Jessie’s of Linwood
By Cindy Fertsch
“It was fate,” says Jessica Schmidt. She was sitting on a bench along the bike path in Linwood with her fiance, Chris Maher, when she noticed the For Sale sign. Jess and Chris lived only a few blocks away and frequently enjoyed walking their dogs along the path. Chris shared his stories of running in and out of the shop as a child, growing up in Linwood. The building was a piece of history waiting to be restored and brought back to life. That is exactly what Schmidt set out to do.
Jessie’s of Linwood was originally built in 1901 as Stubers General Store which served as the communities bakery and grocery store. Adolf Stuber’s daughter, Elsie eventually took it over in 1937 and ran the general store until the 1950’s. As cars became the norm in transportation there was even a gas pump out front at one point. The corner store underwent many renovations in its early years, and each new owner made subtle changes on top of previous owners. Over the years that followed, several owners ran the business – gaining nicknames coined by locals such as “The Little Red Store”, “Hanks” and the “Linwood Market”.
The property was purchased last April and a year was spent working on it’s restoration. “It needed a lot of love,“ says Schmidt. “As we renovated the building, we kept discovering more and more of the history.”
When they removed the drop ceiling they uncovered the original ceiling rafters which are now repurposed as shelves. The original floorboards and door trim from 1901 were used to frame the bar were given a new life as corner pieces. In all of the upgrades and renovations, Schmidt was careful to preserve the rich history of the building.
Jessie’s will open its doors Memorial weekend and welcome in a new generation. Serving Bassetts ice cream, La Colombe coffee, cold brew on tap and fresh baked cookies.
