Stop 7: Verde Valley Mercantile Company, c. 1917

514 Main Street, Camp Verde, AZ 86322

The Verde Valley Mercantile building is associated with the growth of commerce and automotive transportation in Camp Verde during the 1910s and 1920s. Organized by partners Heath, Back, and Taylor, the building is made from poured concrete. In its time, this was considered a stylish and modern construction method. The Mercantile competed with the established Wingfield Commercial Company, a business that, by no coincidence, was housed in a nearby reinforced concrete building.

The Verde Valley Mercantile carried a “full line of merchandise” and even issued its own coins. Later, the Mercantile building housed the Ford, Dodge, and Hudson dealership, a business that also retailed Goodrich Tires.