“ If he ’ d have had enough money , he would have gone right back to Missouri because it was pretty westerny out here , and he wasn ’ t used to that .”
Ranchers , homesteaders , historians , visitors and more can step back in time and get supplies with a trip to Whiteaker ’ s Store in Harrison , Nebraska . Founded by Emmett “ Abie ” Whiteaker in 1931 during the Great Depression , the store carries a wealth of history as well as western living merchandise .
Emmett was best known as Abie . His son Joe Whiteaker explained , “ Down in Missouri , he worked for a Jew , and his name was Abie . So they called him Little Abie . He was a short guy , m y dad was . So when he moved out here , somehow that name Abie followed him .”
Before coming to Harrison , Abie owned a drugstore with another fellow in Missouri . While at a trade show in Kansas City , Abie met some gentlemen from western Nebraska . They told Abie about the wide open spaces of the west and wanted him to manage a Golden Rule Store for them in Crawford , Nebraska .
“ He was always an entrepreneur , and he had a store down in Missouri . It was a drugstore , and he was always in the retail business at that time ,” said Joe . “ He was always looking for something different .”
Nebraska was not what Abie was expecting , though . After riding a train to Crawford , Joe explained that Abie said , “ If he ’ d have had enough money , he would have gone right back to Missouri because it was pretty westerny out here , and he wasn ’ t used to that .”
That was in 1925 . While working at the store in Crawford , Abie met his soon-to-be wife , Mary Reed . Mary was from eastern Nebraska , but her brother lived in Crawford and she relocated to the area to teach school . They were married in 1928 , which was the same year Abie was tasked with opening and managing a Golden Rule Store in Harrison .
Then , in 1931 during the Great Depression the banks started going broke , and the store had to close .
“ They were going to ship him back to Crawford , and he said he ’ d have to take a reduction in wages . So he just stayed up here ,” said Joe . “ He liked it up here . He liked the people , and at that time there were a lot of people up here . He just fell in love with Harrison after he was here a while .”
As an entrepreneur with experience in retail , Abie decided to open his own store . Of course , the banks would not loan any money to a prospective business at that time .
“ One of the local hardware dealers across the street said he ’ d loan him ( Abie ) $ 800 to get started if he wanted to open his own store . So that ’ s what he did ,” said Joe . “ Then , there was a wholesale company over in Denver that knew him and said , ‘ Well , you go ahead and order what you need to get started and pay for it when you can .’ So he did that .”
When first starting , Abie kept all the empty boxes and put them on the shelves to give the appearance of having a larger inventory .
Originally , he sold mostly work clothing , carrying a variety for the locals . Abie was also a Levi and Carhartt dealer and distributor . Along with
“ If he ’ d have had enough money , he would have gone right back to Missouri because it was pretty westerny out here , and he wasn ’ t used to that .”
JOE WHITEAKER myblackshillscountry . com Down Country Roads
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