The Morristown gazette. [volume] (Morristown, Tenn.) 1867-1920, 1880-11-17
The Morristown Gazette.
WEDNESDAY, NOV. II, 1880.
merchants of Cedar Creek.
ECON the Cedar Creek Tattler.


Venice, at one time bowling Wider
ness, became the principal commercial
city in the world Her merchants traa-
ed with all the then known WoTlh.
They throve grew rich and were oPulent
beyond compare. They were known
the world over, IS Merchant Princes,
because of their unusual wealth and |
power. Venice did not achieve her
greatness and power all at once. She
grew. as all other places and towns
and cities grow. She iourished long |
time. but reaching the acme Of her
greatness, she began to decay ana Is
now an unimportant city, in comparison
with the principal cities of the old ana
new worlds.
This train of thought has led me to
make record of "The Merchants OF
Cedar Creek, +" which record can be hard
" more than a reference to each one.
According to the memory of the 'old-
est inhabitant," the vencrble John
Kicker, Andrew Patterson was the first
merchant of this town. He came here
some sixty-four years ago, and sold
goods many years in the old store-house
known as the Smith property, part OF
the estate Of the late Miss Anna Smith
He left here and went to South Caro-
lima.
Mr.. Patterson was succeeded by
Messrs. Dickson 81 Kennedy. Andrew
Kennedy came over from Greenevile
here. His partner, John, was brother
to William Dickson, the famous mer-
chant of East Tennessee. The memory
of the Dickson Brothers is venerated.
John Dickson did not come here to live.
Mr.. Kennedy attended to the business
for some years. when he was succeeded
by Samuel and Jacob Smith, who con-
tinued the business some years, till The
death of Jacob Smith, when the estate
was settled and the goods sold.
Samuel Smith put stock Of goods
into the cabin just north of the Smith
house, where he sold goods awhile then
quit.
Samuel II. Shrewsbury came here
from Virginia and put lot Of goods
into the Smith house as the immediate
successor of the Smith Bros. He was a
man of small means, indeed, no means
at all, except cheek, He traded or
capital borrowed from Simon Hancock, |
when he did not involve in loss, bat he |
did involve others to their sorrow. tie |
built the large building now known as
the "Allen Stand" in 1847, and moved |
his goods from the Smith house into it, |
soon after which he signally busted"
George Cannon rented the Smith /
house sometime after the failure of Mr..
Shrewsbury, and took in as partner his
brother Richard. In 1857 or 1858 the
Cannon Bros. dissolved their partner
ship, and Geo. Cannon went to Caney
Branch, where he sold goods, with the
exception of the time all mercantile
business was interrupted by the war,
till about the 18th of September, 1880,
when he sold out and retired to Sullivan
county, whence he came.
Smith Adkins and Louis L. Coulter
sold goods awhile in the Smith house,
and when the Shrewsbury property was
seld at sherilf's sale, Mr. Adkins was
the purchaser. After the purchase the
firm of Adkins s. Coulter moved their
goods into it. They occupied the build
ing two years when it was redeemed,
and they then moved their goods into
the building now occupied by X. +.
Tinsley as a saddle and harness shop. |
DR.. Girdner took an interest in the !
goods and continued with Adkins s. !
Coulter a year or so. The firm name /
was known as Girdner s. Co. Adkins
6 Coulter dissolved their connection |
with DR.. Girdner, and continued to sell |
goods under the old firm name another
year or more, when they finally dissolv-
ed their copartnership, and Mr. Adkins
removed the goods to North Carolina.
In 1857 or 1853, James Anderson,
Augustus B. Cummins and Henry Feiz-
zle formed a copartnership and put a
lot of goods into the Shrewsbury store
house, where they traded till 1860,
when Mr. Feizzle, the capitalist of the
concern died, and the business was
wound up. Mr.. Anderson went back
into the Smith house, sold goods eight
or ten months and quit.
The occupants of the Shrewsbury
property were Jacob Rumbough and his
son Thomas. Thos. Rumbough bought
the real estate and continued to sell
goods long after the war broke out, but
finally had to succumb to the ineXor
3 a., |
too, first opened in the Smith house in
1859, and moved their goods from that
place to Thomas newly purchased
premises.
OF course no goods were on sale here,
nor many in all East Tennessee, after
the Rumbough store was closed.
In 1866, Emanuel Without and VIM.
Van Huss purchased the Shrewsbury
Rumbough property, opened a store full {
of goods, and continued in business till l
1871, when Robert and James Allen pur- t
chased the real estate They were in
business together till December, 1874, (
when they dissolved, and Robert Allen T
took upon himself the sole burthen of a
the business. In August, 1873, Robert t
Allen died, and for two years the store t
was closed, when 1t was opened by ]. S.
Warner & Co. The property is now
Known as "the Allen Stand" The ~
lwelling house is stin occupied by Rob +,
3rt Aliens widow. :,
Now, we will turn back to the Smith a.
which laid idle from the time :,
he Rumboughs left it till March, 1871, h
Vhen William G. Broyles put a stock h,
# goods into the house and continued
o sell them about one year In the
Meantime, he was building a store-house -
n the east side of the town near the =
esidence and office OF Dr. Girdner -