Theresa, July 13. -- The old “stone store,” once the land office for the sale of pioneer lands to settlers, and undoubtedly one of Plessis’ oldest buildings, still in use as a store, is undergoing a major transformation. The Plessis Co-operative Association, which now owns it, is placing a modern front in this ancient building.

In this historic building Judge Jason Clark, agent for the land firm of Woodruff & Stocking, had his office and sold out the large tracts of land in Alexandria and Orleans, formerly part of the huge Leray purchase.

Mrs. Sarah Augsbury, Riverside avenue, in this village, who celebrated her 86th birthday June 14, tells interestingly of the history of this old building. She went there as a bride in 1875 and her husband, conducted his business in the store until the cooperative took it over some 20 years ago.

“When I went to Plessis as a bride,” said Mrs. Augsbury today, “The village was quite a commercial center. The store, located on the main corner of the Plessis streets, was just next door to the home of Jason Clark,, his widow being yet alive. Mr. Clark had died on Aug. 6, 1872. He was a great man, a leader in the community, in the church, in the agricultural development of the place, as well as having served as county judge. Of course he had served as supervisor of the town of Alexandria as well as justice of the peace. My husband had been associated with him as a young man and Judge Clark taught my husband bookkeeping. The late Jason C. Morrow, long a banker in Theresa, was also taught by Judge Clark in the business life of a store and bank and worked for the judge quite a spell.

“I lived over the store when I first went to Plessis and it was a big, roomy place. But what used to interest me the most was a rather novel feature just back of the store and the Clark home. It was a bath house, a separate building, probably ten feet square, with tub, for which we had to carry the water if we wanted to take a bath. It did have a drain, but we gave it the go-by in winter for it had no heat.

“That store has seen a lot of business transacted within its walls. All the land unsold from the Leray tract when Judge Clark went into the office, was sold from this historic stone building. Just when it was built, I could not say with assurance, but think it must have been about 1820, -- at least that was when the first store opened in Plessis.”

Earl Augsbury, son of Mrs. Augsbury, teacher for years in New York city, and who has traveled around the world, now here for his summery vacation, added this interesting bit of history.

“When I was a very small boy there were two brass candlesticks in the building which the people said always stood on the judge’s desk in the very early days before they used lamps. A few years ago I thought I would like those candle-sticks for keepsakes, as this place was my father’s store for so many years and he owned the building. Asking many questions I learned that one of the candle-sticks had been taken to a farm for use in scraping hogs in butchering times, and was not now in use. In fact that hog pen was down and I looked nearly a full day through the ruins before I found it, black as a poker. It cleaned up beautifully. With that one, I wanted the mate. One day, when showing it to a friend I was told that a certain farmer had one just like it. I got it of the man, who had no use for it, save in butchering time, and, sure enough it was the mate and I have them both in my home in New York city.”

In the Plessis cemetery is a tall and rather massive monument which is in memory of a son, Clark, who died Aug. 6, 1872. His wife, Almeda, died June 27, 1880. Mr. Clark was 70 years old at the time of his death and his wife 75 years and 6 months.

*In the absence of a title, the typist composed the title above.