REMEMBER WHEN FROM THE PAST--PAYSON MORTUARIES

REMEMBER WHEN
Thursday, 22 May 2008
Kenna Holm

PAYSON MORTUARIES

    I’m having to think harder about what to write these days (I think my brain is on vacation). I’ve have been thinking about Memorial Day coming up and Mondayis when we celebrate it. I don’t know about anyone else, but I wish we still had Memorial Day on Memorial Day instead of the Monday before. The same with all the other holidays. It just doesn’t seem the same but I guess it s nice for those who work to have a long weekend.
    Anyway-- back to my remember when. Since Memorial Day is Monday, I was thinking about the different mortuaries we have had here in Payson. The first one I remember is Rigby’s Mortuary across from the park on the corner of Main Street and 200 South. I recall reading that the first mortuary was call the Deseret Mortuary and came in about 1930 (before my time) Walter Rigby worked for them and then bought the building and the business. 
    He and his wife lived in the upstairs. I think they had 2 children, a girl and a boy.  The boy was Kenneth and he married Molly Manwill and I m not sure what happened to the daughter.
    They held some of the funerals there in the mortuary. I sang at a lot of funerals there so felt more acquainted with it than with the Jolley Mortuary. I remember Gene Braithwaite played a lot of beautiful soft music for the viewings at Rigby’s. He was so generous with his talent.  There wasn’t a lot of parking space with the mortuary. People had to park up the street and over by the park.
    Mike DeWitt took over when the Rigby’s retired before they passed away. Mike run it for awhile and then moved on to Walker Mortuary.

   About the same time that the Deseret Mortuary opened,  C.O. Claudin established a funeral home in a home on 64 West 100 North. He remodeled that home and made it into a funeral home.
    In 1952,  Keith Jolley bought the business out and the new mortuary was built. It was where the La Hacienda Mexican Restaurant was located there.  Keith Jolley was the mortician and he and his family lived in the back of the building. They had a lovely place where they raised their 5 children. The mortuary was decorated beautifully and was a very nice place.
    My good friend Connie (Simpson) Nelson used to baby sit for the Jolley’s and also answer the phones when they were gone. She hated being their alone so she would ask friends to come be with her. Diane (Beddoes) Hansen was there a lot with Connie. They always felt it was kind of spooky.
    Payson had no ambulance at that time and Keith had a big station wagon he used as a ambulance as well as a hearse.
    Later on he and his wife Barbara divorced and they went their separate ways. Keith died a few years ago. He was a nice and likable fellow.

     In 1971,  Lynn Walker from Spanish Fork built a new mortuary up on600 East and100 West.  His oldest son Stewart was the first manager of it. He and his wife lived in the home adjacent to the mortuary. Since then there have been a few others and now Mike DeWitt is the manager and lives in the house. He is always so friendlyand helpful. I’ve enjoyed working with him when I sing there for funerals.
They now have beautiful limousines for the families and such a beautiful hearse.  It’ s fun to look back and remember when....

PETEETNEET MAGNETS AND HATPINS WILL BE AVAILABLE IN MAY

The Peteetneet Historical Society will have Peteetneet Fridge Mangets and hatpins available in May.
Be sure and pickup one of these great items and support the Historical Society.

REMEMBER WHEN FROM THE PAST--WILSON STYLE SHOPPE

REMEMBER WHEN
Thursday, October 23, 2008
Kenna Holm

WILSON STYLE SHOPPE

    A few months ago, I touched on a few of the stores on Main Street and now I'd really like to talk more about each one individually.  Wilson's Style Shoppe was THE placeto shop in Payson for really nice ladies clothes. It was a lovely shop that carried things to please all ages. It was owned by Clyde Wilson McMahon.
    I loved going in there to shop because all the clerks were so friendly and helpful. I would work in the peaches in the summer and save my moneyto buy my school clothes at Wilson's. They carried Jantzen brand sweaters and swim suits, Catalina brands and manymore well known brands of clothing.

   The store originally was started my Clyde's mother, Cad Wilson, and it was a millinery shop. They made just hats and sold them all over the country. Some people were even sent from Chicago  to teach the workers how to make the hats. I think this was in about the very early 1900's.
    Clyde was a beautiful, aristocratic lady and so friendly. Her motto was to greet the customers  with  a  smile  and  make  them welcomed. I loved to have any of the ladies wait on me because they were all so friendly.

   When  I asked  Sue,  Clyde’s  grand daughter,  who did the buying for the store, she said all the ladies that worked at the store all did. They would go to market and pick out the latest styles to have in their store. Sue says she remembers going on buying trips with her mother, Kathryn Brown , when she was about 10 or 12. They really made it a family business.
 

  Clyde died in 1971. That was a great loss for her only child Kathryn and her two daughters. I loved the way Sue  always called  Clyde, Grandmother.  Not Grandma  like most of us do, but Grandmother. A dignified name for a dignified lady.
    Kathryn carried on the same traditions her mom had. I think everyone in town had a charge account there.
 

  The  ladies that  worked  there looked  like  they had  just  stepped out of a band box. They always dressed very classy. For as long as I can remember Naomi Hillman, Delsa Staheli, Elaine Nelson, Eileene Wilson ( s h e  d i d alterations)worked at the store. And I remember one lady in particular that had beautiful red hair and was very sophisticated.I can't seem to recall her name but I loved to have her wait on me.
    Kathryn  sold the  store  to  a  Danny Hedrick and then Diane Brinkerhoff bought it from him. Kathryn died in 1983. What a grand lady. I'm sure everyone missed her especially her two daughters and her husband Wally.
    The store closed  it's  doors  in about    1984 and Payson lost one of it's special places to shop. Isn't it fun to look back and remember when...

REMEMBER WHEN FROM THE PAST--FORSEY'S VARIETY STORE

 REMEMBER WHEN
Thursday, October16,  2008
Kenna Holm  

Forsey’s Variety Store

    I have had the most delightful visits with RaNae Forsey Ethrington this last week or two. I've wanted to write in more detail about the old Forsey's Variety Store.  I loved her mom and dad and they did so much with that store. But let me start out at the beginning.

    David C. Forsey and his wife Stella moved to Payson in 1926 where they purchased a small cafe` on the south end of main street. It was there they sold ice cream in all forms, they made sandwiches and the most popular item on the menu was Stella's homemade chili.
    They eventually started stocking other items in the store.  All these things went over so well they decided they wanted a bigger store and only sell dry goods.
    In 1928, (now that was before my time) he purchased a larger building further north on Main Street. They shared the
building with a hardware store. (that is the two stores in
the picture) Later, he bought the hardware store to expand the store and made an arch way so they could go from one side to the other.

     David and Stella's son, Ruel and his wife Marie started managing the Forsey store shortly after they were married in 1932. They managed the store well over 40 years.
    They had the two windows out in front and Marie would decorate them for every occasion that came along. It was always fun to see what she was going to put in them next. It kept it interesting and always made you want to go in and shop.
    They had their children help with unloading the freight and they all kept pretty busy.  It  was  like  their  second home.
    I loved to shop in Forsey's. You could find ANYTHING you needed in that store.  They had makeup in the front counters. The counters were flat with dividers in them in the items were placed in each of the divided areas.
    Remember the Blue Waltz perfume? And I remember the powder puffs inlittle packages they sold. Funny things to remember but I do. They had jewelry of every kind and a candy counter that was wonderful. At Christmas Time, Ruel would mix his own variety of Christmas Mix that everyone loved. It sold for 5 pounds for a $1.00. (that's about what the old penny candy costs  now). The candy counter was at the front of the store and sold by the pound.
    Kids loved to come in there to buy things for 5 and 10 cents and 4-C ice cream bars were a favorite. They also carried penny candy that the kids loved to come in after school and buy. The toy section of the store carried about anything you would want. There were jacks, jump ropes, toy guns and caps, marbles and etc.
    Back then Christmas didn't start in July. Kids would have to wait until December to see any Christmas toys and they would be so excited to check out all the toys in Forsey's. We could actually enjoy each holiday as it cam, like Halloween and Thanksgiving without having Christmas items overshadowing them.
    For many years when the store was going to  have  a  sale,  Ruel would  put  out  flyers  to advertise  and RaNae remembers her dad letting  her  ride  on  the     r u n n i n g b o a r d (remember,  those  were the days all the cars had running boards) to  help deliver the flyers.
    Every year nearly all  the  stores  entered floats  they made  in  the Onion Days parade and Marie and Stella and the others working at the store would decorate a Forsey's Float' for the parade.
    In those days, the stores were asked to color eggs for the Easter Egg Hunt, so they would have to boil, color and decorate the eggs. Marie was really happy when they started to come out with plastic eggs. Saved a lot of work.
    Forseys was really a family affair, not only did Ruel's sisters Evelyn Bills, Lora Rowley Spencer(Brenda Bennion's mother) LaVaun Turner, Shirlene Davis and his sister in law Pearl work there but also Ruel and Marie's girls, RaNae, LaRue and JoeLeen worked in the summers between school years. Their son Allen remembers when he was little sweeping the floor.
    Ruel was such a teaseand Lora remembers him havingher look all over the paint section for striped paint and sending her to Porter's meat market (where Dixon's Cold Storage is now) for boneless liver.
    Forsey's had stores in Payson Spanish Fork,  Nephi  and  Heber  City.  Rue's  brother, David  (who  was  Roger  Forsey's  dad)  was made  vice  president  of  the  company and looked after all the stores.
    Marie was always very adamant about the customers coming first and everyone knew they would be treated well when shopping at Forseys.
    They had so many wonderful women who worked for them over the years. They really actually waited on you when you went in. They would not just tell you where things were, they would show you. Some of the ladies I remember working there were LaVar Hiatt (Ruth Stewart and Carole Bowers mom), Luella Kay, Lillian Walker (Jack's mom), Hattie Ahlin, June Smith, Myra Lazenby, Coleen Walker and Donna Wilcock (Coleen and Donna were sisters). I know there were more but those are a few.

    They remodeled the store in 1974. Ruel and Marie had to retire after many years of service to the people of  Payson and surrounding areas because of health problems. Boy, we hated to see them go. At that time Larry Forsey became the new manager and then was followed by his brother Roger.
    In 1986, after 58 years in business, The ForseyVarietyStore closed it's doors but isn't it fun to remember back when....