Walsh Store

Joe Walsh came from Ireland as an orphan in the early 1900s. He worked in various hotels as a chef. While working in a second-rate hotel in Waterloo, Iowa he met Anna Wallenhorst of Tennyson, whom he later married. The young couple returned to Tennyson where he was the only Irishman in a totally German community. With a borrowed $500 he bought out the local dry goods store. Joe and Anna had eight children who all worked in some capacity in the store. Besides caring for her eight children Anna also worked in the store and did the entire book work. She was an absolute whiz at math. Give her a column of figures and she gave you the total in seconds. Those were the days before calculators.

The store was known as a general merchandise store. Religious articles were displayed next to washing machines. Radios, luggage and toys vied for attention with bushels of peaches. Men’s hats and jewelry were across the aisle from bottles labeled “Tonic and Growth Stimulant” for Chickens and Turkeys. Counters of overalls and women’s cotton dresses were opposite rolls of linoleum, garden hose and laundry baskets. Toward the back of the store stretched a complete line of groceries, fruits, vegetables and meats. In the basement was the butcher shop, car and tractor dealership, dynamite, seed, feed and farm equipment. It was definitely a one-stop shopping center. Customers would trade their eggs for credit on their bill.

On Friday, July 5, 1957 a fire completely destroyed the operation. Origin of the fire is still unknown. At that time a store was established in Dubuque, Iowa by the oldest Walsh son and another son opened a business in Muscoda, Wisconsin. In 1959, the youngest son, Don started the rebuilding of the Tennyson store. There were eight Walsh stores within a 50 mile radius of Tennyson, all operated by third and fourth generation Walshs'. The Tennyson store before it closed was known as Walsh Ace Hardware and employed 17 people.