Our Story
In approximately 1880 Levi Davis started a business in Big Rock, Illinois. The location of Levi’s business was across from the bandstand or what today we all know as the gazebo by the big rock. The store was somewhat similar to a General Store. Items such as coffee, sugar and tea were brought in from locations like Saint Louis via horse covered wagon. Items that were sold were kept in a small daily ledger book by Levi. Livestock was also taken in as trade for merchandise.
The business changed hands in the early 1900’s and then became Merritt Whilden Implement and Hardware. Over the course of the time Merritt owned the business, the location remained the same. Then in 1935 he sold the business.
In 1935 Carl Thurow purchased the business from Merritt Whilden and the store then became Carl Thurow Implement. Half of the building was used as a machine shop and the other half was used as a General Store. The implement store had the tall gravity style pumps out front and sold gasoline. In 1946 Carl hired Merle Thorsen and then in 1948 he hired Robert Hardekopf. Merle was primarily involved with the repairs and service work while Robert’s main functions were bookkeeping, parts and hardware. Both gentlemen had just recently returned home from the service in the US Army in World War II and would be instrumental in insuring that the company would continue to flourish and survive.
One day Carl Thurow asked Robert Hardekopf to go up into the attic and clean out many of the numerous papers and items that had been collecting there from previous owners of the company. At first he started throwing out items but then came upon a small journal and he began to read it. The journal contained a list starting from the first day items were sold and purchased at the store in 1880. Robert thought the journal and some of the other papers were too valuable to throw out so he brought them to Carl Thurow’s attention. Carl Thurow decided he only wanted to keep the journal and not the remainder of the items. Carl took the journal home. When Carl Thurow passed away attempts were made to locate the journal but to no avail. The only record of what was in the journal is the memory Robert Hardekopf has of the day that he found it in the attic and started to read it. Thanks to Robert Hardekopf we know a little bit how Levi Davis ran his business back in 1880 and through the turn of the century. The journal has never been seen since.