about the lostro

The building was a large project for the region, slated to make Athens the center of the automobile business in Southeast Ohio. In the 1910s, the building had a car showroom on the first floor and a repair shop on the second floor. The company built the structure in 1914 after businessman John R. Lostro had great success in the coal industry, moving into the automobile industry shortly after.

The Athens Masons started meeting on the third floor in 1922 and later purchased the building only to sell it late in 2023. Throughout the century, the building housed various other restaurants and businesses. 



The Varsity Inn came around 1923, another restaurant that commonly hosted Greek life events for Ohio University. Quick’s Drug Store and Logan’s Bookstore also served the needs of students, eventually turning into Follett’s Bookstore, which closed in 2019.