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GARFIELD
COUNTY, COGENWEB PROJECT
Fred's first store. It was next to the east
end of 3rd street on the north side of the block. Notice the
bay window on the store to the right.
The men in the
photo from left to right: Fred Munro, J P (Page) Munro, Jack
Richards, and George E. Clarkson. Next to George is his dog.
There was an Upton Sinclair Quote in the window,
"Quality remains long after the price is forgotten".
At the time, his competitor JW Hugus used the slogan: Values
live when prices are forgotten."
Fred Munro came to Rifle in 1885 and worked
5 years as head clerk for the Hugus company. Fred Munro
started with a store at Antlers about 1897. Then in Rifle in
1900, he built the frame store shown in the detailed photo,
and which was on 3rd street. In 1908, he built his grand two
story brick store on the east two lots of 3rd. In 1900 he
opened his own mercantile on east 3rd street. In 1909 he
replaced his wood frame building with a two story brick on
the NW corner of 3rd and East Avenue.
In 1900. he also
bought 40 aces adjacent to the city and platted the Munro
addition.
An interesting historical footnote, in 1909
his new building was almost finished at the time of the
first Apple Pie day, and Rifle needed an exhibit hall/dance
hall, so he opened his building for that purpose, though it
was unfinished.
He platted the Munro addition to Rifle in
1900, and built 40 plus other buildings. He was also
instrumental in creating the Rifle Falls hydro plant, has a
street named after him, and served as mayor.
He and his
son John, aka JR, operated the mercantile store until 1935,
then JC Penney took over the building. His son JR spent 4
years as Rifle postmaster from 1928 to 1932.
But then the
rest of the story.
In 1936, JR and his son, Jack,
partnered with their associate, Mr. DG Son, to open S & M
Supply, a mining supply house in Grand Junction.
During
World War II, when new mining equipment was not being
produced, S & M Supply’s focus became reclamation of mining
equipment left from the gold and silver rushes of the late
1800’s.
S & M Supply provided operating mines with
refurbished equipment, a valuable assist to the war effort.
Between WWII and the uranium boom in the 1950’s, S & M
Supply became an important mining supplier and was one of
the largest mine supply companies in the Western United
States.
Then in 1965, Jack and his son, Allen, opened
Munro Supply. They specialized in pumps and related
equipment, and quickly became recognized as a pump authority
in the Rocky Mountain region.
Today, the fifth generation
of Munro's continues the business tradition. Allen Munro and
his daughter, Katie Munro Powell, have broadened Munro
Supply’s focus significantly to serve a wide range of
industries and offer innovative, problem solving products.
This photo is their store in Grand Junction, from quite a
few years back.
Note: this borrows heavily from their
company website.
      
Fred Munro
Fred's son 1916
  
Munro Mercantile became J.C. Penney in about
1935. It then became known as Henry's Building in 1980
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