The Massey Corner of Town

Postcard Image from Peel's Prairie Provinces website

The large building on the left in the picture above is dated from about 1909 and advertises as selling Verity Plows and Massey-Harris Company Limited Farm Equipment.  It stood at the busy crossroads of Fourth Street (Main Street) and First Avenue (Railway Avenue) for many years and had a few successors and even more owners.  The Massey corner's history is as follows. More details and pictures are always welcome!

The Massey- Harris Company had existed since a merger in 1891. They were the originators of self propelled harvesters in 1938 and the Ferguson combine in 1953 but continued to produce separate products until 1958 when the name became Massey-Ferguson.

James Wilborn Guthrie (1861-1946) came from his birthplace of Middleville, Ontario with his father William Reid Guthrie in 1882 to work on the railway. James later returned to homestead NE 30-7-27 north of Reston. He branched out and established a Massey Harris dealership on the main corner of Reston opposite the train station.   The signature of J.W. Guthrie can be found on this receipt from 1898 for a 15 shoe drill from the Massey-Harris Company for $30! 

He left full time work at the dealership in 1905 to sell various types of insurance, real estate and did farm management. J.W. continued at Guthrie and Bulloch, as it was known, until he retired in 1944.  He married Annie Clementine McGregor in 1898, had 3 daughters and a son and lived in the huge brick house at 106 Second Avenue profiled here by Fletch Manning.  You may remember it was the funeral of this Mrs. Guthrie in 1935 at the Baptist Church that was its last event due to a structural problem .  

Note on Guthrie stationary 1911 for $100 for buggy from Guthrie and McMurchy

John "Jack" McMurchy was hired by Guthrie in 1904 to work at the Massey dealership and became a partner in 1907.  He was the son of Archibald and Mary McMurchy and brother to Archie and Colin who operated a livery stable and later Ford dealership and garage in Reston.  Jack married Nellie Elliott in 1908 and they had 4 daughters and 3 sons including Air Gunner Kenneth who was killed in 1945 near Germany. The house and yard that they lived in is described here in a wonderful description by Lucille Curtis. The McMurchys retired to Vancouver in 1948. 

From 1907-1911 the dealership was run by McMurchy and G. F. Birney.  The latter took on the position of RM of Pipestone secretary treasurer so Jack ran the dealership alone. The building was destroyed by fire in 1924 but was rebuilt shortly after. Imperial Oil gasoline pumps were installed in front of the business. 

Note for Van Brunt drill in 1927 from John McMurchy 

Lucille and Leo Curtis - thanks Lorie

In 1948, Leo Curtis took over the dealership from Jack McMurchy, purchasing his home on Second Avenue as well. Leo was well acquainted with Massey Harris products after farming in the Dublin district south of Reston and custom combining using a self-propelled Massey combine in Kansas, Nebraska and South Dakota in 1947. Leo married his wife Lucille Paul in 1937 and they had a son and 4 daughters. He also purchased a meat market in Reston and added a locker plant to it in 1957. The meat business was sold to Henry Claussen in 1965. In 1954, Leo added the Dodge Desoto dealership to his garage. In 1959, fire claimed the business and it was rebuilt using the concrete blocks that you still see today. Leo and Lucille and their family left Reston in 1960 but continued to farm in the are and kept strong connections to family and friends.

 

The business was purchased by William D. Morrice,  son of Charles and Helen Morrice of Dublin district south of Reston who ran it as Morrice Farm Equipment until his death in 1965.

From 1965-67, Mel Williamson(nephew of Bill Morrice) and Jim King ran the business and King alone from 1967 as Reston Farm Supplies. Centralization meant the Massey dealership left Reston and from 1976-79 Mel and Ron Bulloch utilized the building for a fertilizer and liquid feed supplement business called Agserv.

In the time since then it has been home to John (Laddie) Morrice's welding shop, Williamson Trucking, TBA Sales, UGG elevator office, and now Bonneville Transport Ltd.