Cornelius Baxter purchased the property in 1893 and constructed this building soon after. A Scottish immigrant who arrived in 1873 and worked as a coal miner, Baxter also owned the 11-room Hawley House, a hotel just to the west that was later demolished. His daughter, Agnes Burns, operated a cafe in the building, one of numerous cafes housed here over the years. The building later housed a bike shop and a barber shop.