165 Kelley Street
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Last updated on July 3, 2025
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Directions First Baptist Church from to site 17:
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Stuart's Little Record Shop, located on Kelley Street, was a black-owned country store attached to the home of its owners, Lena and Henry E. Stuart. Lena Vickers was born on October 22, 1917 in Harrisonburg. Lena graduated from high school at Effinger Street School. Lena was a devoted member of the Bethel AME Church. She served as director of the nursery school on Broad Street. She was also part of the Ladies Auxiliary of Newman-Washington American Legion Post No. 76. Henry Eugene Stuart Jr. was born on April 28, 1915, in Harrisonburg. Henry was a college graduate of Wilberforce University and a World War II Navy veteran. He was a member of the Bethel AME Church, Masonic Lodge, Omega Phi Psi Fraternity, and the Newman-Washington American Legion Post No. 76. Henry was the scoutmaster of Boy Scout Troop 101 for 20 years. Lena married Henry E. Stuart Jr on June 27, 1940 and the couple had a son. The Stuarts operated their business out of their residence in the northeast neighborhood. Long-time resident Doris Harper Allen said in 2016, "They started with selling records, then cigarettes and kick-knacks, then ice cream, and so on." The couple ran the store together for 32 years, and it closed sometime in 1994 after Henry's death. The property is now privately owned.
