After standing proudly along one of San Antonio’s largest corridors for 102 years, and housing one of two iconic bookstores for over half a century, a historic building is coming down. For two years, for lease signs hung over the abandoned structure, broken glass and bottles strewn about in front, before the newest owners – a massive Broadway developer – got approval to demolish it.
For 55 years, Antiquarian Book Mart was filled to the brim with reading material collected from the far flung corners of the globe, compiled into a collection by Frank Kellel during his time in the Army. He stocked collector’s items, rarities and antiques, offering a counterpart to his eventual second bookstore – Half Price Books.
“We would go together to these wonderful libraries over the years,” his son, Robert Kellel, told MySA after his passing in 2016. “It was like walking into an Aztec temple … it was a treasure hunt.”
Bob Kellel took over the business his later father founded, running both the Antiquarian and the discount bookshop until 2023. That’s when he sold the properties to Glenn Huddleston, adding to the expansive portfolio of Harper/Huddleston Inc. which owns at least a dozen properties along Broadway between East Mulberry Avenue and Parun Way. The company collection picks back up further down Broadway past Pearl.
The San Antonio Office of Historic Preservation approved the demolition of the old Antiquarian Book Mart, located at 3127 Broadway, which stands looking like a shell of its former self. In fact, both former bookstores have seen better days. Busted windows, taggers marks in colorful spray paint and trash litter all show the lack of love shown to the buildings over the past two or three years. Now, demolition signs have joined the saddening landscape of the Antiquarian Book Mart walls.
The building had a long life before its most recent and final venture under the Kellel family. In fact, it had been there for 52 years before, when it was built in 1924 according to the earliest records found by the developers seeking to tear it down. However, it’s been listed in a San Antonio directory as early as 1922.
Deconstruction services, led by Emily Lowry of Rehabber Club, are clearly underway. Pieces of the wood that once made up the craftsman-style building are piled up at the back underneath a brightly colored mural that’s sat devoid of guests for years.
While two separate buildings, the Antiquarian Book Mart and the Half Price Bookstore, located at 3072 Broadway, went hand in hand. Both were created and operated by the Kellel family 50 years ago. The loss of the businesses continues to weigh heavy on the hearts of locals.
“I’m deeply saddened. I went to that bookstore for over 20 years,” Marlee Malone told MySA.
It seems the vacancy of the bookstores is still felt in the neighborhoods they once served.
“With Half-Price Books gone, the building has lost its soul,” Lissa Bengtson said.