The Woody Guthrie Music Center in downtown Pampa was once a center of a very different sort. It was a drug store that sold medicine for men with "puffy, red-speckled faces, and bleary, batty eyes, that looked but didn't see, and that went shut, but never slep, that closed, but never rested, and dreamed but never arrived at a conclusion."

The drugstore sold liquor during Prohibition, and Woody worked there for five years, from 1930 to 1935. During this time he learned to play guitar from his uncle, and began playing for local musical events. The inherent profitability of music versus painting made an impression on him, but it is probably also the case that music appealed to Woody because it gave vent to his loquaciousness and his love of the written word--many have remarked that his true musical genius lay not in his scratchy voice or retread melodies, but his powerful, galvanizing lyrics.

Pampa's Tribute to Woody Guthrie, the 501(c)3 non-profit corporation that owns the Harris Drug Store, has engaged in an extensive remodeling effort to restore the building to the non-splendor of its Prohibition days. The original pressed tin ceiling is still in excellent condition, and with the removal of several non-period partitions, the addition of modern plumbing, and other renovations, the drug store will soon be completely finished.

Currently, the building is used for Woody Guthrie-related events: music, musicals, and art exhibits.