Northwest Arkansas Democrat-Gazette
Residents remember Walnut Street in 1960s
Recently, wonderful memories of iconic businesses that made Rogers great like Stroud’s and the Rogers Pharmacy were featured in this column. However, there were many more businesses and leaders that formed memories during the 1960s that will last forever in the hearts of those who experienced that time. Here are some of those businesses with memories posted on a Rogers’ internet site.
HUNT’S DEPARTMENT STORE
In 1947, Hunt’s Department Store moved into the opera house building on the southwest corner of Walnut and First streets, into the locations formerly occupied by Napier’s and McNeil’s Drug Store. The department store was sandwiched between Skelton’s Grocery (later Mode O’Day) and Russell’s Five & Dime. Soon the store managed by Bob Balch became one of the leading department stores in Rogers.
In 2013, I met Balch, who was visiting Rogers from his home in Florida. Balch was the manager and later the owner of Hunt’s from 1959 until 1981. During these years, Hunt’s and Stroud’s were the only department stores in Rogers.
“Fred Hunt already had successful Hunt’s stores in Fayetteville and Springdale, and opened his third store in Rogers in 1947 at 104 to 106 West Walnut,” Balch said. “The Rogers store was not doing well, and the manager resigned in May 1959. Fred decided to send me to Rogers as manager, and I had mixed feelings about the move. I was the assistant manager and happy at the Fayetteville store, and was concerned about moving to Rogers with its little downtown and only 5,900 people.”
“I made a few changes in merchandising and sales picked up,” Balch said when asked what he did to make the store a success. “By the end of the year, the store made a little profit, and I got a bonus check. I didn’t know what to do with it — it was the first bonus that I ever made.”
Under Balch’s leadership, the merchandise changed to focus on men’s, women’s and children’s medium- to upper-priced clothing. The store thrived, and in 1964, Mode O’Day moved from the corner (at 102) down the street to 110 W. Walnut St. “Fred and I got together and decided to expand, so we knocked out the partition and remodeled the whole store,” Balch said. “I had a lot of good help, and sales were getting good with very good clientele. That was the days before Visa and Mastercard, so we had a credit department with charge accounts.”
“Who were some of the memorable people that worked for you?” I asked. “There were so many: Maxine Harris, Margaret Holyfield, Jean Andrews, Bob Nickell, Steve Chastain, Joellen Harris, Jesse Mulhousen, Zelda Patterson, Velma Roberts, Betty Walburn, Imogene Stewart (later married to H.K. Scott who was part owner of Stroud’s) and Hazel Grigg (Bill Grigg’s mother),” he remembered. “Hazel was the book keeper and credit manager and a fine Christian woman.”
Hunt’s had many loyal customers and hired many local high school students. Here are some of their memories:
Ann Nickell: “My dad, Bob Nickell, worked at Hunt’s for many years, retiring from there a number of years before his death in 1979. I remember the full sized Santa they put in the window at Christmas. It waved.”
Allen Wight: “During high school in ‘64 and ‘65, I worked for Bob Balch at Hunt’s, with Bob Nickell and George Adams. Memories include storing seasonal items on the stage of the old Rogers Opera upstairs (long before anyone thought about restoring it) and accessing the second floor through a staircase behind one of the store displays. As an employee, I bought a Razorback red sport coat which everyone told me would clash with my red hair — didn’t care — bought it with small weekly payments and wore it proudly.”
Dixie David White: “Hunt’s — I was the Christmas gift wrapper from 1960-1962. I loved working for Bob Balch. He always teased me that he would sing for my wedding. I held him up to that when Bill & I married in 1966. One of my favorite memories from Hunt’s was the store Christmas parties.”
David Matthews: “I loved working at Hunt’s. Bob was a great boss, who would give folks jobs even when he didn’t need them, if he knew they needed a little help. Of course, he would also sell his employees clothes on credit. I for one almost never got an actual paycheck.”
Karen E. Russell Burks: “Bob was one of my favorite people. I modeled for Hunt’s at all the Wing Scout Style Shows.”
RUSSELL’S FIVE & DIME
Russell’s Ben Franklin Five & Dime Store did business at 108 W. Walnut St. from the 1930s until the mid-1960s. Russell’s store was an L-shaped store and had the unique distinction of fronting both First and Walnut, with the address of 108 S. First St. and 108 W. Walnut St. at the same time. Many people used the building as a short cut from one street to the other, especially on a cold day or to enjoy a bit of air conditioning in the summer.
Ann Nickell: “I always liked going to Russell’s
5 & 10. I still have a box of 12 glass ball Christmas ornaments marked $1.19. I, of course, loved the toy section in the back. The 5- and 10-cent toys were in open, small bins.”
Karen E. Russell Burks: “One year my brother, Carl Russell, played Santa Claus. We had a set of phones that Sam McClain had given us. He was the manager of the phone company. We set one phone up at the front door of the store on Walnut and ran wires up to dad’s hanging office, where the store turned and went to the First Street entrance. Carl was on the phone upstairs, and I was dressed to look like a cigarette girl with a tray of candy at the Walnut Street door. I would ask kids if they wanted to talk to Santa, and they would talk to Carl. He could tell them what they had on and who they were with. He was a great Santa and the kids loved it.”
STERLINGS
The other “dime” store in town was Sterlings, at the northeast corner of Walnut and Second streets. Sterlings opened in the 1930s and flourished until the late 1970s. In the early years, Sterlings shared the large corner building designed by A.O. Clarke with a drug store — Cole’s Drugs and then Dacus Drugs. In 1962, Sterlings occupied the entire first floor. Dime stores like Sterlings were the forerunners of discount stores and offered everything except groceries. Here are memories of Sterlings:
Ann Luker: “I remember as a little girl going to Sterlings. The clerk would take a tray of ‘jewelry’ to show us. The rings were so beautiful to us. I think they cost about 23 cents (could be wrong). They were the kind you could fit to your size. I also remember going to Russell’s to buy paper dolls. I love Rogers.”
Carol Ozbun Beaman: “My grandmother always took us to the Sterling store, and of course, I always wanted to buy something for my mother. One of those was a pair of vases with birds on them that she still has to this day. I called her to see how old I was, but neither of us remember exactly and estimate I was 3 or 4.”
Fredia Wright: “Sterlings was our store. I loved it, it had its own smell even. It was crammed full of merchandise. I remember it well, a dime a week allowance would get you a lot of candy. My grandma loved Sterling’s. She loved the dishes and such, and we usually got one from her for Christmas.”
ROGERS HARDWARE
Rogers Hardware moved into the building at 113 W. Walnut St. in June 1929 and thrived there for more than half a century. Upstairs was the Rogers Telephone Co. from 1928 until about 1960. In the 1960s, the store was owned by Mr. and Mrs. Dick Bean. From 1974 until 1985, the store was owned by Bunny and Charles McCrory.
John Sampier: “My mom was the ‘toy lady’ at Rogers Hardware for many years. When my brother and I were in college and came home for Christmas, Dick Bean hired us to wrap presents, and I also helped out in the toy department. Downtown was beautiful with the lights and silver tinsel stretched across Walnut and the store windows decorated for Christmas.”
Becky Bean: “Saturday mornings I came with my dad when he took his mother, my grandmother, to pay her bills. I loved to go in Rogers Hardware and walk up the steps to the second floor and look down on the main floor. Every Barbie I owned came from there. I’m sure I had almost everything they sold for a Barbie doll. I even had a Ken doll.”
Jean Ann McCreary: “Rogers Hardware always had toys and stuffed animals in the front window. I think it was the late 1950s, my grandpa took me there and bought me a stuffed monkey with a banana in his hand.”
NEXT MONTH
There were many other unforgettable businesses on Walnut in downtown Rogers during the fabulous 1960s. Because of space limitations, I will continue next month with memories of Otasco, Western Auto, Freda Marie’s, Mode O’Day, Shofner’s Printing, First National Bank, Hill’s Automotive and others.