The James Pharmacy is a historic building at 2 Pennywise Lane in

Old Saybrook, Connecticut Old Saybrook is a town in Middlesex County, Connecticut, United States. The population was 10,481 at the 2020 census. It contains the incorporated borough of Fenwick, as well as the census-designated places of Old Saybrook Center and Saybroo ...

. Built in an evolutionary manner beginning about 1820, it is significant as the home and workplace of Anna Louise James (1886–1977), who was the first African-American woman pharmacist in the state, and owned the pharmacy for some time. It is also the birthplace and childhood home of author Ann Petry, who was James' niece. and The building was listed on the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic ...

in 1994, and is a contributing element in the

Old Saybrook South Green The Old Saybrook South Green is a historic district that encompasses the historic town green and nearby streets in Old Saybrook, Connecticut. Established in the 1630s, most of the buildings arrayed around the green were built between 1760 and 19 ...

district.

Description and history

The James Pharmacy building is located near the southern end of Old Saybrook's historic town center, at the southwest junction of Main Street and Pennywise Lane. It is a -story wood-frame structure, shaped like an L and covered by a gabled roof. It is finished in wooden clapboards, and has a single-story shed-roof section filling the crook of the L. That section's facade consists of three segmented-arch bays, articulated by pilasters and filled in the lower part by siding and the upper part by fixed multi-pane windows. To its right is the projecting main block, with the entrance on the left side, framed by pilasters and a pedimented gable, and a 20th-century bay window on the right. The gable is filled by siding in a sunburst pattern, with a carved

mortar and pestle Mortar and pestle is a set of two simple tools used from the Stone Age to the present day to prepare ingredients or substances by crushing and grinding them into a fine paste or powder in the kitchen, laboratory, and pharmacy. The ''mortar'' ( ...

motif at the center. The building was acquired around 1898 by Peter and Bertha (James) Lane, an African-American couple. Peter Lane was one of the first African-American pharmacists in the state, and the couple was eventually joined by Bertha's younger sister Anna. She followed Peter into the pharmacy business, earning her pharmacist's license in 1911. Overcoming discrimination based both on sex and race, Anna James operated the business until her retirement in 1955. Customers included several high-profile summer residents of the area, Katharine Hepburn and

Howard Hughes Howard Robard Hughes Jr. (December 24, 1905 – April 5, 1976) was an American business magnate, record-setting pilot, engineer, film producer, and philanthropist, known during his lifetime as one of the most influential and richest people in th ...

among them.

References

{{National Register of Historic Places Houses completed in 1820 Buildings and structures in Middlesex County, Connecticut Federal architecture in Connecticut Colonial Revival architecture in Connecticut Pharmacies on the National Register of Historic Places Old Saybrook, Connecticut National Register of Historic Places in Middlesex County, Connecticut Historic district contributing properties in Connecticut Health care companies based in Connecticut African-American history of Connecticut

Description and history

See also

References