Bridgman's Furniture

Bridgman's Furniture. 104 Dewey, Built: 1900. , Robert S. Bridgman moved to Poteau from Hackett, Arkansas in the fall of 1896. He was 38 years old. Shortly after arriving, he purchased a moderate one and a half story building off Railroad Avenue, known as Broadway today. That same year, he also gained ownership of the Poteau Journal. Bridgman's Furniture was first established along this the dirt road that ran along the Frisco Railroad tracks 1896. This store was originally located on the first floor, and he used the second 1/2 floor as his printing press. This first building measured 24 feet wide by 32 feet deep, and provided almost 800 square feet of sales space. For the first time in Poteau's history, residents of the town now had one of the finest furniture stores to be found in eastern Indian Territory. , According to local sources, 1927, Bridgman's Furniture Store moved from its old location to 104 Dewey Avenue, where the store remains today. However, the store could have been here as early as 1902. 1902 is the first year that the Bridgman Building is listed on old maps, and shows the label as “Hardware, Furniture, and Undertaker”. During the early 1900's, it was common for furniture stores to also double as the local undertaker. Since the furniture was typically made in house from local wood and supplies, it only made sense for caskets and such to be made in the same location. Because of this, typically, the local undertaker would be housed in the same location. By 1909, only the furniture store remained. For over one hundred years, the Bridgman family has remained a solid pillar of Poteau's success.