314 Exchange

The 314 Exchange in 1974, when it was still in use by the telephone company. From "Pewee Valley: Land of the Little Colonel" published by Katie S. Smith in 1974

If you're searching for one site in Pewee Valley that illustrates the city's technological march through the 20th Century, the 314 Exchange on Mt. Mercy Drive would be a top contender.

Interurban Depot and Turnaround

The interurban depot once stood on the spot where the 314 Exchange is located today.

Back at the turn of the century, the interurban depot and turnaround were located where the 314 Exchange stands today. Electric interurban cars provided fast, reliable and convenient passenger service from Pewee Valley to Louisville, LaGrange and points beyond from 1901 until 1935.

On October 31, 1936, more than a year after the interurban stopped running, the Louisville Railway Company changed the deeds on all their landholdings in Jefferson and Oldham counties "... for the purpose of securing the prompt payment of their bonds," according to Oldham County deed book 56, pg. 283. The properties were put on the market, but it was January 30, 1941 before the company's two-acre tract in Pewee Valley sold to a Louisville man named Willis M. Watson.

314-1/2 Mt. Mercy Drive: Photos from the March 1974 Call of the Pewee

Watson later divided the tract in half, creating what is now 314 and 314-1/2 Mt. Mercy Drive. 314-1/2 was owned at various times by J. Ballard Clark, William and Elizabeth Gernert, and Sarah and Joseph L. Williamson. Joseph Williamson was the artist who created the Pewee bird print that now hangs at Town Hall.

The tiny house on the property may have started out as the ice house for the interurban railway, according to an article written by Ann Montgomery for the March 1974 Call of the Pewee:

If awards were presented for community improvement, certainly Willa Cole, owner of the Pewee Valley Beauty Shop on Mt. Mercy Dr., should be a recipient. The building she purchased several years ago and remodeled looked as though it should have been torn down. In fact, it probably would've been much easier for her to start her shop from scratch, but she was determined to make something of what was there, particularly after the discovered the history behind the place.

Prior to Mrs. Cole's ownership the structure had been used as a family residence. However, preceding that, it was the old ice house where the inter-urban turned around ... The depot for the inter-urban stood where the telephone exchange is now. Dairymen used to bring their mild in and that plus ice could be slid from a platform right on to the cars ...

June 6, 1941 photo of the new Bell South substation/ exchange in Pewee Valley. Item number ULPA R_05900 in the Royal Photo Company Collection, University of Louisville Photographic Archives. The east side of Town Hall is clearly visible on the left side of the photo.

Telephone Substation/Exchange

Watson held onto the one-acre tract beside Town Hall until 1982, but he, himself, never built on it. Less than two weeks before he purchased it, the January 17, 1941 Courier-Journal reported that Southern Bell Telephone and Telegraph had been granted permission by the State Public Service Commission for installation of dial -- as opposed to operator-assisted -- telephones in Pewee Valley. Interestingly enough, Pewee's Town Board wasn't initially supportive of the newfangled technology. The minutes of their October 7, 1940 meeting noted, "Board discussed the Dial Telephone System but decided it would not be as good as the one in use."

While Southern Bell doesn't ever appear to have purchased Watson's property, they built a new substation on it, which went operational on June 5, 1941. The May 30, 1941 Courier-Journal reported:

Three Suburban Exchanges to Start Dial System June 5

"Operator! Operator! How do you get Pewee Valley number so-and-so?" Read closely, friend, and spare your nerves.

Distribution Thursday of new directories revealed that dial telephones, recently installed in the homes of Jeffersontown, Pewee Valley and Pleasure Ridge Park subscribers, will eliminate manual switchboards at those exchanges beginning June 5.

Until then, subscribers in those areas may be reached from Louisville by dialing 213 (Jeffersontown), 216 (Pewee Valley) and 217 (Pleasure Ridge Park).From manual phones, ask for the exchange. The second step, in either instance, is to ive the operator the number you wish.

One June 5 and thereafter, to reach either of the three exchanges from a dial phone, dial 21 and then the listed number...

... Don't forget, too, that all numbers in the Jeffersontown, Pewee Valley and Pleasure Ridge Park areas have been changed...

On June 6, the day after the substations were up and running, the Royal Photo Company took pictures of the three new suburban exchange buildings. The photos are now part of the the Royal Photo Company Collection at the University of Louisville's Ekstrom Library.

In 1979, Pewee's telephone exchange building was replaced by new central office building serving the 241 exchange. From the January 1978 Call of the Pewee.

The building continued to function as a Southern Bell substation until 1979, when it was replaced with a new central office building at 6612 W. Hwy 22. The January 1978 Call of the Pewee reported:

... (The new office building) will house an Electronic Switching System (ESS) to serve our 241 exchange. ESS, using the newest technology available, will route calls to the number dialed electronically -- much like a computer. It requires less energy, less space and less maintenance than the current 241 central office in our Town Square.

Growth in the area has the present central office near capacity.

The new central office is scheduled for services in the first quarter of 1979. In the meantime, outside cables from the old office are being rerouted to the new one. Also, a new conduit to carry telephone wires to the new office is being placed at the intersection of Ash and LaGrange Road. The digging and construction along the road, and the diverting of traffic, and possible damage to some trees is bothersome and will be a concern to Pewees. However we will be glad to have the efficient and advanced telephone service that ESS provides.

Several new optional services will be available to Pewees once the ESS is working, including:

Call Forwarding ...
Call Waiting ...
Three-way Calling ...
Speed Calling ...

Donart Gallery

On September 1, 1982, artist Charles D. "Don" Ensor and his wife Genevieve "Genny" purchased Pewee Valley's abandoned telephone exchange for $35,000 (Oldham County Deed Book 237, pg. 103) from Willis Watson. Their plan was to operate an art gallery specializing in Ensor's nostalgic and highly-popular prints.

Ensor started working full-time as an artist in 1971 after spending eight years as a sales representative for the Ford Motor Company and close to 20 as part-owner and manager of the now-defunct Ehrmann's Bakery on Bardstown Road. He'd always painted for fun, but this was different. The self-taught artist -- his only formal training consisted of a six-week class in portrait painting -- managed to turn a hobby into a business. In an interview that appeared in the July 16, 1987 Courier-Journal, Ensor reminisced about how his painting career began:

One of Ensor's first paintings was "Lamps and Bible."

... In 1969, two years before leaving the bakery to paint full time, Ensor came up with the idea of using oil and canvas to preserve nostalgic memories. "Lamps and Bible" and "Jars and Knives," his first two paintings, showcase a coal-oil lamp, family Bible, old canning jars and whittling knives -- all items that hold fond family memories.

"I hit on the perfect idea and it just snowballed," said Ensor. "There was nothing else like it on the market at the time. Everyone else was painting birds and animals."

While Ensor's subject matter later diversified to include mules, antique cars, sporting equipment and World War I aircraft, his passion for preserving the past for future generations remained.

"I guess I got into this because I wanted to give young people a chance to see what the older people used to use on a daily basis," he said.

To ensure that his young collectors understood what they saw, Ensor enclosed an itemized narrative with each print sold...

... As an added touch, Ensor followed up each print purchase with a personalized thank-you note inside the box.

Ensor's passion for the past was rewarded in 1972 when he was one of four artists selected by Appalachian Regional Hospitals to display his work in Washington, D.C. The group eventually incorporated as a non-profit called Kentucky Heritage Artists, and Ensor served for a time as its president.

Ads for Don Ensor Prints Sold by Bacon's in Louisville and the Caster Knott Co. in Nashville, Tennessee

Donart, the company he started to market his prints, was a true family business and operated out of their Louisville home for quite a few years. Courier-Journal "Speaking of People" columnist Joan Kay talked about how Don's career change impacted everyone in the Ensor household in a May 9, 1976 column:

February 1984 Call of the Pewee

... Ensor's change of occupation means a lot more people pass through his house. Many of his out-of-town collectors "think we have a public gallery," he said. When they turn up in Louisville, he invites them to his home to see his work. "If they travelled all the way from Michigan, I don't want to disappoint them," he said...

... Ensor and his wife formed their own company to distribute his prints. When a new print is ready, six weeks are occupied in marking, packing and promoting.

(His son) Mark, a freshman at the University of Louisville, and his mother do all the folding and assembling of the prints for mailing...

After Don and his wife Genny moved to Crestwood, purchasing a building for their business made sense. And with Don's penchant for painting memorabilia from days gone by, what more fitting venue than a technologically-outmoded phone exchange?

During the Ensors' years in Crestwood and Pewee Valley:

Don introduced "The Thoroughbred" print on April 12 and 13, 1985 at the gallery;
His painting, "Butter Times," appeared on the cover of the 1985 Oldham County phone book;
Don donated his talents to Pewee Valley by repainting the wooden "Little Colonel" signs marking the city's boundaries on LaGrange Road in August 1985;
Donart helped raise $17,000 for a new computer lab at Crestwood Elementary School in 1989 though print sales of "It's Elementary;" and
Don served as the grand marshal of the 27th Oldham County Day parade in July 1997.

Less than a year after serving as grand marshal, Don died on July 2, 1998 of a heart attack. He was 71. By that time, he had retired from Donart, closed the company, and sold his Pewee Valley gallery to another local artist.

Glenn Gallery

The 314 Exchange, when it was Glenn Gallery. Note the huge Siberian Elm shading the yard. Photo 2002, from "Pewee Valley Growing Strong," published by the City's Tree Board.

This October 5, 2001 Courier-Journal photo by Arza Barnett shows Glenn sanding one of his plant stands on the former telephone exchange's steps beneath the shade of a Siberian elm. He was 64 years old when this photo was taken.

Woodworker David Glenn, Jr., bought the telephone exchange building from the Ensors in December 1989 for $42,500 (Oldham County Deed Book 354, pg. 353) and opened Glenn Gallery. At the time he purchased it, he was already a well-known local artisan. He had been selling his upcycled creations -- plant stands crafted from recycled newel posts and table legs were among his best sellers -- at the St. James Art Show since 1970. His 2016 booth at St. James made the 79-year-old retired engineer the show's longest-running exhibitor at 46 years.

David and his wife Donna also create woven wood baskets sold at the Kentucky Museum of Art and Craft; and in at the Kentucky Artisan Center. Both are juried members of the Kentucky Craft Marketing Program and life members of the Kentucky Guild of Artists and Craftsmen.

2013 Photos of the Glenns Making Baskets from kentucky.gov

314 Exchange Event Venue

The building is now a special events venue. The Siberian Elm's stump is on the far right. It was felled by a storm in 201?. Photo July 2016 by Donna Russell.

In 2012, the Glenns sold the building to Peweeans Kevin and Laura Hall for $51,000. The Halls also bought some additional property behind it from Norton Community Medical Associates, allowing enough space to add on to the rear of the building.

By the time they started work, the former telephone exchange was seriously deteriorated from years of neglect. Rotting floors and water damage inside and out were just two of many problems they faced when they began renovating the 70-year-old structure. The June 2012 Call of the Pewee ran an article about the renovation project written by the Halls' son, Keaton:

Summer has descended on Pewee Valley, bringing with it the deep shade of tree-lined streets and the warmth of sun-licked lawns. Many residents will have noticed, too, that it has brought a great deal of activity to the city’s central corridor – development and growth of a different sort, all along both sides of the tracks. Undoubtedly, the current work being undertaken at 314 Mt. Mercy Drive has attracted a great deal of interest and support from neighbors and friends, and, in the spirit of community, the Hall family – current owners of the property – has decided to accept the Call of the Pewee’s invitation to share their hopes for the “little brick building” next to City Hall.

Kevin and Laura Hall, who have lived in Pewee Valley for nearly twenty years, first noticed the one-time Glenn Gallery building next to City Hall on their evening walks through town. Noticing the

This 2007 shot of the old telephone exchange shows how seriously the building had deteriorated. Photo by Donna Russell.

This shot from the June 2012 Call of the Pewee shows the construction of the two-story addition.

potential the building possessed, and the state of disrepair it had fallen into, the couple was moved to purchase it from the previous owner and restore it back to the way it should have been.

“It was in severe neglect and needed to be rebuilt from the ground up,” said Kevin Hall, “but we’ve tried very hard to maintain as much of the original material and layout as possible.” Given the close historical relationship between the building and community, it “didn’t make sense” to let it go to ruin.

Once part of a complex of buildings that serviced the electric railway to Louisville at the turn of the century, the building was later used as a telephone exchange – one of the first in the county. ( Editor's note: almost all the buildings associated with the Louisville Railway Company/interurban were torn down after the property sold in 1941. The building under renovation was constructed in 1941 specifically as a telephone exchange or substation.) It is hoped that this same spirit of service to the community will follow the building into its next incarnation. “Ideally, we’d like to attract a couple of businesses that compliment one another, and will benefit and enrich Pewee Valley,” explained Mr. Hall. But their sense of responsibility goes much deeper than business concerns, and is rooted in an essential devotion to historic restoration and thoughtful reuse.

Over time, the family removed over nine dumpsters full of salvaged architectural material – most of which has found new life as everything from outdoor furniture to candlesticks and lamps ... “Ultimately, we’re trying to help – we want to clean this property up and make Pewee a better place,” confided Laura Hall. “This was a large undertaking, perhaps a lot larger than many people realize!” Indeed, the renovated building incorporates over 2,800 square feet of floor space on the first floor alone. The recently added second story – envisioned as a space for future tenants – comes to an additional 800 square feet. Due to city regulations regarding plumbing and utilities, interior work is moving slowly as the family tries to finalize plans for the space. Local contractor Dan Perkins has been handling all the major reconstruction efforts, and hopes to have all exterior work wrapped up within the next month and a half ...

On February 6, 2014, Oldham Era reporter Kenny Colson wrote an article about the recently-renovated 314 Exchange called, "Plugged in: Pewee residents create new event space."

The space, 314 Exchange, is located in Pewee Valley right next to the town’s city hall. The dark brick building has been a staple in the area for decades. It was originally a railroad station, then a telephone exchange, before it’s recent revival as a premium event space.
The building’s time as a telephone exchange is reflected in its name and use of the original façade, owners Laura and Kevin Hall said.
Now, the building has been expanded into a 3,500 square foot event space for multiple uses, including weddings, business meetings and more.

“We wanted to keep the history of the building intact,” Kevin said. “And take it back to its roots.”

When the Halls bought the building in March 2012, it was hardly in good shape.

“We bought it because it was ugly,” Kevin said. “We’re residents of Pewee Valley, we live a mile away and we wanted it to be something nice.”

The Halls said the floor had rotted and the building itself was on the verge of being condemned. So they underwent extensive renovations, putting in a solid concrete floor, adding a second floor and restoring historic parts of the building.

The couple bought the property hoping to fix it up and flip it to sell, possibly as a café or a restaurant to better the community. But as renovations continued for more than a year, their plans changed.

“We contemplated living it in at one point,” Laura said. “But we’re empty nesters for the first time this year and it’s just too much space.” (Editor's note: The Halls moved into the apartment at the rear of the building in 2017.)

So after discussions with community members, they decided to turn it into an event space, another community need for south Oldham County and eastern Jefferson County, the Halls said.

“We love old things and properties,” Laura said. “But this is by far the biggest thing we have done.”

Running 314 Exchange is a second job for the Halls, who have run The Family Tree care services for 27 years. But it’s one they greatly enjoy.

“We want it to be a community space,” Laura said. “We’re trying to be community conscious.”

So far 314 Exchange has been host to various weddings, birthday parties and business meetings. It has also hosted an art show and a community indoor yard sale.

June and September 2014 are already booked for weddings, Laura said, and the couple has locked down a few quality business events for their space... The space includes a kitchen and rooms upstairs. It’s also just a few steps away from Pewee Valley’s Central Park.

“We have a lot of people who get married in the park and have their reception here,” Kevin said.

... And while the opening of 314 Exchange has been an adventure for the Halls, it’s one they are proud to embark on to help their community.

“We’ve figured what the heck,” Laura said. “We’ve done a lot of crazy stuff before.”