Hide Article Text (OCR)
JPAV MORMNn SEPTEMBER 1QMHardware Store Is Stocked With History, TooTHE AMABTU O PAILY NFTWg AMAR1ITO TFX-ts#*»- . , —Personal Photos.Top panel shows extenor and interior of the R. W, Isaacs hardware store at Clayton about 1905. The late Mr. Isaacs stands by the light standard. Standing inside the old store are Lee Burney. Fred Vandervoort, Clarence Luton. John Winchester and Tom Owens. At the counter is Bob Isaacs, son oi the founder and present operator of the business. Mr. Isaacs is shown below.* * ** *Founder9* *XSpiritIk/Pioneer Clayton1 r mrrBy KATHRYN HENRYNew Mex. Bureau, Araarilla Dally News.CLAYTON, Sept. 28—One of the few businesses in Eastern New Mexico which has been in continuous operation for half a century, the Isaacs Hardware Store in Clayton, will celebrate its 60th anniversarythis year.Although R. W. Isaacs, founder of the store, died Aug. 8. atthe age of 77, his influence still is felt in Clayton and will be for many years, just as the personality of the man lives on in the anecdotes told about him hy his fellow townsmen.A native of Australia, the son of parents born In England, Isaacs earn a to the United States when he was seven years old. Immediately prior to his removal to New Mexico Territory, he was a mail carrier in Trinidad, Colo.He came to Clayton to manage the hardware department of a store——wH' ■ ».wi«nnMwwa, and had an assembly and repair yard for implements, wagonsand engines. *For years after the turn of thecentury, merchandise came from eastern mills to Texas City by ship, then was carried by rail to Tex-line, and finally was hauled toClayton in wagons because of theK W ISAACSIoperated by a relative, several years before the turn of the century, and probably established his own business before 1900.mare to a buggy. The first time she pulled up in front of the store, she stepped on the low-gear pedal instead of the brake, and crashed into the rail, shouting “Whoa, Belinda,” as the splinters flew.Isaacs’ children. Young Bob andBut it was his wish that the store's Lucille, now Mrs. Finis Roberts, golden anniversary be celebrated in had a burro they rode about the 1950, a wish “Young Bob,” his son town. Sometimes they got. lifts and the present operator of the home with friends and left the store, will observe. : little donkey tied to the rail at theOriginally housed in a frame store, building which had been Clayton’s ! Claytonites well remember thefirst hotel, the store is situated at the Intersection of US Highway 87 and the main business thoroughfare of the town.The hardware company once *at squarely in what is now thebusy transcontinental trafficroute, but was then an unpaved *lt;reet. That was In 1908 or 1909, when Bob Isaacs decided to build * brick structure to house his flourishing business.He simply had the old framebudding Jacked up and moved out Into the street so the new edifice could be built on the old location. Business went on as usual, with what traffic bhere was deflected to either side of the wide road.Tn those days there was a lake between Isaacs’ store and what isnow the east edge of the city. When a heavy rain came, the downtown section of Clayton was hard to distinguish from the lake proper.While Isaacs still was “selling nails in the middle of the street, he received r carload shipment of ooa! and wood stoves for which he had no storage space, so he Just ■racked them in the street in back of the storeF, B. Vandervoort, long-timeemploye of Isaacs and one ofhis most ardent admirers, remembers that the stoves were covered by water after a downpour, and resulting rust had tobe scraped and polished away hr hand before the merchandise wassaleable.Vandervoort says there were“more crops raised, mqre cattlefattened and more horsek broke” under the trees in front of the old wooden store than anywhere elsein Union Countv.w *Sometimes the conversational pursuits of Hip loungers in the shade were interrupted by sonit-lg a little more exciting, likeIsaacs tried to hitchcarriage to the railthe time Mrs.her horselessout front.Before the advent of automobiles, .Mrs, Isaacs had driven aoccasions when Isaacs, riding what he called his “steed,” solemnly made the journey from the store to his home astride the little burro, his feet almost dragging theground.Vandervoort remembers Isaacs as an astute business man, difficultto best in strategy. Once r lumber yard installed a hardware department; so Isaacs built a lumber yard in retaliation.When his lumber business began making inroads on the profits of the other firm, he issued an ultimatum; If the other firm would abandon the hardwarebusiness, he would forego sellinglumber. It was so agreed. He bought the firm’s hardware stock.I he firm bought his lumberstock. Both then returned to their original pursuits.Once, while Mr. Isaacs was digging a foundation for an additionto the rear of the store, the back partition fell after a rain had filled the excavation. A whole wall full of shelves of paint fell Into the water. All the labels came off, and no one knew what color was in what can,Isaacs decided opening and identifying the contents would bp too tedious, so he had it all poured into barrels and sold it in bulk for barn paint.Vandervoort, a former well driller who became acquainted with Isaacs when he purchased materialsfrom him in 1908. is a little scornful of present method of conducting the hardware business“In the old days.” he savs, “w* really ran a hardware business, not a ‘racket’ store like they have.now.”recollections encompass the when Isaacs received as as three carloads of pipe a two carloads of windmills,three carloads of barbed wire and nails, carloads of corrugated Iron, and other items in huge lots.in order to handle the tremendous volume of heavy material, Isaacs maintained several ware-FOR ECONOMY!20 DELICIOUS SERVINGSIN EVERY20-0Z. PACKAGEII istime man v vparheavy freight rate increase at the state line, which at that time amounted tn as much for a haulto Clayton as to Trinidad, ColoSn widespread were I sauce operations that he sold windmills overan area extending to riteumeanChanmng, Liberal, Kan , and Tax Vegas, and he jobbed pipe t« Ann. • ri ll o Hardware.Because h e thnoqhi Chw tonshould have an adequate postnifice, Issacs built n sfnne structure to house the mail distributioncenter, and his estate still ownsthe building occupied by the poet-j office.1I h e h a rd vc r e m ere hunt a! myhad a canny theory In dealing with newcomers to New Mexico,giving: them what he railed *‘astake to build to,” Realising that wav was the prime necessity In n region were flowing streams were almost non-existent* he sold windnulls and supplies for puttingdown wells as cheaply as possible, realizing he would make his pro fiiv off **the trimmings which would he added to the homesteadlater,Vandervoort recalls the present Of h r alor of t he a tore and his y o11: \ v astst!it, John Pace ga\ e Inn\ some bad moments whet', they weiryoungsters attracted, like mo*t bov* to guns and ammunition. Bob andJohn, while the clerk wasn't look me j had habit of loading rifles, and I then returning them to the show cases without taking the shells outAfter an occasion or two when a |customer, not realizing a gun was j loaded, fired a bullet near hn ear j Vandervoort banned the vout hs from the store, and thus incurred 1 us empover k dispiean\re Accompanied bv voong Bob, Ini• Advert men t5iWnfH—iWW nm- 11r*a i ■ s a p p rm c r e d V % n d e rvoo rt and st it*tv addressed him as “MisterT He introduced his son fo^naily. andhoi-men the clerk he .as to sellthe hen a rifle and place the charge on hU personal accountliub chose a repeater, and restored \ tndei MKnl to Isaacs' good graces b\ xiMulijii; a bullet w hi // mepast Ins father* throat one morn in* just a he was tying his tie.I hereafter, ‘Mister** V anrirrvnortwas accorded the salutation‘ I lertdic, uiv ben ’ with w hich Isaac s had prevtousle addressed him, and the gun went back into stock.Vundercoori remembers Isaacs to a generous and thoughtful empkn *er, an ardent hcxxster of cone nnwt♦v t»' . a y d n, k, u. \ d 1 v hiuini 111 h r i. i\ t \ Riven t o \ 11: p 11 h 11 c I mo d oh t\ v f 11 es,tMr- ndmg ofierationwi ot%s{\ re- • suited u\ ISO per cent increases in t a U w h \ ! a res i \ x Fv r ino vt, \x i f hbus fares up 110 per cent.\ ft y e r 11 h e i r\ r t ■ - -- - -Take Off !!gfv Fat WithTkis Home Relt;toe-A Aft i I’N* mm, Tft JMftgftMk Pftfttpi Wifi - -a iRft mlt;f v*t8 m *, Nft«^ «« **lhf rm Wft tk *U«r-|»4r |mMI# f ftJ tMR #•lt; f t*mi r r B «i i*i ttout ountmtt lt;n* 8h»• ir• . C 44|ft iu fft t k» mjgkai * p Mi ft* % i ft ft \» k * t*f f b ft#/ ft | t* ft# « r W 0 fwift f f ft 1 t-ft#« «• »Mt. * few* 0 ftrtA S-ihIfwvfik I Nfty* rqwft ntMMT Ift r«V!' ftpft a twl «'N«w# (ngntt wa« #«' «k§ -f tat wukoftt bucfc NMfe k ■ ft t •» # r 11 *# •-« * v « ft» i Mftfi C frftAtii *#»# ##.11# m» inkVVmniBifii pw»tki Ba It«fi»f w i, If *ii# »#tf A -ftCIhHt j# a«MM * I ftJsft-wf Oft# BmDii, ft«#f» *:j %■ hnh# WUlf r# mmr-§ ftftsft 4mCi» I ftfttrvftn r#rft# # S#«»«y*l ft ft-4 ftMK p»IM NN^?9HH#i* hot s t.ui Unit. Or o t f r i it rto og # nft all of hrt ftitiiKbti Adx ei tlapfnCUt
Newspaper Details
Amarillo Daily News
Amarillo, Texas, US
Fri, Sep 29, 1950
Page 14
Full Page
Clipped by
Anonymous
CO, USA 22 Feb 2021
Other Publications Near Amarillo, Texas
Amarillo Sunday News Globe
Amarillo Globe News
Amarillo News Globe
Amarillo Daily News
Amarillo Globe
