September 2025 - From Our Archives

It looks big, but this promotional pen knife in a mother-of-pearl-type case from Jesseman's Garage is only 3 inches long. Eli Swinyer and Harlan Jesseman purchased Leslie Jesseman’s blacksmith shop on North Main Street in 1926 and enlarged the building to go into the automobile garage business. In 1930 Jesseman’s became a Chevrolet dealership. In 1955 Harlan’s son Roland took over the business and sold it to Lisbon Chevrolet in 1996. The buildings were torn down in 2008, and now there is a parking lot on the site.