Hammer left Colfax. Wis., to work for Jenny, Semple, Hill and Co., a large wholesale Hardware house in Wisconsin.

     Representing it, he traveled all over the West by stagecoach, passenger train, and freight train with the crews, to get from trading post to trading post.

     Hammer and Walter Flitcroft, also from Colfax and already in the Judith Basin County area, pooled their money and with the help of Walter's brother-in-law they acquired additional working capital.

     They bought the Parker Trading Co. a wooden structure on the north side of Stanford's Main street. It sat where the Forest Service building is now.

     The partners changed the Parker name to The Basin Trading Post. It was a general store type of business.

     The existing brick structure was built in 1917 on the south side of the street. The Basin State Bank was on the corner, and the store was built all around the side and back of the bank building.

     The Basin Trading Co. was the Basin Bank's first depositor. John Christianson has his law office in the old bank structure and the new bank is on the corner on the north side of the street kitty-corner from the old one.

     Stanford's first news printshop, the Stanford World was next to the bank and was moved to make way for the new structure.

     A large part of the Trading Post's business was done on a credit basis The suppliers carried the stores and the stores passed credit on to their customers.

     One fall, the store sold two train car loads of Old Favorite brand heating stoves. Most of these sales were done on credit for business was from the railroads as the homesteaders kept pouring in.

     The store kept growing in the early twenties. They sold general merchandise and farm implements. They also sold Dodge cars. Cars were crated in wooden crates in those days and sold still in the crates right from the depot.

     Dodge business was dropped in 1924 in exchange for the Chevrolet agency.

     Business was good and they kept pouring paper profits back into the business.

     There was a drought In 1929 and the whole economy collapsed. The depression of the 1930s put the finishing touches to a bad situation.

     People took out bankruptcy. Those who didn't just walked away and left everything.

     Banks and Insurance companies stepped in to salvage what they could, and others with weaker securities were left holding the bag.

     During the 30's. Hammer and Flitcroft drew only their barest necessities for household needs and any excess had to be poured back into the business. From 1930 to 1941 the store, with the exception of one year, had a 10-year loss in operating.

     They did survive and with World War II, business was good again. They never did recoup their sever loss of the 30's.

     The lumber yard was added during the 40's. In the sixties. the lumber yard and auto sales dealership were sold to private buyers.

     The business faced a problem in the early 1980's....Big City Competition. J.I's son Paul Hammer took over the business when J.I. retired. Ralph Flitcroft had replaced his father in the men's and ladies' section after his father retired.

     Paul sold the business and the building to Lynn and Lois McGuire in the early 1980's. They were young local folks. They offered a wide variety of merchandise under the name of Basin Mercantile.

    The bigger towns seemed to draw the local trade and the McGuires decided to liquidate everything. All that was left was just the shell of the former business.

     The building was empty for a year or so.

     Wally Andrews of California bought the building and hired contractors to design a mall in it. Walls were renovated down to the old bare brick and a sign was found on the wall of the old bank advertising the Basin State Bank. They kept the sign intact for historical value.

     New wiring all through the building and the floors sanded to a beautiful blonde color and walls not quite up to the ceiling separate each business.

     The Basin Trading Post now houses the Pioneer Hardware Store in the section that held groceries in the old days.

     Dee's Deli is in the front where the women's drygoods were. Arv's Apparel is on the other front side. All kinds of merchandise there.

     A craft shop of all handmade articles has a tiny store just behind the Deli. A tone up shop is upstairs on the balcony, and the office for the bookkeeper is located up there also

     Mr. Andrews in 1991 gave the Basin Trading Co. lock, stock, and barrel to the Central Montana Medical Center of Lewistown to use for a medical center for Judith Basin County.

     The new center has three $50,000 grants to be used over a certain period of time and work. Necessary changes will have to be done by opening day in February.

Mt Pioneers ©1998-2000 by Ann Kramlich  All Rights Reserved.

** Consent to post the stories and photos for non commercial use from the Lewistown News Argus was graciously granted by Dave Byerly owner and Publisher. These stories and photos may not be used by any commercial entity for any reason without consent from the  Lewistown News Argus.