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f Names Of First Plaindealer Advert isers Only A Memory The names of business and professional men who had advert iser , ents in the Plain- dealer in i s ini t ia l number of 100 year , ' igo appear as a memory n »\v because none remain t* igh the names endure h. u ise of long i a aviat ion the civic and business a tu i rs of the local comni ' inu; ' . A:- . " • 1 re l l i f \s on gleanings from the f i les >t lo> years ago the urgt to r i ' . i t i some con­ di t ions agd -s . tunt .ons that exis ted is s t rong There were no paved s t reets , in tact . the s t reets were muddy and . i l led w. ' .h holes; no electr ic l ights , no waterworks; f rame bui ldings on the main business s t reet were more numerous than br ick s t ruc­ tures Looking backward through those years the veteran-mer­ chants have many things to s imile about : the wooden s idewalks, which sometimes were neat ly swept by the t ra i l ing skir ts of the women; wooden s idewalks, too, on which some merchants displayed their merchandise; customers dr iving from farms with horse or team and tying their s teeds to hi tching posts , or dropping an iron weight to make sure Dobbin would be there when t ime to go home arr ived. Women wanted gai ly covered parasols and wore those- t remendous picture hats that weje in vogue Men wore beards and mustaches, derby hats were the rage and high wing col lars were popular . The ta i lor of that day was K.(» Mayes, merchant ta i lor and dealer in ready made clothing, who had hiss t ( f t*e one f loor north ol Colby 's drug s tore . He also advert ised cloth, cassimere. vest ing, e tc . .John M Smith was the postmaster Dry goods mer­ chants were Perry and Mart in , Buckl in and Stevens, O.J . Howard and Son, Smith Bro§. . and Co. . Phi l ip Giesler There wer .e three doctors in McHenry 100 years ago, H.T Brown. M D v.! '" had his of­ f ice in the br ick block-over F G Mayes Clothing s tore on Water s t reet . . K A Beers , MI) , who had his off ice in b& residence two doors west of fhe postoff ice . and O.J . Howard. M.D. . who had his off ice a t the s tore of Howard and Son. In 1875 McHenry boasted of tour lawyers , H.C. I r ish and Richard Bishop, who had his off ice in the rear of Murphy and Bishop's bank on the north s ide of the publ ic square, and F.K Granger with Hank McLean in the suburbs. f r Murphy and Bishop were the bankers , O AY Owen, watch F.K. GRANGER l l n ISI 151 AIM PAIMT Mi* maker and jeweler , Henry Colby had the drug s tore . King and I lerues were proprietors ot , the McHenry Brewery and Hinton Wheeler was proprietor of the Riverside House. "The l ivery s table was run by H E. Wightman. M. Engeln was the gun and locksmith, George Sehreiner ran a saloon and restaurant Novquisf and Weber w-r< general blacksu. i t . i s , 1 wagon makers . O. Bishop sold agricul tural tools and wagons and 100 years ago there was a Smith Bros, general s tore . A.B. Gilber t was the druggis t , L. Francisco, wagon and carr iage maker; AH Hari ly and Sons were proprietors of the McHenry mil ls and br ick yard KM Owen sold farm machinery. .) Story was the dealer in hardware; Blake and Bi o . , were dealers in furni ture . The McHenry Pickle Works were establ ished in the spr ing of 1874 w i th a capi ta l of $12,000. J K Welsh was " the manuf af turer and not­ withstanding the unfavorable season the factory did a business of $20,000. The second year 225 acres of pickles were contracted fqr besides 25 acres for mixed pickles . Off icers of the company were, S.H. Walker . G.A. Buckl in . EM. Owen. C.B. Curt is . A H. Hanly. Casper Adams. Rev. Joel E. Wheeler , then cal led Elder Wheeler , con­ ducted services a t the Bapt is t church a t Richmond every Sunday . w here ther^ was also a Congregat ional and Methodis t church. In 1876 E M. Owen disposed of his interest in the Mil l ing busir tess and turned his a t ­ tent ion to sel l ing farm machinery and rais ing blooded s tock. 'After having been in business here for thir ty years , H I) . Luff took over the mil l . t Also in 1876 Chas. T. Kldredge opened a meat market in the basement of the Parker house. Perry and Mart in had a general merchandise s tore , AH Hanly conductea the McHenry Mil l and Champion Pickle' Factory Big Business In Mid - '70's (from the files of September, 1875) The McHenry Pickle Works was established in tfie spring of 1874 with a capital of $12,000. The main building put up is 40 X 80 with shed room 75 X 150 feet . Last year they buil t 50 tubs with a capacity of about 500 bushels and contracted for 200 acres of produce.. These pickles were sold part in the brine and the balance in the vinegar and were pronounced by dealers as the best on the market. Mr. J.F. Walsh, _ the manufacturer, is an experienced man in the Brick yard, with McHenry known for its flour. J. Story sold hardware. The Parker House was the hotel in West McHenry. business and the McHenry Pickle company is extremely for tunate in being able to secure his services . They did a business of $20,000 even with the unfavorable season. This year they are put t ing in 20 more tubs and have contracted for 225 acres of c i l tumbers besides 25 acres of mixed pickles sucfy as cabbage, caul i f lower, tomatoes, onions, e tc . The factory is run on the most economical plan, is located near the rai l road and bids fa i r to become one of the thr iving inst i tut ions of McHenry. Names of the off icers are as fol lows: President , S.H. Walker; secretary. George A; Buckl in; directors , S.H. Walker , E.M. Owen, C.B. Curt is , Al l . Hanley, Casper and Adams. Sept . 1, 1875 There was received at the Pickle factory on Saturday las t 1.446 bushels of cucumbers . About 7,(KM) bushels have been received in a l l Manufacturers Take Prominent Role In Life Of Early Village '*\R BUSINESS ERA -- The corner of Main street and Rt. 31, now occupied by Main Paint, rm s the home of the Ben Laures blacksmith shop show n above. JAMES B. PERRY 3BIR1E OUT U)e feature Something for Everyone REGULAR MENU SMOROASBORO BUSINESSMEN'S LUNCHEONS DAILV SPECIALS U)e Serve All Your favorites: UUE ENTERTAINMENT & OANCINO FRIDAY and SATURDAY NO COVER-NO MINIMUM-MUSIC FOR ALL AGES STEAKS-LOBSTER-PASTA-SHRIMP MOSTACCIOLl-RAVIOLI-CHICKEN- JUMBO SANDWICHES SOUPS- SALADS-SHISHKEBAB! UARESE'S Jjt STEAKHOUSe & LOUNGE 1266 N. CREEN ST. 385-3120 SAW Mil l .--The f i rs t saw­ mil l in the vi l lage was bui l t in 18:57. by a man by the name of Barnum. who af terward sold out to Messrs . H.N Owen and James Sal isbury, who com­ pleted i t The work was executed by John McOmber, who af terward bui l t a house for ' h imself of the f i rs t lumber sawed at this mil l . In March. 1834. James Sal isbury went below to correct a s l ight error w i th reference to i ts movement and not not i fying the mil l man. he had scarcely placed himself among the machinery when the gate was hois ted and the machinery set in motion, crushing hinj a lmost instant ly . His burial with Chris t ian ob­ sequies was the f i rs t in the county . Rev Joe Wheeler of­ f ic ia t ing. ( iRIST-MILI.--In 1851 E.M. Owen and his brothers , H.A. and O.W.. bui l t the gr is t -mil l in McHenry : a t that t ime i t was the best in the county. Together the three brothers ran the mil l ' t i l 1858 when KM Owen bought the share of&is brother O.W After the death of H.A. , E.M. Owen sold the property to R Bishop, who paid for i t $10,000. and immediately added an expense of $10,000 by placing in i t the la tes t improved rol lers . 11c apaci ty was f i f ty barrels per day. and twenty-f ive hands were constant ly employed. PICKI.E FACTORY--In 1882 this factory was bui l t by Richard Bishop. I ts dimensions were 40 x 125 feet , with capaci ty tor holding 20.000 bushels . During the busy season from f i f teen to twenty hands were employed. \ \ \< .o\ FACTORY--Owned and operated by Richard Bishop. This was among the f i rs t of McHenry "s industr ies . - The business rapidly and ready sale was found for a l l goods though they turned out f ive and s ix wagons a day. This suc­ cessful enterpr ise was, however , suddenly brought to a close by the ent i re s t ructure , s tock and machinery burning to the ground on the 31st of July, 1874 There being no insurance the loss was heavy, es t imated at $30,000. In 1878 the shop was rebui l t on a much larger scale , in winch mus njneed $(>,000 worth of iTOchinery• . BREW FRY--This brewery was bui l t m 181*8 by George Gribbler ; and la ter was run by different par t ies among whom were Kd Owen. Mr. King. Sehreiner & Benfield. Mr. Herbes was the proprietor in 1880 w hen G. Boley, purchased the property paying for i t $1,400. After Mr. Boley 's purchase he constant ly added improvements unt i l i t s tood second to none in the county for manufactur ing faci l i t ies . I ts capaci ty was 1.200 barrels . In addi t ion to the brewery Mr. Boley owned a large malt- house in which he manufac­ tured al l his mal t for manufactur ing beer . MARBLE WORKS--These works were establ ished in 1868 by Henry Mil ler who did a s teady and prosperous business . These were as large as any ' in the county and here some of the f inest monuments and memorial designs were executed. The sales amounted annual ly to over $3,000. A GRIST-MILL was bui l t in 1872 by Win. Hanley . It was a four-s tory br ick bui lding, 40 x 40 feet , and s i tuated on the west side of West McHenry . It was a' custom mill and did a good business, taking in one day as high as 500 bushels of wheat . * BITTER AND CHEESE FACTORY--This factory was built in 1KX1 by Oatman & Sons, at a cost of $.">,000. It was one of the finest factories in the county. Twelve thousand pounds of milk were here consumed daily in the manufacture of butter and cheese. It was situated on west side of West McHenry near Hanlev's mill. BRICK MANUFACTORY-- This f" vv; bui l t in the spr ing ' l2 ' >y a s tock corn ' i . ; were Isaac Wentworth and Amos D. Whiting. The f i rs t year they manufactured 900,000 br ick; the year fol lowing 1.800.000. They employed twenty-f ive hands, and did a good business , f inding good and ready sale for a l l br icks made which were in some respects superior to many br icks manufactured in this sect ion of the country. LIMBER YARD--This yard was establ ished in 1873 by Smith & Snyder . They did a general business of buying and shipping grain, kept on hand a supply of coal for re ta i l ing purposes; a lso f lour , feed, e tc . , together with a ful l supply of house t r immings and mechanic 's suppl ies . They engaged largely in shipping l ivestock and invested in their business some $30,000. PICKLE FACTORY--This factory was bui l t in 1874 by a union of farmers residing in the vicini ty of McHenry, a t a cost of about $8,000. In 1876 Messrs . Curt iss andAWalker assumed the management of the business and factory with W.H. Wiswell under foreman In the fal l of 1878 Wiswell died, and i t was run under the f i rm name of Curt iss , Walker & Co. , t i l l 1880, when Mr. Walker died, and W.A. Cris ty bought Mr. Curt iss ' in terest . I t was la ter run under the name of Cris tv . Walker & Co. In 1876 a bui lding was erected 254 x 60 for the purpose of manufactur ing vinegar , af ter which t ime they pickled the frui t ready for market . In 1P81 addi t ional improvements were made at an expense of several thousand dol lars , making the property worth $40,000. They manufactured 20.000 bushels a year which they shipped to var ious points throughout the United States ,:?mWW*#**** 1900 JEWELRY STORE--A jewelry store operated by J.D. Smith was located in the early l9Q0's where the Chain of Lakes Travel agency on Elm street now stands. Mort Ritt also ran a jewelry store in that building for many years. J i K BUSY BEE CAFE-Early in 1915 Matt Laures, left, was proprietor of the Busy Bee Cafe at Front and Main streets. With him is his sister, Rose Landgren. FAMILY BUSINESS-One of the city's oldest family businesses is Huppy and Leo's grocery and Market at 1249 N. Green street, formerly known as Smith Bros. Grocery store. Pictured above in the early 1920's, the original store when it was located in the old Regner building on Greent street, which was just south of the present Ben Franklin store. Shown in the store are,left to right, clerk, Gertrude Weber, who was employed in the store for thirty-seven years, proprietor, Louis Smith, and customer, Jim Sayler. Will and Louis Smith bought the original store in about 1912 from Block and Bethke. They moved across the street to their present building in 1*)28. In 1946, the store was sold to Hubert and Leo Smith, who converted the business from a department store'to a grocery and meat market. '--