If you stare at it long enough, it becomes clear that a HUGE number of the buildings along the midtown stretch of Central Avenue in Albany started life as car dealerships. Sometimes it’s apparent, the building just has that look: outsized windows or some other odd feature. Other times it’s hard to be sure. But all up Central, autos and auto parts once ruled the day.
104? Chevy dealer and then auto supplies, and now parking. 268? Berkshire Motor Car Co. 318, the WAMC studios? Originally Harry Witte’s Oakland and Pontiac dealership, then a Lafayette and Nash dealership. 330? Tires, then autos, then tires. Et cetera.
The behemoth pictured here, lately Hudson Valley Tile and/or Albany Marble Granite, was originally constructed to house Yager Pontiac sometime in the early 1920s. Owner Murl H. Yager was apparently a folk hero among auto dealers, standing up to Detroit. He was also involved in a land dispute that also dragged in the National Toddle House Corporation, which needs some more looking into; I think I should have heard of the Toddle House.
Toddle House was an old restaurant chain with small restaurants from way back (remember reading somewhere the name came from moving a restaurant building down a street and someone said it Toddled while being moved.
Later on they were bought by Dobbs Houses which also owned Steak n Egg Kitchens, of which one existed on Central (shortly below Colvin).
So perhaps one of the companies had a location further down Central years back near to the property of the Pontiac dealer?
Or is it possible that he moved further up Central when the lawsuit was taking place (mentions he had a dealership until 1973, and the lease was in the 1960’s). Also there is no Roseland St on a current Albany map, but the IS a Roseland AVENUE that crosses Colvin which would be close to the site of the Steak & Egg.