Silver’s Drug Shop

COLLECTION HISTORY

The people behind the place.

Pharmacist William H. Silver established Silver’s Drug Shop in 1919 in the Wood Building at Campbell Avenue and Main Street. The English Jacobean commercial building had opened in 1911 and previously housed Wood’s Drugstore. Keeping these dates separate matters: the familiar building predates the Silver family’s 87-year business. [WHSD-008]

Silver’s cultivated relationships well beyond filling prescriptions. A 1927 welcome letter to a local newborn illustrates William’s effort to make the store part of family life. His son Edward began working at the soda fountain and making bicycle deliveries in 1941, later served as a Navy pharmacist’s mate, and graduated from pharmacy school in 1949 before gradually taking over the business. [WHSD-002]

The shop also provided generations of local employment. In Dan Shine’s oral-history account, David Silver recalls flexible schedules that allowed high-school and college students to continue working while studying. Long-serving employees staffed pharmacy, cosmetics, greeting cards, bookkeeping, and the lunch counter. Their recollections of parties and mutual support describe a workplace whose social ties continued after retirement. [WHSD-003]

The soda fountain connected shopping with sociability, while the pharmacy supplied more specialized care. David recalled fitting braces and walkers; Scott recalled delivering essential medication through snowstorms and helping customers who could not afford it. The lunch counter closed in 1982. The pharmacy remained until the family announced its closure at the end of 2006, after which David and Scott continued work at Stop & Shop. [WHSD-004]

The building’s subsequent history follows downtown’s changing retail economy. A dollar store occupied the corner after Silver’s, but the space later became vacant. On February 15, 2024, La Antillana Meat & Produce celebrated its opening at the same address. The new business sells Latin American groceries, meat, and produce, giving another commercial use to the distinctive structure opposite City Hall. [WHSD-008]

A neighborhood drug shop belonged to routine errands and recurring encounters, not only major public events. The documented 1919–2006 span gives Silver’s a long local presence, while later commemoration shows how a closed business can remain part of community memory. A commemorative photograph records the later act of remembering; it is not a view of the shop during its early years. Advertisements, directories and photographs can recover products, addresses and storefront changes. Customers’ recollections add experience, provided their dates and speakers remain visible. Together these sources turn a familiar business name into a history of daily neighborhood life and later remembrance. [WHSD-008] [WHSD-002] [WHSD-003]