The Herald reported on Feb. 17, 1932 – “J.H. Huey is moving his drug business from the Riverview Store to the building on Elk Ave., previously occupied by John Russell.”
City Directories and History: 1908 – Vacant, 1915 – Ross F. Roach and wife Emma Roach, 1917 – James (Jim) H. Huey, 1922/23 – Mrs. C.E. Huey, 1933 – J.H. Huey (Druggist, wife Louise #115 Confederate Ave.),
This fine Folk Victorian cottage was originally on East Main Street and according to its owner, John Misskelley was moved to the current lot in the late 19th century as East Main Street’s lots were subdivided to accommodate larger homes of Rock Hill’s turn of the century business elite. This home was originally known as the Poag house and features one of Rock Hill’s great “intact” architectural facades.
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Jim Huey was a druggist working in Rock Hill in the early twentieth century. He was born in Chester County on August 15, 1893, the younger of two sons of William T. Huey and Elizabeth Drennan Huey. Jim’s father died in 1900 when he was only seven, and the family moved to Rock Hill in 1912. Jim became a druggist. In 1917, he registered for the draft for World War I at the age of 24. He was living at 131 Academy Street (now Confederate Avenue) with his mother and brother Farley Baxter Huey. Jim listed his employment as President of the Huey-Martin Drug Company. His partner was likely William Martin, a young man who would leave to serve in World War I and later operate Martin Drug Company on Main Street in Fort Mill for many years. Jim requested a deferment from the draft because he was the support for his dependent mother. He is described as having hazel eyes, sandy hair, slightly balding, and of medium height and weight.
The McElwee Store ledger of 1915 states the Roach family resided at this address.
Sometime between 1917 and 1920, Jim married Sarah Louise Poag. The Poag family lived a few miles south of Rock Hill. Her parents were William J. Poag, a farmer, and Dora Ellen Oates Poag. The family attended First Presbyterian Church, where William was a deacon. Sarah was born in January 1894. Her father died in 1906 when she was 12, and the family was being supported by her mother Dora, who was reported in the 1910 Census as the head of household and a farmer. Sarah Louise had an older sister and brother and a younger sister. After Jim and Louise were married they lived at 131 North Academy Street (later renamed Confederate Avenue) with Jim’s mother Elizabeth. In the 1920 Census, Jim is listed as a druggist and Louise is listed as a bookkeeper at a bank. The 1922 Rock Hill City Directory reports that Jim was working at Phillips Drug Company at 111 East Main Street and Louise was a
bookkeeper at the National Union Bank. Their only child, James H. Huey, Jr. was born in March 1924. In 1925, the City Directory shows that Jim was working at City Pharmacy at 114 Hampton Street and the family was living at 115 North Confederate Avenue. In the 1930 Census, Jim is still listed as a druggist. In the household was Jim’s mother, Elizabeth, who was 69 at the time. Also in the household was a boarder, John Russell, who was a wholesale broker. The Huey family continued as members at First Presbyterian Church.
Jim died on October 31, 1934 at the age of 41. The death certificate lists the cause of death as carbon monoxide poisoning. The information on the death certificate was provided by his brother Farley. He was buried the next day in Laurelwood Cemetery. The 1940 Census lists Louise Huey as a widow living at 230 Green Street, where she had lived at least since 1935. In the household were her son James Huey, Jr., aged 15, and her sister, Bessie Poag, aged 54. Bessie was a teacher at Winthrop Training School. Louise had a job in the Treasurer’s office of the Rock Hill City Hall, where she worked for 33 years. City Directories from 1946 to 1963 show that Louise and son James, Jr. were living at 249 Johnston Street. Louise died in 1977 at the age of 84. At her death, she was living at 406 College Avenue. James Huey, Jr. died in 1989 at the age of 65. He worked as an auditor at several hotels, including the Andrew Jackson Hotel, the Holiday Inn, and the Ramada Inn and lived at 519 North Wilson Street after his mother’s death. He never married.
Jim’s brother Farley worked for a number of years for Ed Fewell as a cotton broker. He was in World War I, serving overseas for 18 months. In later years, he ran his own cotton brokerage, served with the soil conservation service, and was the county service officer for the Veteran’s Administration for 18 years, retiring in 1957. He married Lucy Merritt in 1919, and they had one daughter, Mrs. Wilson H. Fisher. They lived at 328 State Street in 1922, then later at 131 North Confederate and 115 North Confederate. Farley died in August 1961. [Article written and contributed to R&R by P.M. Gettys – 2015]
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