C.P. Kearfott & Son
Company Names, addresses, dates:
C.P. Kearfott, Martinsville VA (1881-1910) 1,2
C.P. Kearfott & Son, Martinsville VA (1910-1961) 1,2
Notes:
Clarence Pierceall Kearfott (1856-1920) 3
started a drugstore in 1881 in Martinsville VA, where it operated
for 80 years.1
In 1880, he was living in Georgetown, Washington DC, as a boarder with Charles
Becker. Both Becker & Kearfott were listed as "apothecary" as their occupations.
There are bottles embossed with "CHAS. BECKER GEORGETOWN DC"2, so it
would appear that Kearfott was an assistant or apprentice at Becker's Georgetown
apothecary.
He shows up as the sole owner of the store in various directories and newspaper
mentions up to 1910. In 1911, the "& Son" is added to the name of the business.2
His son was
Joseph Conrad Kearfott (1885-1960)4,
who is sometimes listed as Conrad J. Kearfott.
Clarence passed away in 1920, and Joseph continued to run the store, maintaining
the name "C.P. Kearfott & Son".
I don't know what year Joseph retired, but in its final years, the store was
run by
Maynard H Shelton. A Martinsville city directory from 1958 listed
Maynard H. Shelton as the president, Maynard H. Shelton Jr as the vice-president,
and Frances S. Shelton as the secretary.
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This is a clear 7.3" bottle embossed: vertical: C.P. Kearfott & Son / MARTINSVILLE, VA. |
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This is a clear 7.2" (8 oz) machine-made bottle with an applied color label
(ACL) that says: ACL: C.P. Kearfott & Son / "OVER HALF CENTURY / OF FAILTHFUL SERVICE" / Phone 3144 MARTINSVILLE, VA. embossed on base: ('K' in a keystone) 5 |