![]() Hafen was then sold, leaving family hands for the first time in more than one hundred years. In 1960 Horace’s son Douglas was made manager, and he and Ethel operated the business until July 1, 1986. The Merc was known to sell dishes, appliances, horseshoes, nails, dresses, shoes, fabric, toys, and the town’s first television. Horace and Ethel expanded the store and its merchandise. The majority of Adolph’s business was run on credit, and this tradition became a way of life when dealing with McArthur’s Santa Clara Merc. They moved home from California and took over operations on September 1, 1945. The store was sold to Adolph’s daughter Ethel and husband Horace McArthur. In the late 1930s merchandise became extremely difficult to buy, and the inventory dwindled to almost nothing. The new store was named the Santa Clara Coop and was still owned by the Hafens. The garage was rented to the Stucki & Wittwer Produce Company, and gas pumps were installed outside the store. It was a much larger store and also had space for a large garage. In 1928 a new modern building of concrete brick and adobe was constructed one block west of the original site. It was the only mercantile ever established in Santa Clara. It continued to be a general store, handling all varieties of goods needed by a community. The business remained at this location even though grandpa retired in 1917 and sold the business to his son Adolph and two grandchildren. The store was a small room in their home, but the business continued to increase, so in 1900 a small brick building was erected adjoining their house. His work took him from home so much that the work in the store was done largely by grandmother. Hafen to be the manager… Before long, Grandpa Hafen bought the other stockholders out and with the small capital of ten dollars began to build up a mercantile business of his own. None of them had any experience running a mercantile business, but they chose John G. ![]() George for their meager supplies, so a group of them got together and decided to open their own store. The early citizens of Santa Clara were tired of having to go by wagon to St. McArthur, a woman who personally knew the history. ![]() The story began long before construction took place, and it is best remembered through the writing of Ethel H. The building’s design is simple, reflecting the austere modern influence of the times with little architectural ornamentation, but the operation of the business wove a rich legacy. Morphing from a one-room operation to a small, free-standing unit to a thriving mercantile that supplied needed essentials to residents and jobs for many of its youth, the Merc was the heart of Santa Clara. Right from the beginning, the Santa Clara Merc developed a presence on the main street of this small western town.
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