The Emporium, built in 1897, was designed and constructed by C.H. Wilson as a department store for J.W. Witney and Sons. Within a year it was acquired by Moses Arendt. In the early 1900s it served as a mercantile and telephone exchange. In 1928 it was sold to Jim Porter and Peter Barendregt. Jake Barendregt, Sr. operated a grocery store there from 1936 to 1967. Paul and Mallory Barendregt became owners, and in 1978 the building was listed on the National Register of Historic Places.