Pre-Order Countdown: 3 DAYS

Visit my website to order 

“But Not Forgotten” for 25% off

through April 30th.

AND, like the But Not Forgotten Facebook page by April 30th

for a chance to win a signed copy

of the book.

Today’s excerpt: Remembering

a great locally owned business

In March 1987, as a high-school freshman, I traveled to the Bahamas during spring break with around 50 other members of the Logansport High School band to perform a concert in Freeport. During the trip, Mom decided to take on a major renovation of my bedroom — a project that would allow her to pass the time during one of the occasional periods when she and Dad weren’t on speaking terms. 

Mom’s idea was to construct a wall-to-wall bookshelf system with adjustable shelves, desk drawers, and a window seat including a hinged base containing a hidden storage compartment. Not having the expertise to take on a project of this size alone, she sketched her idea on a piece of scrap paper and took it to Closson Lumber, a company that had been in business for nearly a century near downtown.

Ed Closson and his staff helped her to perfect the design, gave her pointers on how best to construct it, advised her on the right type of wood and hardware to incorporate — and even cut every piece of lumber to her exact specifications without additional charge.

The result was spectacular — and with Closson’s help, it was completed before I arrived home a week later.

Fifteen years later, The Home Depot opened a 95,000-square-foot store next to the Logansport Mall. Within two years, Closson’s small lumber company closed its doors after 102 years in business, unable to compete with the giant retailer. In its final days in business, Closson ran an ad in the Pharos-Tribune announcing the company’s liquidation sale — including a reprint of the ad his great-grandfather had placed in the Aug. 16, 1902, edition of the same paper (above) — and thanking his customers for their support.

There is little doubt that the convenience and discount prices of big box stores like Home Depot can rarely be matched by small, local retailers. However, it is equally improbable that Mom could have found the knowledgeable assistance she needed to complete such a complicated project — or a staff with the patience or willingness to invest their time — at a big-box retail outlet.