HARDWARE

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“Whenever I have something, I can come in here and I can kind of give the general idea to the folks here and they can figure out what I’m saying — and they’ve never failed to give me the thing I need,” Busam said.

Founded by Lyman Marshall Sr. and his wife, Myrtle, the store opened in 1939 down the street from its current location. In 1949, the Marshalls relocated to a new building, where it remains today.

After his father died, Lyman Marshall Jr. owned the store from 1965-2000. Then his sons Steve and Scott took over. Their brother, Alan; sister, Beth; and nephew, A.J, all work at the store today.

“A family tradition of hard work is really what it is,” Alan said.

The only non-Marshall working there is Patty Sullivan. She grew up working in her family’s hardware store in Michigan and later at Daugherty’s Hardware & Appliances in Duluth for years. She headed east to Marshall when Daugherty’s closed in 2008.

Tom Jesperson, who recently bought a faucet stem from the store for a leaky sink, said his Victorian house on London Road is often in need of new hardware. Why has he been a Marshall regular for more than 40 years?

“Well, it’s really obvious,” Jesperson said. “It’s one of the last remaining neighborhood hardware stores, which I’m patronizing every chance I get … they’re just the best people.”