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The Corner Drug Store - Bitterroot Drug Of course, information about some of Bitterroot Drug's earliest owners is obscure 100 years hence, making the history somewhat speculative. Although legal records exist to trace land and building ownership, business ownership isn't as readily traced because business licenses were not required then. Old newspaper reports, advertisements and personal accounts offer glimpses of the drugstore's past. But news articles weren't always accurate, and the thin line between reporting and advocating weren't always distinguishable. |
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FIRST WOMAN PHARMACIST IN MONTANA It is said that when Marcus Daly was rebuffed in his attempt to buy the already-established town of Grantsdale, he was determined to create his own town....Hamilton. Reportedly, Daly designated to his attorney, Charles M. Crutchfield, the task of providing a drugstore for the new town. Replying that he had no expertise in the area, Crutchfield is said to have recruited pharmacist M.M. Cone to manage the establishment. According to a 1993 interview with Crutchfield's daughter, "Miss Jack" Crutchfield, her father and Pat Cone (a brick maker) bought out supplies from a small enterprise that was run earlier north of Hamilton by George Wright (L.L. Wright by two other accounts). They set up shop on the corner of Main and Second streets. M.M. Cone apparently became the first licensed woman pharmacist in Montana, passing the examination before the state Board of Pharmacy in 1899.
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As the town grew, so did The Corner Drug.
In 1909, McGrath bought new quarters across Main Street, where it remains today. In
1930, he sold the Bitter Root Drug to Ben E. Ogg, who had been manager of the store for 14
years earlier. Ogg retained the Bitter Root Drug Co. for nine years, until his death in
1939. Ben and Kay Hall purchased the business in October 1939, bringing the Bitter Root Drug into the modern decades and undertaking a "stem to stern" remodeling in 1956, "in a determined effort to serve the public better, faster, more economically, more thoroughly and with greater ease for both customer and the operators." (Western News, June 7, 1956. Wayne and Helen Hedman purchased the Bitter Root Drug from the Halls in August 1969. They bought not only Hamilton's premiere drug store, but also a part of Hamilton's history. They improved and updated the store to fit the times, remodeling in 1969, again in 1979, then changing the storefront in 1981. Keeping with tradition, Wayne Hedman has made it his personal aim to continue the friendly, hometown service that distinguished the old Corner Drug during Hamilton's earliest years. Don't be surprised if he steps out from behind the busy pharmacy counter, greets you by first name, and takes time to inquire about your specific needs.
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SERVING SHARING HOME CONTACT US |
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BITTERROOT DRUG
211 Main Street,
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