CHARLESTON, Ill. (WCIA) -- Charleston’s Brown Shoe Company building is slowly being renovated by a YouTuber.
Chris Martin is one of the members of the YouTube channel Brick and Sole, a page dedicated to restoring the old factory into a concert and wedding venue. It has more than 75,000 followers and 200 videos.
“The Brown Shoe is like this monolithic building here in Charleston,” Martin said. “It was part of my childhood, me and my grandfather used to walk by it everyday when I was a kid.”
When he first bought the building three years ago for $20,000, years of neglect had created a mess.
“When we first got the place, you could barely squeeze through here,” Martin said.
Now, some rooms are spotless. Others, not so much. So, Martin occasionally asks for help from his followers with the