CoMo Brick & Mortar Project
CoMo Brick & Mortar is a public history initiative that brings Columbia’s architecture and heritage to life through QR-code window clings placed on buildings. Each window cling features a QR code that links to a digital profile on The District’s website highlighting the building’s architectural features, history, notable past occupants, and evolving use over time. By connecting the physical buildings we pass every day with the stories behind them, CoMo Brick & Mortar helps make Columbia’s architectural heritage more accessible to residents and visitors alike.
Project Partners
This project is made possible through a collaboration between CoMo Preservation and The District, with support from volunteers, researchers, writers, student interns, and participating property owners.
Project Goals
The CoMo Brick & Mortar Project helps connect people with the places that shape Columbia’s identity. By sharing the stories behind downtown buildings, the project aims to:
Make Downtown Columbia’s historic buildings and districts more accessible and meaningful to the public.
Promote historic preservation by demonstrating the cultural and economic value of existing structures.
Encourage walking tours, local tourism, and small business visibility through architectural storytelling.
Support property owners in sharing the history of their buildings.
Foster partnerships between preservationists, downtown organizations, local historians, and cultural institutions.
Why Historic Buildings Matter
Historic buildings offer some of the most visible windows into our past. Streets, homes, and storefronts reveal how communities lived, worked, and imagined their future. In Downtown Columbia, buildings such as the Herald Building (c. 1892) reflect broader stories of urban development, economic growth, and the evolving relationship between the university and the community.
As the city changes, many historic structures are altered or lost before their histories are fully documented or remembered. By researching and sharing these stories, the CoMo Brick & Mortar Project helps preserve the historical significance of downtown Columbia and connect the community with the places that shape its identity.
By uncovering and sharing these stories, the CoMo Brick & Mortar Project helps ensure that Columbia’s historic buildings continue to inform, inspire, and connect our community.
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Thank you to the many people who bring the CoMo Brick & Mortar Project to life...
Co-Editors: Matt Fetterly & Michael Limmer
Researchers and Writers: Alex Insley & Sam Mersevey
CoMo Preservation gratefully acknowledges the City of Columbia Office of Cultural Affairs for providing partial funding for this project.
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Become a Contributor
CoMo Brick & Mortar is a community-driven project. We welcome participation from residents, students, historians, teachers, building owners, etc.
Nominate a building to be featured in the project
Get students involved in research and local history
Volunteer as a researcher or writer
Share stories, photos, or memories connected to featured buildings
Help fund the project with a donation ♥
Contact us at CoMoPreservation@gmail.com.