RALEIGH — March 2, 1996 - 3:34 p.m. EST

A downtown Raleigh historic landmark has a new owner and a new future that will incorporate its past.

The old Briggs Hardware building, built in 1874, was Raleigh's first high-rise, its four stories looming over the capital city during the post-Civil War Reconstruction era.

Last year, the family of its founder moved the business to another Raleigh location.

The new owner is Alan Stevenson. He says he doesn't know yet what sort of businesses will occupy the building, but he does intend to preserve its architectural detail and historic value.

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"The potential's great. It could be anything, a restaurant, retail, office space, condominiums. It's adaptable to a lot of things," he says.

Many long-term Raleigh residents are glad to hear that the building's history will be preserved. One woman reminisced about what Briggs meant to people in an older time.

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"A lot of old Raleigh people have a lot of memories there because they spent a great deal of time [there].. That used to be the community setting where everybody gathered during the day to talk and catch up on the gossip.