BLUE HILLS HERITAGE FOUNDATION

– 2018 Business Inductee –

Myers Furniture

 

It is with great pride that the privately-owned business known today as Myers Furniture has remained an important economic hub for Russell and Russell County for the past 120 years.  And what is even more astounding is the fact that the store has been headquartered in the same location – 721 North Main Street – all that time.

 

The store can trace its roots back to 1898 when two enterprising men, James W. Blair and Schuyler Stephenson Emens, both 31 years of age, decided to join forces and give the city of Russell the solid furniture business they felt it both needed and deserved.

 

“J. W. Blair and Schuyler Emens have associated themselves for the purpose of conducting a furniture business in Russell.  They have rented the new store building just recently completed, and expect to leave the latter part of this week for Kansas City to buy their stock of goods which will consist of a complete line of household furniture.  Both of these young men are so well known to the people of Russell and vicinity, and their business training has been such that it is safe to predict that they will make an eminent success of this new venture.  Mr. Blair is now one of the efficient salesmen in J. H. Hill’s hardware and implement business; and Mr. Emens has long been in the employ of L. Banker & Co.  This has given the boys a good opportunity to become acquaintances with the patrons of this town, and will have its influence when they begin the business on their own.” – Russell Informer, September 23, 1898.

 

For nearly four months the partnership proved fruitful. But then came the news of a parting of the ways.

 

“The firm of Emens & Blair on February 1 was dissolved by mutual consent, S. S. Emens retiring from the firm and J. W. Blair continuing the business.  J. W. Blair assumes all liabilities of the firm, and all accounts due the firm should be paid to him.  S. S. Emens, J. W. Blair.” – Russell Informer, February 21, 1899.

 

James Blair continued on and to his credit built the J. W. Blair Furniture Store into a longterm success.

 

“James E. Smith has sold his stock of furniture to J. W. Blair and will quit that branch of business.  We congratulate Mr. Blair on this addition to his business.  It will be better for the community to have one large, well stocked, furniture store than two or three small ones.  Blair has a splendid stock on hand.” – Russell Record, February 3, 1900.

 

Another Bad Fire

“Wednesday morning at 6 o’clock, Russell had one of the worst fires in its history. The two frame buildings belonging Michael Lewis, the barn in the rear and Wheatley’s livery barn were entirely destroyed.  Much damage was done to the rear of the stores of the L. Banker Mercantile company and J. W. Blair and the W. B Gilmore buildings suffered some damage . . . Soon after the Blair stone building claimed attention and a second hard fight was added . . . .” – Russell Informer, March 11, 1910.

 

The furniture store lost $500 in inventory in the fire, a tidy sum in those days.  But Blair absorbed the loss and soon had the business once again turning a good profit.

 

J. W. BLAIR

The Furniture Man

The Home of Good Furniture

“The furniture business conducted in Russell by the gentleman named above is one of the most successful establishments of its kind in Western Kansas. Here is carried an endless assortment of furniture of every description, rugs, linoleums, curtains, and the thousand and one items that go to stock a complete furniture depot, and it is a pleasure and a delight to take a trip through this house. The store covers a floor space of 8,140 square feet, consisting of upper floors, main display room, balcony and basement.  Mr. Blair is a level-headed merchant, always awake to his own and his customers’ interests and by fair and legitimate business methods had made a reputation of his fellow citizens.  Here ever courtesy is shown customers whether their wants are large or small, and it is a rule of the house to satisfy your customer regardless of everything else.  Mr. Blair has been a resident of Russell County for twenty-eight years, and has operated the furniture house for fifteen years. He takes an active interest in every enterprise that is of benefit to his town and is always found doing everything in his power to advertise Russell to the world.  He is assisted in the furniture business by Mr. Ben F. Strucker, a young man thoroughly familiar with every detail of the furniture business.  Mr. Strucker is a Russell County boy and numbers his friends by the hundreds.” – Russell Record, July 29, 1914.

 

James W. Blair operated the store for 38 years until he sold it in 1936 to 36-year old Jacob Eichman and 25-year old Charles Sylvester “Charlie” Myers.  The pair then operated Eichman-Myers Furniture as a partnership until Myers enlisted in the military in the fall of 1940. He then sold his share to Eichman, who continued the business under the banner Eichman Appliance Store.

 

In 1951 Charlie Myers returned to Russell and purchased the store from Jacob Eichman. He changed the name to Myers Furniture and it has remained in the Myers family ever since.  Charlie’s son Martin “Marty” Myers is now the owner of the business that extends into three buildings along Main Street.

 

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MYERS’ MARK

"RUSSELL – The furniture business runs deep in Marty Myers’ family.

 

His father, Charlie Myers, first stepped into the business in 1936, when he and his partner, Jacob Eichman, took over the well-known, downtown Russell building, 721 North Main, which was built by J. W. Blair in 1898.

 

“This building was built as a furniture store and has been one ever since J. W. Blair built it,” said Kevin McKune, a longtime employee who has worked at Myers Furniture since 1975.

 

Charlie Myers sold his half of the business to Eichman after enlisting in the military in 1946.

 

“He sold out to Eichman to go to World War II, which he ended up not going,” said Martin Myers, Myers Furniture store owner. “But he had already sold the building, so he went to work as a Firestone tire man and also became a mill master.”

 

After making his return to Russell in 1951, Charlie Myers purchased the store back from Eichman, branding it Myers Furniture, which has grown through the years as a staple in the Russell community.

 

“I was always here as a kid playing, messing around, dusting. I just spent a lot of time here,” Myers said.

 

In 1971, Myers teamed with his father to run the store.

 

“At one point, there were five furniture stores in Russell, and my father was having a lot of trouble keeping things going,” Myers said. “I came in to help him.”

 

The father and son duo remained partners until Charlie Myers died, approximately 20 years ago. Since, the need in the community for the furniture store has grown.

 

“Slowly, some of the other stores went away, and then it was just us, and we needed more space,” Myers said. “The building on the corner came up during a bank auction, so I bought it, and then a few years later another company went out of business, so we bought that building.”

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Now, three Main Street buildings make up Myers Furniture. The original building houses five floors of items including bedroom furniture, dining furniture, chests, tables, chairs, desks, televisions, entertainment centers, flooring and more. Another building contains mostly living room furniture, while the third is mostly used a warehouse.

 

“We have customers from Hays, Plainville, Lucas, Luray, Paradise – that area, Natoma,” said Terri Moreland, an employee at the furniture store.

 

Unique features that draw customers back include in-house financing, delivery, assembly, repairs and trade-ins.

 

After approximately 65 years in business, Myers said it has been the relationships made along the way that have made the store successful.

 

“It’s a quiet business, but you still get to meet customers over and over,” he said.

 

Because of those relationships, and his ties to the town, the business owner said he wants to continuously give back, supporting his supporters.

 

“I was born and raised here, and I want to still try to make the town go,” he said. “It’s something I’m used to doing, and I enjoy doing it.” – Hays Daily News, May 8, 2016.

 

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Reliable customer service and an enjoyment in what one does. Those keys to success are why Myers Furniture is a selection to the First Class of the Russell County Kansas Hall of Fame.

 

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SOURCES:

Martin Myers, Russell, Kansas.

 

Hays Daily News, May 8, 2016.

 

Russell Informer, September 23, 1898; February 21, 1899; April 7, 1899; April 8, 1899; March 11, 1910; September 22, 1921.

 

Russell Record, February 3, 1900; October 10, 1902; July 29, 1914.

 

Ancestry.com. U.S. WWII Draft Cards Young Men, 1940-1947 [database on-line]. Lehi, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2011.