Turner's Country Store

Turner's Country Store. . In the antebellum period this site was occupied by a store owned by Marshall Frazier, a prosperous Edgefield planter, and until the end of the 19th century, this location was known as "Frazier's Corner." , The present building was built by J.M. Cobb (1849-1912), an Edgefield merchant, on this site in early 1885, following the devastating fire of 1884. Cobb operated his dry goods business here until 1891 when he moved to the larger building next door. , In the fall of 1900, W.H. Turner (1864-1916), and Edgefield native who had established his business in Edgefield as early as 1884, opened "The Corner Store" at this location. That business was owned and operated by the Turner family for almost a century. , In later years, Turner's son, Wiley H. "Bub" Turner, Jr. (1893-1959), and daughter-in-law, Gladys Lyon Turner (1900-1984), took over the Edgefield store. Under their capable leadership, "Turner's Country Store" became the leading department store in Edgefield, selling everything from dresses to furniture. In the 1940's and 1950's they undertook major modernizations and expansions of the store, extending the building to Buncombe and Simkins Streets. , In the early 1960's, Mr. and Mrs. Turner's daughter, Margaret Sue Turner Jolly (1932-1991), and her husband, Clarence R. Jolly (1930-1986), came to Edgefield and took over the management of the store. Mr. Jolly was a remarkably talented merchant whose fashion flair extended the reach and reputation of The Corner Store across the region. It was in this period that Mrs. Mamie Eisenhower came here to shop while she was visiting in Augusta. Mr. Jolly also earned a region-wide reputation for his abilities in directing and promoting theatrical productions. , Mr. Jolly later changed the direction of his business to the selling of high fashion women's ware through "home shows" up and down the eastern seaboard. This building was the headquarters for his multi-million dollar sales company. After the death of Mr. Jolly, his wife and later his sons carried on the business until about 1993, completing over a century of retail sales in the Town of Edgefield by the Turner family.