MONMOUTH GROCERY STORE CHANGED WITH THE TIMES
When Verne F. Barnes and his younger brother, Rennie, purchased the stock and fixtures of Johnson Grocery at 216 East Broadway in 1922, they became proprietors of one of 34 neighborhood groceries in the city of Monmouth.
By the time they turned operations over to their son and son-in-law in the 1960s, that number would diminish to just 15 groceries, and would continue to shrink over the ensuing decades, as neighborhood stores gradually gave way to modern supermarkets. Unlike many of their competitors, however, the Barnes brothers would successfully ride the tide of change and grow with the changing marketplace.
Verne and Rennie were just 28 and 26, respectively, when they left their hometown of Hermon in Knox County to form their Monmouth partnership. Within five years, the industrious brothers moved to a larger store at 200 East Broadway (later the home of Wirtz Corner). To meet an expanding credit delivery and wholesale business, they expanded next door to 202 East Broadway in 1929.
Franchise grocery chains were slow in coming to small towns like Monmouth. Groceries were largely self-sufficient in those days and were an important part of the rural culture, as farm families looked forward to coming to town every Saturday night. While farmers used the opportunity to socialize, their wives exchanged their fresh eggs and cream for grocery staples to get them through the following week.
Despite their self-sufficiency, World War II had a significant impact on independent stores like Barnes Brothers. Rationing and the shortage of staples such as coffee, sugar and potatoes forced the brothers in 1942 to temporarily suspend their partnership.
By 1944, wartime restrictions had loosened and the brothers again teamed up to open a new store at 115 West Broadway. Soon, new theories in grocery merchandising caused the brothers to begin making plans for an entirely new “super market.” They renovated a trucking company building that had previously been a gas station at 200 North Main. Originally built as a livery stable in the 19th century, the massive brick structure was large enough to accommodate indoor parking for grocery customers.
Immediately following the war, the partnership was expanded to include Verne’s son, “Bud” and Rennie’s son-in-law, Bob Rawson, who had both returned from military service. In 1949, Barnes Brothers became one of the first complete self-service markets in the Midwest with a modern self-service meat department. In 1952, it was expanded again through a complete remodeling.
Since 1911, one of western Illinois’ most famous eating places had been Hawcock’s Café, on East First Avenue in Monmouth. It boasted a delicatessen, a bakery, a soda fountain and a full line of salads and desserts. When the founder’s son, Emory Hawcock, decided to close the business in 1953, the Barnes brothers saw an opportunity. They purchased the entire stock and fixtures of the delicatessen and hired Hawcock to run a bakery and deli in a newly created section of their store. The new enterprise also sold a complete variety of Hawcock’s famous dressings and operated a catering service.
Also in 1953, property to the north of the store was acquired, and a 100-car parking lot was constructed.
By this time, the number of employees had expanded from two to 33. Barnes Brothers became Barnes SuperValu, a chain of independent stores that had spun off the Independent Grocers Association during World War II. It continued to evolve with the times, offering Gold Bond trading stamps and periodically offering merchandise promotions. The bakery continued to be one of the store’s biggest drawing cards and Flav-O-Rite was its familiar house brand.
Bob Rawson served as president of the corporation, with Bud Barnes as vice president. Verne F. Barnes, now retired (and living above the store) was secretary and Rennie Barnes was treasurer. After the death of Verne in 1978 and Rennie in 1980, Rawson and Bud Barnes sold the business in 1983 to Bill Grupy, who operated it as Bill’s SuperValu and later as Sav-A-Lot, after that chain was acquired by the SuperValu corporation.
Rawson died in 1994 and Bud Barnes died in 2014. The business today continues to operate as a Sav-A-Lot grocery.
For Maple City Memories, I’m Jeff Rankin.
