Book chronicles history of local store

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January 6, 2011

By Patricia Breakey Delaware County News Bureau The Daily Star Thu Jan 06, 2011, 08:34 AM EST

MEREDITH _ The Meredith Historical Society has published a book detailing the history of Bisbee's General Store in Meridale -- from its founding in 1900 to its fiery end April 13, 1976.

Historical society member Bob Rosen compiled the book, which is in its second printing but is still evolving and changing as people continue to contribute photographs and memories of the store and its role in the community.

"We are still taking additional information for future issues," Rosen said Tuesday. "A book like this is never finished, and thanks to modern technology it doesn't have to be. We can continue to update and add new photos and stories to each new edition."

Rosen said the Meredith Historical Society launched the Bisbee project a year ago when it called together a council of elders to begin documenting people's memories of the store.

"I gave everyone an assignment to draw a diagram of how they remembered the inside of the store," he said. "We compiled a composite that included 30 different items in the store and where they were placed. That diagram has also been corrected a number of times by people who remember additional details."

The Meredith Historical Society held an exhibit at the Delaware County Historical Society in Delhi featuring items from the store and recollections of people who frequented the store that was the hub of the Meridale community.

"The photos we got as a result of the exhibit added 20 to 25 pages to the book," he said.

Bisbee's General Store was first owned and operated by Everett Sumner Bisbee in 1900, but the store had been operating at that site since the mid-1800s.

E.S. Bisbee ran the store until his death in 1949, when his son Ruez Bisbee took over.

At Bisbee's, you could buy everything from groceries to dry goods, hardware, gasoline, paint and varnish, livestock food, farm equipment and countless other items.

The store served many functions in the community during its lifetime.

The post office was located on one side of the store and Ruez Bisbee was town clerk, so the town clerk's office was located in the store until 1975, when the Meredith Town Hall was built.

Rosen said one of the items most often described by people was an old ledger box that sat next to the cash register. He said the ledger box has never shown up and may not have survived the fire, but he found an identical one on eBay and was able to obtain photos that appear in the book.

Rosen said a large part of the book is dedicated to stories about the store contributed by people who have memories going back to the first half of the 20th century.

Zeb Palmer said: "If E.F. Bisbee didn't have it you probably didn't really need it anyway."

Willie Jurjens talked about the flour sacks made of cotton that his mother saved until she had enough material to make underpants for his sisters. Jurgens said the girls hated to wear the underpants to school because if the wind caught their skirts and blew them over their heads the words "Pillsbury's Best" were printed right on their butts for everyone to see.

An anonymous contributor said he met his wife in Bisbee's, and when they decided to get married, they went to Bisbee's to get a marriage license from Ruez Bisbee. When Bisbee asked if he had ever been married before, the man said, yes, but Bisbee didn't check the box on the application. However, when he got back to the parking lot with his wife-to-be, she wasn't happy about the first marriage.

Rosen said Bisbee's represents a world that doesn't exist anymore.

"It was a way of life, and it really knocked me for a loop to see what it was really all about. It was a community."

Rosen said the 76-page book is available for $12 by contacting the Meredith Historical Society at infor@mhsny.org or at the Delaware County Historical Association or Good Cheap Food in Delhi or at the store in Meridale.