Additional Information

  • Year Established: 1924

About Us

  • The Wall family has been the owners and operators of Public Hardware since 1924. It started as 3 brothers (John, Rand, and Harvey) and now is owned by Harvey's son, Buster. The original location was at 111 East Parrish St, Durham NC, but was moved in 1995 to its current location at 505 N. Mangum St, Durham NC, 27701. As with most cases Durham related, we have a collective memory of what old Durham looked like. We have even had contractors ask us where things were located back in the day, or the correct original name of a building. The building we were best known for is no longer there. That has not kept us from keeping many of the nostalgic products you would have seen there. Hanging on our walls are many old tools, guns, knives, and household items we sold "back in the day". Our building may be new, and considered non impressive by some standards, but our collection inside will make you catch your breath.