Laurel outlook., 1950-12-06

owned Dy an uncle OF raul Gerard.
The Gerard meat market was next
door west of the Gerard hotel on
West Main street, the locations
now being occupied by Greening
Chevrolet company.
The theater of the town was a
combination town hall and dance
hall, owned by Mrs. Malcom, the
mother of Alf Malcom. 1t is now
occupied by the Fraternal Order
of Eagles. Across the street a
new lumber yard was built by the
Templetons, new arrivals from
Iowa. A few years later it became
the T. R. Holmes Lumber COM
pany.
A new bank building was under
construction, which opened for bus
mess before fall, with w. R. West
brook as president. 1t is now the
Laird apartments, across from the
Lenox apartments which are oil
the site of the old Westbrook
store. There was also a barber
shop, run by Joe Berry. Last but
not least pump and watering
trough provided refreshment for
ponies that came to town. This To-
cation was across the street from
the present Laird apartments.
There are only eight people liv-
ing in Laurel today, including Mr..
and Mrs. Lindauer, who were here
in 1906. They are G. w. Fenton,
Mrs. Helen Jacobs, Miss Frances
Fenton, Mrs. Harriet Bliss, Paul
Gerard and Mrs. Tena Berkheimer.
H. A. Bundy was then living in
town, but his residence is now out
side the city limits.
Among the old-timers who were
on farms near Laurel at that time
are L. A. Nutting, Emmett w.
Vaughn, T. L. wilkins, Fred
Schauer and Dan Foley. Among the
younger generations who were out
side of town were Mrs. Jenny
Starkey, Mrs. Dora Bundy, Mrs.
Kate Royalty, the Sherrow broth
ers, Bryant Nutting, the Coombs
brothers and Henry Herbert.
That summer G. l.. Morris and
G. E. Settergren were building the
Laurel Trading company, which
was opened as a general store in
November 1906. In the fall w. D.
Watsabaugh arrived and set up
printing press in the basement of
the then new bank building and
began publishing the first Laurel
paper the Laurel Sentinel. In the
spring of 1907 he purchased the
corner on which r. j. Williams &
Son insurance business is now To-
Gated, and shortly thereafter Jo-
seph Gehrett arrived to work on
the Sentinel for Watsabaugh.
The coolest part of the winter
was over by January 1907, and
then Laurel began to boom. By
that time the Northern Pacific had
purchased the land from Nutting.
Outsiders began flocking into
town, buying lots, building new
homes, and starting new business
ventures.
Among those coming that year
was Mrs. Martha L. Fitzpatrick and
her family, who built the rooming
house on Montana avenue that is
now owned by the Monahans; the
Lambs, who took over the newly
built meat market on West Main
street; DR.. Roscoe Broughton, a
young physician seeking location;
C. H. Horen, to start bakery; and
C. w. Laird, to begin carpentering
and build a home for his bride in
1908.
3. L. Price came in the fall of
1908. Returning later to Illinois,
ne brought his bride to Laurel in
January 1909. o. M. Void and
family came in 1910. He bought
an interest in the Funk grocery
store and the firm became known
as Funk-Wold. A short time later
&c bought Funk's interest, and
from that time on the business has
oeen the o. M. Wold company. II.
A. Carlisle started his jewelry
business in 1908.
By 1910 there were two doctors,
wo lawyers, two newspapers, three
general stores, and about that time
5wo telephone systems. In 1909 the
lepot was moved to it's present
site. The Whitley family arrived
hat same year, and Rev. John
Whitley was the minister at the
Methodist church.