F e b r u a r y 2 0 1 8 • M a r i e m o n t, O h i o • Vo l u m e X L I I , N o . 5
Mariemont Bids Farewell to The Villager By Peter McBride With the closing of The Villager in midJanuary, Mariemont is losing one of its most beloved institutions and a lot of its history According to an April 14, 2012 article in The Eastern Hills Journal, which is archived at the Mariemont Preservation Foundation (MPF), The Villager had already been in Mariemont “for more than 50 years.” That would put the original opening sometime prior to 1962. An MPF archive photo dated “Ca. 1948” shows The Villager—with its original signage, “The Mariemont 5¢ to $1.00 Store”—in its current locale, but with parts of the building under construction. The photo also shows an intriguing sign on the side wall of what is now LaRosa’s, pointing to “Kroger Parking” in the lot behind. (A Kroger store used to exist on the property that is now known as The Strand.) A “Mills Judy Photo” dated 1950-1955, with the same MPF provenance, shows that The Mariemont 5¢ to $1.00 Store was located adjacent to both a “Library” and a “Colonial Shop.” While exact opening date and original ownership is uncertain, current owner Carol Desmond was able to share what she knows about The Villager’s history. At some point prior to 1973, The Mariemont 5¢ to $1.00 Store was owned by the Happ family, and then passed on to the Palmisano family. On January 2, 1973, Pat and Fred Rutherford bought the store from the Palmisanos, after the latter retired and moved to Hilton Head, N.C. With their purchase, the Rutherfords re-named the store “The Villager.” They also remodeled and changed the store into a combination bookstore and variety store, in part due to Fred’s
The Villager in operation in the 1950s. longstanding interest in “suburban bookstores.” The Desmond family bought the store from the Palmisano’s in 1991, and Carol Desmond took over management duties from her mother, who had worked for and then managed the store for both the Palmisano and Rutherford families. Carol’s daughter-in-law, Kate, managed the store for several years in the late ‘90s and early 2000s, but when she moved to Dallas, Texas, Carol resumed her management role. In the April 14, 2012 Eastern Hills Journal article mentioned above, the author shares that the Desmonds found a “treasure trove of old photos, the former cash register, and a small letter-press used to make custom stationery,”
which they set up as a small display inside the store when they first moved in. The exhibit even included a coin-operated machine that sold stamps for – wait for it – “two cents.” The article also states that over the years, Carol saw store items change from sewing kits to cosmetics to toys and handbags. She said, “We try to keep the same feel for the store while evolving our merchandise.” Carol always kept on top of her inventory, regularly keeping tabs on potential new products to offer. Catalogs, purchasing trends, requests from customers, gift shows – especially the annual exhibition in Dallas - and the regular sales reps who have called on her, were always great resources. In her early years of owning cont'd on page 5