My Old Downtown

With a yank on the handle, the clerk sent the money car shooting up its zip line to the cashier, who was upstairs watching over us all.

The sights and sounds of those flying transactions from the various clerk stations in the Farmer Store in downtown Red Wing are only memories now.  But that store was our Target and Walmart when I was growing up in the 1960s. It had pretty much everything you needed. Where else could you savor the aroma of smoked meat while trying on shoes?

Back then I could simply say, “Charge it to Juneau Johnson” and, after the paperwork was recorded via the zip line, I could walk out the store proudly displaying my new Bart Starr tennis shoes that Dad would be paying for.

Anyone who grew up in Red Wing has memories of shopping in its vibrant downtown. It was our social gathering spot and a beehive of activity. This is not to say that the current downtown has failed. It’s just different, brought on by a number of cultural changes. We definitely didn’t have cable TV or the internet. Most of the stores we remember are gone now, replaced by big box stores and internet shopping (such as Amazon).  Much of the local shopping has migrated to west Red Wing (still Burnside to most of us).  Back then if we drove that far it meant we were going to the Cities.

Downtown angle parking was at a premium and it was common for the car in front of you to suddenly take a sharp left to grab a spot going the other way.  Those J-turns were just as annoying (and illegal) then as they are today.  We had parking meters that gave a cool buzzing sound when you inserted your pennies and watched the minute counter jump.  Our parents drove station wagons back then. I practically grew up in the “way back” part of the car.  I remember seeing a picture of a number of station wagons backed into stalls in front of the Farmer Store.  This was also illegal, but probably ignored since it was good for business. If the picture was taken on a Friday, one of those cars could have been ours, parked by my mother.

Red Wing shoppers had many options back then since there were competing grocery, bakery, furniture, hardware, jewelry, clothing, book, shoe, gift, and drug stores.  We had gas stations, car repair shops, restaurants, bars, hotels, gas stations, doctor and dental offices, law firms, banks, opticians, barber shops, beauty salons, and two movie theaters.  This newspaper was published downtown.  The car dealers (Chevy, Ford, Dodge, and Studebaker/Rambler) could see each other.  And somehow all these businesses fit downtown.

I hesitate to mention store names since the list is long and I would miss some, especially those that came and went before my time.  But I will note that Ferrin’s Furniture, Corner Drug, Josephson’s Clothing Store and the St. James Hotel are all still in business in the same locations.  There may be others.

Since space was at a premium, stores could not maintain a large variety of merchandise. So many of them provided an ordering service.  The downtown Sears store that I remember provided mail order only.  You couldn’t buy the few items on the floor like lawn mowers and washing machines.  They were for display only.  If you wanted one, you had to order it.  And that process was a major ordeal.  You waited in line to place your order, which was completed in triplicate.  You accepted the fact that it wouldn’t arrive for at least two weeks or more.  It might have to come all the way from Chicago after all.

Stores stayed open until 9 p.m. on Fridays (later changed to Thursdays) to attract shoppers who wanted to socialize while getting their weekend shopping done early.  Crazy Days (just one day) was always in July and was so popular that carloads of my Wisconsin relatives traveled from 80 miles away just to get in on the bargains.

I remember one year on Crazy Days winning a transistor radio at Don’s TV for being the first person dressed as a ghost to enter the store when they opened.  There were several other ghosts there and I guess they thought the costumes would be judged.  Mine was just a sheet Mom cut a hole in so I hedged my bets and squirmed my way to the door just as it opened. There were some anguished ghosts when I won for being the first in the door. But I had just followed the rules in their ad.

There is so much that can be said about the old days downtown that a book could be written about it.  Maybe someone has. I may have more to say on this in the future, including my downtown work experiences.

Here’s a final note I remember about the zip lines at the Farmer Store. For many years, the Goodhue County History Center had a mock-up of a country store.  I remember my father explaining with a laugh how he helped retired shop teacher Louie Ode install a salvaged money car and cable in that room.  It had to be shortened, of course, to accommodate the small room.  Once set up, Louie yanked the handle and the car nearly shot through the far wall.  Reducing the tension on the spring, which was still set to shoot the car clear across the old store, solved the problem.