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The Legacy has such a rich and historical history!
EUBANKS, REEDER, WATSON, & DAVIS STORE---TO TODAY’S LEGACY
The store was started in 1908 by Sam J. Eubanks as Eubanks & Co. That same year, Mr Eubanks took in James W. Reeder as a partner, and the store was called Eubanks and Reeder. They sold everything and received everything in payment from eggs and vegetables to live hogs and cows.
Jimmie Reeder was a combination of colorful character, good citizen, leader and member of almost everyone’s extended family. “Extended family member” because Eubanks and Reeder also supplied funeral items such as caskets, and Reeder was a much loved minister. When people needed to hold a funeral, he, his business, and his employees could provide the wake and the burial. Eubanks and Reeder used a horse and buggy for grocery deliveries (the horse was called Old Dan). Some say the buggy that delivered groceries to the customers was the very same one that carried the dearly departed to their final resting place.
The successful retailer and town promoter also loved parades and a show of spirit. In his day, he would go up to the roof of the Eubanks and Reeder building, before Thanksgiving, and release a live turkey into the air. The turkey would fly down to a large pile of folks tumbling over one another, happy to catch and “save” it.
In 1918, the store became Reeder, Watson, and Reeder, when Sam Eubanks sold his interest to C. Ed Watson, Leonard Reeder, and Vera Reeder Williams. Sometime after Leonard Reeder passed away in 1919, the name was shortened to the Reeder Watson Cash Store.
The store was open Monday thru Saturday, and weekday hours were about 6 am to dark. Ruby Pyland would get up in the wee hours of the morning to open the store. Merchandise was also hung outside around the awning.
Saturday night everyone in Hughes Springs hitched their horses to their buckboard wagons and brought the family to town for the Saturday night feature at the movie theater. Before going to the theater, they would bring their grocery and dry goods list to the store of their choice. Then they went to the movie, and their order was boxed and ready for their return after the feature. Reeder Watson also had a delivery truck which would serve about a five mile radius of Hughes Springs.
In the 1950’s, C. Ed Watson sold his interest in the business to Charles and Leita Davis.
Down through the years, this location at 122 East First Street has been home to many businesses. City Manager, George Fite, had a vision of a building that could give back to the community, and in March of 2013 the building was torn down and rebuilt from the ground up to ensure structural stability. The original brick was cleaned and reused, and the new design features a wrap-around outdoor balcony. While the design and layout are Mr. Fite’s, a mezzanine is still featured on the interior-similar to that in the original building. The Legacy Event Center opened its doors to the community in October of 2013. The building is now home to the annual Spring Art and Photography Show, and holds concerts, Holiday on First Street vendors, Fashion Shows, stunning weddings, parties, conferences, Proms, monthly Canvas & Cocktails painting classes, and reunions. Aptly named, The Legacy continues to create memories for the residents of Hughes Springs.
Sources: “Hughes Springs Texas Histories,” Library of Congress, 1986.
“Hughes Springs, Texas,” TexasEscapes.com
“Hughes Springs brings Legacy to life,” by Neil Abeles, Texarkana Gazette, vol. 138, NO. 57, Feb. 26, 2014.
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