THE HISTORICAL JOURNEY OF THE HISTORICAL JOURNEY OF COLEMAN'S DRUGSTORE AND DELI COLEMAN'S DRUGSTORE AND DELI

EARL COLEMAN (BORN 1887, DIED 1964) IS THE NAMESAKE OF STANFORD’S LEGENDARY COLEMAN’S DRUG STORE HE BECAME A PHARMACIST IN 1912 AND PURCHASED THE BUSINESS IN 1916 AS THE OWNER OF THE DRUG STORE FOR FORTY-EIGHT YEARS, HE NEVER REFUSED TO FILL A PRESCRIPTION DUE TO A CUSTOMER’S LACK OF MONEY

EARL WAS A SON OF CURTIN AND EMMA COLEMAN, WHO CAME FROM PENNSYLVANIA TO KENTUCKY HIS FATHER CURTIN OWNED COAL COMPANIES IN BELL COUNTY, BUT EMMA AND THE FAMILY LIVED IN STANFORD MORE OR LESS THE CLOSEST CIVILIZED TOWN ALONG THE RAIL LINE OUT OF THE COALFIELDS AND THE CHILDREN WERE EDUCATED IN LINCOLN COUNTY SCHOOLS THREE OF EARL’S YOUNGER BROTHERS GRADUATED FROM THE UNIVERSITY OF VIRGINIA, BUT EARL ATTENDED PHARMACIST’S SCHOOL IN LOUISVILLE

EARL STARTED WORKING FOR GEORGE PENNY (1867-1932), MANAGER OF PENNY’S DRUG STORE, WHILE HE WAS STILL A YOUNG SCHOOLBOY. GEORGE’S MOTHER, MARY BOONE PENNY (1842-1930), HAD INHERITED THE STORE WHEN HER HUSBAND, ALBERT DIED (1841-1894)

THE BUSINESS DATES BACK TO AT LEAST 1872 WHEN AUGUSTINE “GUS” DUNN (1838-1928) AND STEPHEN E. OWSLEY (1847-1914) OPERATED A DRUG STORE IN STANFORD THEY SOLD IT THAT YEAR TO EDWIN R CHENAULT (1845-1931), WHO SECURED ALBERT PENNY’S SERVICES AS A PHARMACIST AT THAT POINT, PENNY HAD FIFTEEN YEAR’S EXPERIENCE IN THE BUSINESS, WHICH MEANS HE STARTED AT ABOUT THE AGE OF 13 YEARS OLD

BY 1879, EDWIN CHENAULT AND ALBERT PENNY WERE PARTNERS IN THE DRUG STORE IN 1881, CHENAULT SOLD HIS INTEREST TO GEORGE MCALISTER (1860-1888)

ALBERT PENNY AND GEORGE MCALISTER WOULD REMAIN PARTNERS FOR ABOUT SIX YEARS, DISSOLVING THE FIRM IN 1887 THAT SAME YEAR, ALBERT PENNY MOVED INTO THE CURRENT LOCATION AT 105 WEST MAIN STREET, AND CONTINUED THE BUSINESS AS A.R. PENNY’S DRUG STORE. WHEN ALBERT PENNY DIED IN 1894, HIS WIDOW CONTINUED AS THE OWNER WITH THEIR SON, GEORGE, AS THE MANAGER

IN 1911, TWENTY-FOUR YEAR OLD EARL COLEMAN WAS WORKING IN PENNY’S DRUG STORE WITH GEORGE PENNY AND BOB COFFEY EARL AND BOB LEFT THE DRUG STORE, BECAME BUSINESS PARTNERS, AND OPERATED A SMALL GROCERY STORE FOR ABOUT A YEAR THEY SOLD THE STORE AND EARL TOOK THE TEST TO BE A PHARMACIST

AFTER EARL COLEMAN BECAME A PHARMACIST IN 1912, HE WORKED BRIEFLY FOR A DRUG STORE IN MIDDLESBORO BEFORE RETURNING TO PENNY’S IN STANFORD BY 1916, HE BOUGHT THAT BUSINESS

EARL WAS A BACHELOR WHEN HE BECAME THE OWNER OF PENNY’S DRUG STORE, AND WOULD REMAIN THAT WAY FOR ANOTHER FIVE YEARS, UNTIL HE MARRIED SUE TAYLOR ENGLEMAN (1886-1966) IN 1921

HAVING NO CHILDREN OF THEIR OWN, EARL AND SUE COLEMAN WERE VERY FOND OF THEIR NEPHEWS AND NIECES, INCLUDING ALFRED HARRIS PENCE, THE SON OF SUE’S SISTER NANNIE MUCH LIKE EARL DID WITH THE PENNY FAMILY, ALFRED STARTED WORKING IN THE STORE AS A YOUNG MAN FOR EARL COLEMAN AND THEN BECAME A PHARMACIST

WHEN EARL DIED IN 1964, ALFRED HARRIS PENCE, SR AND HIS WIFE BETTIE BRYAN PENCE BECAME THE OWNERS THEIR SON, ALFRED HARRIS PENCE, JR JOINED THEM IN 1969 AFTER OBTAINING HIS PHARMACIST’S DEGREE FROM THE UNIVERSITY OF KENTUCKY TODAY, HE AND HIS WIFE JACKIE, AND SON BRYAN, OPERATE THE BUSINESS IN TWICE THE SPACE THEY ONCE HAD, AFTER EXPANDING NEXT DOOR INTO 103 WEST MAIN STREET IN 2000

WE’RE PROUD TO KNOW ALFRED, JACKIE, BRYAN, AND THEIR STAFF THEY’RE KEEPING ALIVE A 150+ YEAR BUSINESS ON MAIN STREET IN STANFORD THEY’VE NOT ONLY KEPT IT GOING AND PROVIDED A VALUABLE SERVICE TO THE COMMUNITY, THEY’VE IMPROVED IT AND MADE IT BETTER!

WRITTEN BY: JONATHAN SMITH, HISTORIAN

I COULD SEE THAT MY BOSS HAD ALREADY DISCUSSED THIS WITH JUDGE VARNON. I WAS NOW VERY CURIOUS TO SEE HOW THIS WOULD PLAY OUT

PAXTON ARGUED THAT IN THE STORY ABOUT THE KILLING, I HAD WRITTEN THAT, “WHEN ASKED BY A REPORTER TO GIVE HIS VERSION OF THE KILLING, HE REPLIED VERY CURTLY THAT HE WOULD DO SO ONLY ON THE WITNESS STAND ”

PAXTON ARGUED THAT PRIOR TO THE KILLING, THAT THE MARSHAL HAD ALREADY SOUGHT LEGAL ADVICE ABOUT WHAT TO DO AND SAY AFTER HE KILLED CAMDEN PAXTON WANTED TO USE MY TESTIMONY TO ESTABLISH THAT THE COMMENT WAS MADE IMMEDIATELY AFTER THE KILLING, BEFORE THE MARSHAL HAD TIME TO SEEK LEGAL COUNSEL

THE DEFENSE ATTORNEY FIRED BACK, “IF WE ARE WORRIED ABOUT RIGHTS, LET’S CONSIDER MY CLIENT’S FIFTH AMENDMENT RIGHT TO NOT INCRIMINATE HIMSELF THIS IS A REACH BY THE COUNTY ATTORNEY AND I KNOW YOUR HONOR WELL ENOUGH TO KNOW THAT YOU ARE NOT GOING TO LET SOMEONE’S SILENCE BE USED AGAINST HIM.”

JUDGE VARNON WAVED HIS HAND DISMISSIVELY AT BOTH LAWYERS “YES, YES, OF COURSE MR PAXTON, IF THAT IS THE SOLE PURPOSE OF MR, RAMSEY’S TESTIMONY, I AM GOING TO SUSTAIN THE OBJECTION AND BAR HIS TESTIMONY AS IRRELEVANT ”

FROM THERE, PAXTON PUT ON HIS CASE AND CALLED WITNESSES WHO TESTIFIED THAT AL CAMDEN WAS BRAGGING ABOUT THE FIRST ENCOUNTER WITH TOM MARTIN WHEN HE HAD AIMED THE SHOTGUN AT HIM WHEN MARTIN WALKED IN WITH THE WARRANT FOR CAMDEN’S ARREST, CAMDEN WAS IN THE MIDDLE OF

TELLING THE EMBELLISHED VERSION THAT INCLUDED SLAPPING THE MARSHAL.

PAXTON MADE THE ARGUMENT THAT THE MARSHAL SHOULD HAVE PLACED THE WARRANT WITH ANOTHER OFFICER TO BE SERVED, AND THAT HE KNEW WHAT THE OUTCOME WOULD BE

IN MY MIND, AND JUDGE VARNON’S TOO, APPARENTLY, BECAUSE HE THREW OUT THE CHARGES AND COMPLETELY CLEARED TOM MARTIN, THE OUTCOME COULD HAVE JUST HAVE EASILY BEEN TOM MARTIN’S DEATH

TOM WAS HOLDING THE BARREL OF AL CAMDEN’S GUN WHEN HE FIRED HIS OWN GUN KILLING CAMDEN IT WAS CLEARLY SELF-DEFENSE AND IT WAS RULED A JUSTIFIED KILLING

ROWLAND MAY BE EAST OF HERE, BUT IT’S THE WILD, WILD WEST FOR US.

WRITTEN BY: JONATHAN SMITH, AUTHOR AND HISTORIAN