Frances Eugene Starnes I and Letha Parker Starnes
In 1898, Francis Eugene Starnes, a young man of 24 who
had grown up near Monroe, rode into Albemarle, then a bustling town of 600, on a
bicycle. He brought with him a small kit of watchmaker’s tools and set up shop
in the window section of a building that stood near the heart of the downtown
business district. His business, Starnes Jewelry Store, flourished, and he
continued to move into larger and different quarters, adding, dropping and
expanding different services and lines. His first location was in a wooden
building where the Marks House was formerly located. Later he moved to the
location later occupied by Central Barber Shop and from there to the old Sample
store building on West Main Street. After a few years his business had grown
such that he moved to the building the century-old store now occupies on West
Main Street.
Starnes often
told the story, how, while making the bicycle ride into Albemarle, he had a flat
tire. When he pulled to the side of the road to make the repair, he noticed an
old horseshoe lying to one· side. He picked up the shoe and kept it as a symbol
of good luck. That horseshoe was mounted in a collage along with photos and
watch dials, symbols of his business, and hangs today in the home of the third
generation of Starneses to operate the family business. The history of the
company founded by Francis Eugene Starnes exemplifies the entrepreneurship
and risk-taking that have been so characteristic of the American free enterprise
system. At one time or another the business has dealt with fine jewelry,
watches, clocks, silverware, china, gifts, musical instruments, books,
textbooks, stationery, office supplies and sporting goods. Over three
generations the business evolved into what is today, Starnes, Inc., still in
downtown Albemarle. In addition to the store in Albemarle, F.E. Starnes also
established satellite stores in Badin, Southern Pines, Concord,
Salisbury and Lexington.
He also branched out into other lines of business, at one time having
extensive real estate holdings, including valuable residential property in
Albemarle and several farms in various sections of the county. He was a director
of First National Bank of Albemarle (now a branch of First Union) and of Home
Builders Association (now Home Savings Bank). He was a member of the board of
deacons of First Presbyterian Church for over 30 years.
Only a few years after coming to Albemarle, the first F.E. Starnes,
known affectionately as the “Colonel”, met and married a local girl, Letha
Parker. She was the daughter of a prominent Stanly County farming couple, Dock
Frank and Hettie Bell Parker, and brought to the marriage the graciousness of a
Southern lady and the business acumen that enabled her to carry on the business
following her husband’s death in December 1932 at age 58. Their only son,
Francis Eugene Starnes, Jr., was an 18-year-old student at Catawba College at
the time of his father’s death.
Four years before his death, the senior Mr. Starnes and his wife built
one of the most beautiful homes then to be found in the Piedmont. The
architect-designed house was of Colonial Revival design with Spanish Revival
roof cladding. It still stands on Third Street in Albemarle and is owned and
occupied by a Starnes granddaughter and her husband.
Letha Starnes
often told stories of the “Colonel’s” propensity for entertaining,
bringing home lunch and dinner guests without warning. Mrs. Starnes, said it was
necessary to keep country ham and other provisions on the back porch to be
used at a moment’s notice.
Letha Parker Starnes died in October 1964.