Days gone by come alive at Klinkenberg’s soda fountain
| By CHAD SIEVERS KENDALLVILLE — On July 2, 1889, Klinkenberg Drug Store opened at 201 S. Main St., and almost 108 years later it stands as the oldest family-owned and operated business in downtown Kendallville. Owner Bob Klinkenberg, 85, who worked in the store as a child, said his father started the business. Back then the store had a different look as it was lit by kerosene lamps and not by electric lights, he said. As a young boy and man, Klinkenberg stocked the shelves and assisted customers with their purchases, he said. Even today, walking into Klinkenberg’s is like walking back to the time when neighborhood kids would run to a soda fountain after school for a cherry Coke or ice cream sundae. In fact, Vicky Linthicum, a Kendallville resident, sitting at the counter with her brother, Robert Taylor, drinking cherry Cokes recently, said, “The place hasn’t changed much, neither has Bob.” Customers can sit at the round stools lined up along the smooth black marble countertop and order a chocolate Coke, Klinkenberg’s speciality. An old 1-cent gumball machine and a vintage straw container both sit on the counter. In other parts of the store, dusty display cases exhibit items for sale such as perfume and picture albums. Tall wooden ladders hang from rails along the sides of the store to climb up and reach items on the high shelves. Behind the soda fountain, an antique wooden cash register with round buttons rings loudly as Klinkenberg deposits money into the drawer after someone makes a purchase. Other vintage items, like a 1-cent match container and a Bromo-Seltzer item advertising “For fast headache relief” sit around the counter. |
 A BARREL OF STORIES TO TELL — Bob Klinkenberg, 85, still operates the family-owned Klinkenberg’s store at 201 S. Main St. Klinkenberg still holds court around his soda fountain six days a week where patrons share stories of past and present. (News-Sun photo by Dean A. Orewiler) |
| Klinkenberg sells ice cream and soda items from his
fountain. He also sells sandwiches. Klinkenberg, who was a partner with his father and then took over control of the store in 1942 after his father died, has remodeled it several times since then, he said. He added the soda fountain to the store, but can’t remember exactly when he did it. The fountain equipment currently in the store was added about 15 years ago, he said. A part of the fountain he is proud of is his operational wooden root beer barrel. It sits at the end of the counter, and he turns the spout for the root beer to pour out. “Nobody else has got one,” he said. “You’d have to pay a hell of a lot to buy one now.” Besides a chocolate Coke, he also has other flavors like vanilla, cherry, lemon, strawberry and ginger ale. |
 Klinkenberg’s, 201 S. Main St. |
Prior to Klinkenberg’s, the
building held the John Gappinger Harness Shop. From
1863-1872, Julius Gotch and Louis Beckman had their
jewelry store at 201 S. Main St. The upper part of the building has held such businesses as a doctor’s office, a beauty shop, Finley Law, John McCreery Employment, the International Molders and Allied Workers 62, the Frank Meyer Studio and the Gappinger residence. Klinkenberg and his wife, Cora, have been married for more than 60 years, and both live in Kendallville. They have one daughter who lives in Fort Wayne. Their son died a couple of years ago. A graduate of Kendallville High School, Klinkenberg has worked hard his entire life in the store. He joked and said, “I was never smart enough to get another job.” It’s his dry wit and sense of humor that bring many people back, just to sit at the counter, drink a Coke and talk to a man who has many stories to tell. He likes to sit around with some of his regulars and talk about his church, St. John Lutheran, and downtown life. He said he remembers when the streets of downtown were packed with people on Friday and Saturday nights. Wednesday nights also brought people downtown for a band concert one block west of Main Street, he said. Today, he said he agrees with the Downtown Business Association about problems with people on bikes and rollerblades downtown. “I don’t want to be run down,” he said. Regular customers like Irene Schenher of Kendallville come in most days to get a bite to eat and talk about days gone by. They sit and remember old teachers and friends from high school. At 85, he still manages to run the place himself, but the hours vary from day to day, depending on how he feels. And after 108 years in business, it is evident that Klinkenberg still knows what is important to stay in business, as he said, “That’s what counts, the repeat business.” |
