A place for our readers to get to know each other!
(Editor’s Note: Each week,The Herald poses a “Question of the Week” on their facebook page with many responding. Comments made on the posts, may or may not be factual in nature and are to be noted as that person’s comment only.)
Each week The Herald will ask a random question, both on the opinion page of the weekly paper and on The Eureka Herald Facebook© page. Responses should be mailed to PO Box 590, Eureka, KS 67045, e-mailed to [email protected] with “Coffee Shop Talk” in the subject; dropped off at our office, 822 E. River, in Eureka or made on The Eureka Herald’s Facebook© page.
The “Question of the Week” for last week was: “Which Main Street building is your favorite? Share your favorite memory or why the building is your fave.”
Following are the responses: Jayte Pryce* - “The building that used to be Kamada Studio when it was my mom’s shop. I want to say the address is 117 N Main. There is a cement slide going into the basement. We used to love riding down on rugs or cardboard down into the basement (even though I was scared of the back of the shop, and was convinced it was haunted).”
Kayte Plantz* - “Jayte Pryce, we had a lot of memories there! It was a fun place.”
Loria Howard* - “Kayte Plantz, I am not positive what that building was originally; I thought a grocery store?; it was also the Greenwood County Historical Society Muesum at one time as I remember doing genealogy research there. I remember going there when it was a beauty shop, also.”
Kayte Plantz* - “Loria Howard, I was told either a grocery store or meat market??”
Abby Nelson* - “Kayte Plantz, I believe it was a grocery store and then also they did newspapers. They still had them in the basement when grandma got her hair done there” Tami J. Hart-Hawthorne* - “Wow! This is a hard one, as each building on Main Street has unforgettable memories, especially those that are no longer there! With that being said, I have to give The Half Dollar Bar and Grill my best. It has stood the test of time over decades of service and changes and still to this day serves the community well. It’s nostalgic past is still present to this day.”
Michele Hare* - “Zenisheks.. with that cool staircase, rexall drug.. where you could get the best 400s... then birite!! I loved how busy all the shops used to be... and Christmas was so pretty.. Easter was so fun to take our colored eggs to the different stores and get our dimes... such fun times!! Makes it hard to see how it is now...”
Patty Voth* - “The rexall drug store was my favorite my neighbor and I took Monopoly money went down there and bought us a small Coca-Cola of course they served it to us but somebody come and picked us up and paid for our drink lol we must have only been about 5 years old at the time but it was so funny now as I think about it how we went down there and bought that pop good old memories” Leann Courtney Wells* - “The city drug store (I think that was the name). I remember going down there on our lunch hour at school and having to run back so we wouldn’t be late (yes believe it or not way back then I could run)” Mari Noel* - “Leann Courtney Wells, they had the best hot dogs.”
Sherry Bratton Olsen* - “Barb’s Cafe! My grandma and great grandma ran it. Marie Benton and Hannah Barb. Our family had every holiday dinner in the formal dining room because it was closed to the public. We played games, played the piano in there. My brother Dale learned to cook at Barb’s. Greatest of memories!”
Deina Rockhill* - “The News Stand: it had the nicest funniest ladies, ALL the candy and “the magazines”. Teen Beat with Scott Baio and...well..I can’t think of all the others but you know...the cute ones! We took the posters and put them on our walls!!Wonder what they all look like today!”
Mattie McCullough* “The theater on a Friday or Saturday night, EF&A Furniture building on 2nd and Main (my dads storemy sister and I lived upstairs when it caught fireloved that apartment), the old truck stop at breakfast time, the Bowling alley as a teen. D&Js for shoes before a new school year. Showcase movie rentals too! Nothing that is still in business. I sometimes wonder what childhood would have been like if I were a child growing up there in today’s world. So many treasures gone to the wasteside.”
Clay Wade* - “Mattie McCullough, I miss the bowling alley back in our high school days.”
Mattie McCullough* “Clay Wade, I know they hated having everyone there sometimes but it really was the it place.”
Debbie Bowen McGuire* - “Picking just one is so hard. I loved Red Owl. Rexall was for lunch and after school. They sold Psssst, that dry hair shampoo. BiRite was so cool. I still tell people about the underwear in the little compartments, right there with everything else in the store. In high school I shopped at Devoe’s Duds.
John Huntington Jr* “I’m kind of partial to the Wiggins Building AKA, The Auction House, at 114 N Main.”
Orella Hosack* - “John Huntington Jr, I loved the Ben Franklin store when it was in that building!”
Christopher Campbell* - “The old Spic N Span Cleaners. When it was still running my Grandma Clydean ran it. It was always fun finding new places to hide in there. Can stil remember the smell of the place. I dont know who owns it now, hate seeing it just sitting there going to waste, but that seems to be the agenda for buildings on main street unfortunately.”
Chris Hansel* - “Christopher Campbell is that the little red building ?”
Christopher Campbell* - “Chris Hansel, yeah it’s the building north of the big house the are redoing” Loria Howard* - “What a trip down Memory Lane!!! Each entry brings back memories!!! As an adult I would probably say BiRite! It was our own version of today’s store that starts w a W! There was such a variety of merchandise!”
Susan Richling* - “The Burk Paulson store! The front windows, the awesome entrance with the cool door, and the last time I was in there, the ceiling was the old tiles!”
Kristin Cook* - “Susan Richling grandma Betty and him were good friends. I remember going down there as kid to see ‘uncle’ Paul. Floor to ceiling tile inventory!”
Mari Noel* - “There were so many, of course Otasco. The apartments above Otasco, I was really young when we would go upstairs to be babysit while dad worked on stuff. Rexall, Bi-Rite, The Newsstand, Carters Jewelry, the bakery, I can still recall how wonderful the smell was. Zenisheks, always so beautiful at Christmas, the Red Owl was spectacular. Barbs cafe, on Sunday when we went for breakfast my younger brother Chris found a wallet stuffed with money in the men’s room, the gentleman that left it was very grateful to get it back. He was there for the horse race’s. Dairy Queen. We were fortunate there was so much on Main Street.”
Susan Epperson* - “Old drug store. We knew we were going to get a treat if parents went there.”
Aaron Cline* - “I would have to say Bi-Rite (spelling?) And OTASCO.”
John Huntington Jr* “Aaron Cline I loved looking at the variety of toys Bi-Rite had. I remember buying plastic army men & balsa wood planes there.”
Aaron Cline* - “John Huntington Jr same here!!! I used to buy the little battery 4x4 Stomper trucks!”
Angela Williams* - “I loved Otasco, especially at Christmas time and the Red Owl in its glory days was one of my favorites.”
Marsha Ramsey* - “All the above plus Peter Pan and Dairy Queen.”
Deina Rockhill* - “This isn’t main street, but what about the skating rink??!! Loved going there...what was the guys name who always skated backwards?”
Debra Thackeray* “There was a jc penny it was on main just don’t remember wear” Kris Olson* - “Freeman’s 3rd. & Main, when it was Freeman’s back in the day. They had so many different things for inventory. It was an awesome store. Breaks my heart to see that building the way it is now” Shannon Gant* - “Kris Olson it was a really cool building and I also loved the variety of things you could get there.”
Vanessa Gee* - “The old library building.”
Vicki French* - “Otascos! Loved the side at Christmas with all the toys ! Zenisheks with all the mannequins with the cutest clothes in the windows ! The Princess Theater it had so much charm and uniqueness . Got to see lots of good movies and parties there . The best popcorn ! I remember on Christmas Eve the stores stayed open in the evenings and the Purkeypile Family & others caroling up and down the sidewalks . Sorry you said one . Thanks for the question it’s fun reading the comments!”
Madelon Griblin* - “Vicki French Remebering the Mirror Pilar outside front of Zenisheks” Michele Burke-Steinbacher* - “Bi-Rite and Barkman’s were my favorite.”
Heidi Surber* - “The Red Owl building.”
Kim Gorman* - “I like the building that The Gym is in, the old Opera house. I always thought it was cool that they left the rock walls visible- gives it character. And when I found out that long ago there was a skating rink in there Upstairs! That sealed the deal! Great!”
Alan Hatcher* - “Bi-rites” Troy Scott* - “Ive always enjoyed Casey’s” Msrjorie Morgan* - “The new process laundry , princess theater, In the past, now half dollar cause she left some history there.”
Kelly Vancil* - “Freeman’s” Faith Boone Butler* “Browns Bakery and those wonderful butter rolls. Does anyone have a recipe for those rolls. I have never been able to get any near that good.”
Kathy L. Murphy* - “my Town and Country Headquarters use to be in the old Princess Theater Barber shop and directly under the balcony of the theater. On Thursday nights I would go buy a large garage bag of freshly popped popcorn cut hair and we all would listen to the movies. Best times ever at that shop. I use to roller skate to work on the sunny days!”
Loretta Gulick* - “Brite” Do you have a recom-mendation for the “Question of the Week” please send it to Robin at news@eurekaherald. com, or stop by 822 E. River St., Ste 100, in Eureka.
