For More Than 100 Years...
repair, maintenance and renovation project supplies, including lumber, windows, doors, plumbing, electrical, tools, appliances, work boots, clothing, fertilizer, feed and seed. The store’s motto is “If we don’t have it, we can get it!”
“The people in these portraits you see behind me are my grandparents and uncles, and all of us here now are so proud to have a part in carrying out the legacy the left to us,” said Keith Shelly. “I think of all that has changed over the years, and I am glad we have been a part of it, and that we are still a part of our community.” Shelly thanked all the employees over the years, saying, “They are all a part of our Shelly’s family. We have some people who have worked here 30, 40 years. I also have to say thank you to our customers; we are here for you and couldn’t be here without you.”
In recognizing the Shelly family legacy, Commissioner McWhorter said, “I am so proud to be able to recognize a family-owned business and to celebrate their 122 years in business in service to the Middleton community – and beyond.”
The first newspaper in Hardeman County appeared in 1829 and was called the Bolivar Palladium. Others that followed were the Bolivar Herald; the Sentinel in 1839; the Bolivar Free Press and Farmer’s Herald, which was edited in 1835 by James B. Walker; and the West Tennessee Democrat, which was founded in 1845 by John J. Neely. This publication continued until the Civil War. All of these were the forerunners of the Bolivar Bulletin-Times.
In 1865, the Bolivar Bulletin was founded by Moses R. Parrish, who was the editor until 1874, when it was managed and published by several owners. The name was changed briefly to the West Tennessee Star. A competitor for the weekly from 1895-1918 was The Hardeman Free Press, which was operated by J.R. Reaves.
R.H. Green and Hugh Williams bought the publication in 1888. In 1946, Alan and Estelle Sexton purchased the weekly journal and combined it with the Hardeman County Times, which they had bought in 1940 from Bert Hodge, who established it in 1936.
In September 1974, the Sextons sold the newspaper to Delphos Herald, Inc. of Delphos Ohio. In 2016, the paper was purchased by The County Journal, Inc.
“It has always seemed to me in almost every story, every book, every movie, there is a newspaper that is used to make a point in the plot. And to be able to carry on the tradition of newspapers in Hardeman County is an honor I’ve always appreciated. It has nothing to do with us. It’s for a town and county we happily call home. We are only caretakers of a time-honored tradition,” said Bulletin Times publisher Darrell Teubner. “It will someday pass along to someone else.”
Photo: Commissioner McWhorter makes presentation to Keith & Lori Shelly, and the store’s official greeter, Dexter.