The Mystery of the History

"W. R. Murray, a powerful man, closed in on his assailant, and taking a revolver shot him, inflicting a wound that caused death...".

My building uses what is called "shared walls", meaning the exterior wall of the building next door becomes the interior wall in my space. In my case, plaster was put over the brick to create clean walls for my building's occupants.

On the third floor of my place, above the rafters, you can see what appears to be an advertisement that had been painted on the wall of the building next door (306 west main) when it was an exterior wall. You can make out "W. R. Murray and Co." at the top with wording underneath that is mostly covered by plaster and framing, making it difficult to decipher.

A quick online search today reveals _W.R. Murray and Co._ was a music store in town. With that clue, I think the letters from left to right near the plaster appear like PIANO. Another search of the NY Times archives reveals that a W.R. Murray, who owned a music store in Durham, was involved in an incident where he killed his uncle with a revolver over a business dispute. If this turns out to be true, uncovering the plaster on my walls might be uncovering a bit of Durham history.

For now, time wasted as I still don't know about my building's history.....

Hercule Poirot out.