RND Corner Grille

The year was 1855 and a 21-year-old B.W. Woodward arrived in Lawrence to help settle the new city. As the Secretary to the first Territorial Convention, Mr. Woodward had an active role in the Free State cause, even joining the Company F Guards, who was led by General James Lane. Eager to make a life in Lawrence for his wife and two sons, Mr. Woodward started Woodward and Finely, the second drug store in the Missouri Valley. Woodward and Finely was founded in the Eldridge House, later destroyed during Quantrill’s Raid of 1863. In true Kansan spirit, Woodward reopened his pharmacy at 801 Massachusetts. In 1897, Woodward retired after serving Lawrence residents with his patented medicines, Kansas Eye Balm, Woodward’s Blackberry Syrup and Germania Hair Renewer.
1914 saw the pharmacy reopened by R.G. Eyth and Walter Varnum. Eyth and Varnum named their new venture the Round Corner Drug Store and Mr. Varnum served as pharmacist until 1966.
Tom Wilcox purchased the Round Corner Pharmacy in 1984. Wilcox and his family added a cheese shop to the premises and operated until 2009, qualifying Round Corner Pharmacy as the oldest pharmacy in the state.
Today, RND Corner Grille pays homage to the long history of perseverance and customer service to the citizens of Lawrence. We invite you to sit back and relax as we prepare your meal with an emphasis on locally-sourced ingredients of the highest quality, all while you enjoy the rich history and vibrant future of Mass Street and RND Corner Grille.