The Witherill Building was constructed by Abel Witherill in 1859, the same year Yreka was illuminated by gas light. The damage in the great fire of 1871 was only one hundred dollars, no doubt a result of its brick construction.

An assortment of short-lived businesses operated on this site until the Yreka Journal moved here in 1883. This generally Republican oriented newspaper published at this location until 1915 when the Siskiyou News bought the building.

The News moved 26 years later, and Witherill's building became a warehouse for a time before it provided space for several retail businesses including a steak house and fabric store.

Today, the strong architecture of this Miner Street front depicts the strength and romance of the era in which the building was built.