Tuttle Firefighters Undergo Training At Historic Landmark

Tuttle firefighters trained at the site of a 107-year-old town landmark, destroyed by an accidental electrical fire three years ago.

Firefighters performed what is known as a "Rapid Ladder Deployment Drill" at the old Tuttle Bank Building on Main Street. The building was built back in 1909, and once housed the nationally-known Tuttle Opera House.

Tuttle Businessman Lonnie Paxton and his wife Misty have owned the building for the past two decades. Lonnie said it would have been easier and cheaper to tear it all down and start over, but he plans to restore the building to its past glory.

“I think about my grandfather who told me about the history here. It was here during WWII, it was here when the Titanic sunk. There is so much history tied up in that building. I did not want to be known as the one who tore it down,” said Lonnie Paxton.

Paxton said the building will re-open this fall. He is currently negotiating with several potential restaurant and retail tenants.