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Piggly Wiggly
Grocery stores in the late 1800s and early 1900s, usually had clerks who would get the groceries for customers and bring them to a counter for them. Self-service stores came along later. One of the first to operate as self-service, was Piggly Wiggly. Here is the story of the first Piggly Wiggly stores according to Smithsonian Magazine. https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/bizarre-story-piggly-wiggly-first-self-service-grocery-store-180964708/ Piggly Wiggly came to Spartansburg in about 1934 on Main Street-probably replacing the Red & White Store-1 store in from the corner with Water Street. The manager was Laurence Winsor. His employees included Clair Lindsey, Mabel Schreckengost and Miss Helen Bates. The Piggly Wiggly sponsored contests- one prize was $5 and one…
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Shop Ads 1923-?
Businesses continued to come and go in Spartansburg. Longstanding businesses change hands and keep on going… And, while advertising in 2020 is often done using social media, getting the word out is still vital to keeping customers coming through the doors. Doohers owned a hardware and grocery in town in 1923. Members of PJ Dooher’s family still live in Spartansburg Doohers-“The Square Deal Store” Nationwide Stores came to town in the 1930s. It was a chain store probably located at the corner of Main and Water Street-across from Fish Ford 1936-Iced Coffee In 1950, Spartansburg Woolen Mills/Tauber Woolen Mills offer their Luxury Comforts The Tauber Mill- later the Spartansburg Mill…
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Shop Ads 1908-1922
New brick buildings were erected following the 1898 and 1905 fires. The buildings that housed many of the businesses who advertised in the Spartansburg Sentinel and Titusville Herald are still in use today. 1914 Ad- Notice the phone number. The Winans Block was to the right of the IOOF Building. CL Rexford advertised Drugs, Jewelry and Notions- Chicken feed must have been a “notion” The CL Rexford Company was busy in 1917-obviously expanding from Jewelry and Drugs to other things that folks in town needed. They continued in business in 1920, adding electronics to their offerings. The merchants in Spartansburg wanted to be sure that folks were purchasing things they…
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Shop Ads 1871-1907
In the late 1800’s Spartansburg had a large business district. Even with fires destroying all or parts of Main Street, these early merchants and tradesmen persevered. Many of the ads appeared in the Spartansburg Sentinel beginning in 1885. The 1871 ads were printed in the Business Directory for Crawford County and represent several businesses prominent at the time. In 1893, Dr. Green advertised his expert dental services- he even refunded your railroad fare if you spent enough… 1902-Blankets from the Edwards Woolen Mill are advertised in a special sale at Ullman’s in Titusville Some 1902 ads from Spartansburg businesses-most in Main Street stores that are still in use. Spartansburg Mercantile…
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Grange National Bank
The Grange National Bank was the 2nd bank in Spartansburg. It’s establishment came within 3 years after the failure of the Spartansburg (Tryon) Bank. Spartansburg was a thriving community and it was the feeling of merchants and farmers in the area that a bank was needed. In this Spartansburg Sentinel article from February 15, 1907, it is explained that $25000 is required to establish a National Bank. That money is through shares of $100 each with 50% due at organization and 10% each month after that until paid. The bank was originally to be called the First National Bank of Spartansburg, and was noted as such in the approval of…
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Read the Spartansburg Sentinel 1902-1908
Spartansburg Sentinel Newspapers Thanks to the generous provision of the Firth Family, copies of the original Spartansburg Sentinel from 1902-1908 were permitted to be digitized and shared with visitors to this website. Additional information about the Sentinel and its production can be found here. Be aware that some printing is very light due to the quality of the ink and age of the papers. It will take a minute or so for each paper to load, depending on your internet speed. 1902 August September October November December 1903 January February March April May June July August September October November December 1904 January February March April May June July August September…
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Spartansburg’s Newspaper the Sentinel
The first copy of the “Spartansburgh” Sentinel was 2 pages and issued on February 28, 1885. The Editor was listed as RA Maxwell who published the paper from his home. ***NOTE*** Through the generous contribution from the Firth family, photo images of the Sentinel from 1902-1908 will be posted. These will not be searchable. COPIES OF SENTINEL TO READ Shortly after, the paper was sold to Allen Tryon who moved the paper into a Main Street building later used as the post office. Tryon owned the paper for a short time working with A E Walling. John Wright was employed as a type-setter and after about a year, purchased…
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The Spartansburg Bank (1882-1905)
In 1882, a bank was organized in Spartansburg. The bank was a private bank with no state or federal backing. The first President of the bank was IH Burt and the first cashier was FD Catlin. In 1889, DW Tryon became a major stockholder and cashier for the bank. Community members and farmers from the area made deposits and the bank continued to grow, showing $30,000 available in a bank report in 1900. The Spartansburg Sentinel ran an ad for the bank on March 3, 1905 On March 4, 1905, DW Tryon closed the bank and went to Meadville to transfer all bank and personal property to an “assignee” who…
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1879, 1889, 1897, 1899, 1909 Directories
Directories were published by different organizations, some lists only and others containing additional information. The 1879-1880 Directory The 1889-1890 Directory The 1897-1898 Directory The 1899-1900 Directory The 1909-1910 Directory
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1874 Directory for Spartansburg and Sparta Township
The 1874 version of the Crawford County Directory provided a list of residents of Sparta Township and Spartansburg Borough. The listing included the occupation of the resident. Those who lived in the township are designated with an r and a number after their names. 1874 Gazeteer and Business Directory for Crawford County 1874 Description of Spartansburg and 2 business ads
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1871 and 1876 Directory
Crawford County printed and published a Business Directory frequently that included a listing of citizens and business owners in each community. These directories sometimes included advertisements and maps. The 1871 Directory The 1876 Directory
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Business Directory for circa 1867 and 1871
Spartansburg grew continually from its incorporation in 1856. As the area of Sparta Township grew, men and women met the needs of the community with their knowledge and skills. Miss Patty Blakeslee and Miss Phoebe Patton were among the first teachers in Sparta Township. Reverend Amos Chase served early churches and Dr. Horace Eaton met the medical needs in the area. Miss Ruth Gleason held class in a small school just west of the borough in 1833. By 1867, some of the earliest businessmen and tradesmen had moved on. Chauncey Akin’s bowl factory, William Bassett’s chair factory and John McWilliams tannery were closed or sold to others by the 1867…
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Railroads Through Spartansburg
The Oil Creek Railroad received a Charted in 1860. It was to connect to the Philadelphia and Erie Railroad and to the Atlantic and Great Western Railroad that came through Corry. The Oil Creek Railroad line from Titusville to Corry opened in 1862. That portion of the railroad traveled through Hydetown, Tryonville, Centerville, Glynden and Spartansburg over 27 miles. The Oil Creek became a part of the Western New York and PA, and later the Pennsylvania RR. The railroad provided opportunities for merchants and tradesmen in the area to expand their businesses and promoted Spartansburg’s growth.
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Early Hardware Stores (Alsdorf / Burt / Thompson / Hilliker)
Hardware stores have served an important role in all small communities by providing those items that could not easily be crafted by individuals on their homesteads. Spartansburg has had many merchants who met the needs for various types of hardware. Blacksmiths were among the first to provide help with production and repair of metal tools and they would work with the merchants selling metal goods. One of the first hardware stores recorded in Spartansburg was the store built by Abram Alsdorf (Alsdurf) in 1874. This store was among those lost to the 1878 fire that destroyed all of the business district. An article in 1882 reported that Mr. Alsdorf was…
Spartansburg History
The Past and Stories of Spartansburg, PA
