A native of Germany and master blacksmith, Captain Frederick Willheim Schuerenberg built the Old Brazos Forge in the early 1880’s with his sons, at the location of the one-story brick building across the alley from this at 203 W. Alamo. The private, bricked alley was used to assemble buggies. The building at 205 W. Alamo was later erected to house the first Ford Dealership in Washington County. An adjoining building to the west was added for space to assemble automotive parts – it included a hand-crank elevator to move vehicles between floors. In 1916, the Schuerenberg Company built this massive two-story brick building.