Foard's Hardware - Chesapeake City

Foard Bros. Hardware and Service Station, with Roy Foard

First Photo: This is Foard Brothers’ general store and gas station, circa 1930. Notice the gravity-fed gas pumps and the appliances in the store window. The men posing L to R are Thomas Foard, Clinton Foard, and Leroy Foard. One summer, when I was 14, I worked there, and I can remember my first day on the job when Mr. Roy Foard told me to “Get out there, boy, and sweep all that road area clean.” Well, I didn’t sweep to suit him so he came out and showed me the proper short-stroke method. That was 65 years ago and I still remember how to sweep. Clinton Foard, Roy’s brother, was my main boss. He contracted polio early in life, which confined him to a wheelchair. In the mornings, my job required me to push him down the street to the store and take his dinner to him in the evenings. This is now the site of Foard’s Funeral Home.

Second Photo: Here is Mr. Roy Foard, my first boss. He also owned a farm and I recall getting up hay for him. He is Bobby Foard’s grandfather. Bobby is the town’s funeral director.

George Street 1944

Approach to George Street from St. Augustine Rd., Chesapeake City – Circa 1944

 

This is approaching George Street from Saint Augustine Road. The house at far right was the residence of Jim and Margaret Mackey. Margaret played the organ for the Trinity Methodist Church and also taught piano lessons. I remember Jim when he worked for Walter Colling’s store on Bohemia Avenue. Shortly after this picture was taken, most of these houses on the east side of South George Street were razed in order to make room for the overhead bridge pillars. From left to right, these are the people who lived in the houses at one time: the Noland family (left side) and Capt. Neddy Cooling (right side), the Filigame family, empty lot where the first Methodist Church was located, Miss Mary Miller, the Lum Family, Albert Moore’s house (still there), Ninch Borger house, which burned down about twenty years ago and was rebuilt. John Sager told me that it was one of the oldest houses in town. Notice the welcome sign, which has been there as long as I can remember. It welcomes you to town but warns, “Slow Down!”

Second Street, Chesapeake City – Circa 1950

Here’s an east view of Second and George Streets, with the Bethel A.M.E. Church at bottom right, the Sewell house across the street, and just next to it is the one-room Colored schoolhouse. Farther up at top left is Shine Crawford’s service station. Left to right next to it is the Stubbles house, an unidentified building, Postell's store and newsstand on the corner, and across the street on the corner is Borger’s general store. In the early fifties, Postell’s corner was the favorite hangout of us teenage boys. Back then we knew everything about everything. How things changed when we got older.

Two Views of Old City Dock, AKA Rees’ Wharf

First Photo: This is looking east, just about where the bandstand is today in Pell Gardens. The vessel is the steam tug, Deland, and the building is Frank Conrey’s coal and wood store. The local beauties posing are Agnes Tatman Brown, Kathleen Deshane, and Dorothy Biggs. The picture is circa 1935 and was provided by Ray Stevens.

Second Photo: Here’s a circa 1955 view from the wharf at City Dock of Nichol’s Restaurant, with the inset of Anna Nichols, the restaurant’s owner. At right are the “Apartments.” I knew some of the peoples who lived there, including colorful local character, Grayson Stubbs. I remember seeing Grayson swimming next to the Gotham ferry as it charged towards the ferry slip. He was racing it in and sometimes, being an excellent swimmer, almost won. This picture is courtesy of Lee Collins via Loretta Biggs Carter.

Mewhiter’s Drug Store and Del Curry’s Eatery

First photo: Here’s Mewhiter’s early drug store on the corner of Bohemia Avenue and Second Street. The lady is Miriam Hamilton Watson and the man is unidentified. Please let me know if you recognize him.

Second photo: This is inside Delmar Curry’s tiny restaurant, circa 1930. It was located just next to Franklin Hall, towards the canal. I don’t remember Del or the building, but John Vaughn told me about him and his shop; John said that Del made very good oyster stew. In his youth Delmar worked on one of the Ericsson Line steamers.