In 1857, pioneer merchant Augustus Jacoby built his two-story stone "Fireproof Storehouse" here. Partial walls of that original structure still support this building in the N.W. corner of the 1st and 2nd floors and are designated California Historical Landmark 783. In 1880, A. Brizard, another Arcata pioneer, bought the building to house his mercantile firm and to store goods to be shipped by his mule pack trains to the villages, mining camps, and ranches of the rugged Trinity-Klamath gold fields. Those mule trains ran regularly well into the 20th century. As roads penetrated the interior, freight wagons drawn by five-mule teams supplemented the pack trains until years after the advent of motorized vehicles. Following the closing of the mercantile operation in 1974, Brizard descendants in 1977 enlisted the skills of local craftsmen to renovate the building for its present use.