A representation of the Hegins Automobile Company, Hegins, Schuylkill County, Pennsylvania, also known as Elsie’s Restaurant, produced on a wood block by Hometowne Collectibles.
The drawing notes that the Hegins Automobile Company was a dealership for Marmon-Herrington (All Wheel Drive) and Dodge-Plymouth Sales and Service. Two gasoline pumps are are also depicted.
On the back of the block is the following description:
This three-story building located at 669 East Main Street in Hegins, was built by Abraham Franklin Geist in the late 1920s as a combination horse and car barn. Automobiles were repaired and stored on the first floor, and horses were stabled on the second floor via a ramp on the east side, which was removed around 1953. Ownership passed eventually to son Thomas Jefferson Geist, who changed it completely to a garage. Various other businesses occupied other parts of the building, like Elsie Smeltz‘s beauty shop on the east side in the rear for a few years before her marriage in 1935. There was also the J. S. Hartman Furniture Store and a small sandwich shop run by Mrs. Ada Lucas. Around 1960, Elsie Smeltz and Leo Smeltz purchased the property to enlarge their ceramics business, which eventually occupied most of the east side of the building on both floors. in 1971, Elsie sold the building to Floyd Scheib and Irene Scheib and Floyd continued to sell slip and greenware while Irene ran the restaurant, still referred to as Elsie’s. In 1987, the property was purchased by Steve Reitz and Kim Reitz, later joined by Steve’s sister, Carol Updegrave and her husband Robert Updegrave, and in 1992, Carol took over as sole owner. The Tri-Valley Free Public Library was located there on the east side from 1988 to 1997. It was followed by a gift shop and a dress shop, and in 2005, the property was purchased by present owner, Mrs. Carol Morgan.
_______________________________________
Corrections and additional information should be added as comments to this post.