Historical Marker

Bruce & Human Drug Company

German-born Oscar Pabst moved to Wills Point from Quitman, Texas in 1879, and he established an apothecary in town along the Dallas-Shreveport road. After an 1888 fire damaged Pabst’s Store, he relocated it inside a grocery owned by his son-in-law, B.W. Bruce. Bruce sold the grocery and took over the apothecary and he joined with several investors, including J.H. Human, to form the bruce and human drug company in 1898. The men purchased a building in a prime downtown location, where it has served Wills Point citizens ever since. Additional tenants have included doctors’ offices, the city’s telephone exchange and a jewelry repair shop, and local election returns were posted at the building for many years.