In 1885, a St. Louis architect designed the building at 125/127 South Washington for physician John H.
Britts. Great care was taken with details. The exterior included ornamental iron work shipped from St.
Louis, leaded colored glass and a center balcony. Inside was polished black walnut casework. The
building housed the medical office of Dr. Britts and his partner and a drug store. Before a city hall was
built, the Clinton City Council met upstairs.
Among the businesses in the building during the decades that followed were a restaurant, music store,
millinery, bakery and grocery store. In the 1960s, Missouri Public Service purchased the building.
Changes included a “modern” façade and interior steel reinforcement. For more than 30 years, the
MoPub Building was a downtown fixture. The building’s current owner recently completed a façade
renovation to remove tin siding. Although portions of the original stone and iron work were missing, the
building’s face looks remarkably similar to period photographs.
Of particular interest is a feature that cannot be seen. A partial narrow alley runs between the building’s
sections, and numerous windows and doors on both sides are now filled with brick. In the days before
electricity and central air, the openings would have allowed light and air to circulate.
