A bit of a sad moment for me.......... (Tulsa, May: for sale, Home Depot)

[Goodpasture]

I hadn't been in the Kendall-Whittier area in several months. Last night I went south on Lewis to the Reasor's store to hit the bank and passed by a passing icon.

Swinney's Hardware......the hardware place where you could get just about anything.....has a for sale sign on it. When I was doing renovations and remodeling that was the place that had just about anything you could possibly need.

Just to make sure I wasn't seeing things, I checked the Tulsa World and sure enough, back in May they announced their closing.

Tulsa World: Swinneys closing store

John Swinney said the family made the decision in the face of growing competition from big home improvement chains, as well as John and his sister, Joan, reaching retirement age.

I know it is a sign of the times.......I watched it in clothing, I've seen it in lumber, now it is hitting the hardware. Once upon a time you could go to a mens store and the guy in there could tell at a glance what you needed, what style was best for you.........he was a consultant as much as a salesman......today I go to Drysdales and a shelf stocker is the most likely "consultant" available. I used to go to a lumber yard and tell them I needed some 5/4 Oak S2S and the guy behind the counter would know exactly what I was talking about. Now I have a small selection that comes in precut lengths and sizes.........and don't even try to get numbered sheets of paneling. At todays hardware stores you are lucky to get someone that knows what you are talking about, let alone know what part of the store they stock it in........I wanted a hand held cherry pitter the other day, went to a hardware store, asked if they had one, and the girl at the counter looked puzzled and said no. I wandered around and found a peg with about a dozen of them on it. At Swinneys you could not only get absolutely anything in hardware, they would know what kind of stuff was needed to make it work properly. I am going to miss them just being there.......knowing I could get it there made life a bit less stressful. I wonder where I can go to get the odd ball but needed hardware now...........

[HeatherDawn]

That sucks.

[Bill236c]

Most of what I know is no longer true.

[Okiegirlfriend]

We have known the Swinneys for 35 years. I loved buying wallpaper from them. They had exactly what I liked. They didn't over sell you what you needed. Home Depot was the cause of their demise. Swinney had decent prices. They just couldn't compete with the big chain!

[Raelyn28]

And although I don't know of the place because I am a newbee to the area I can feel your sense of loss. I am going through a lot of loss myself right now... moving away from the things I hold dear. Life is full of losses and we just cannot change that.. Look in the sky at the beautiful sunset, those things never change... I'm thinking of you. Sorry....

[FutureCntryBumpkin]

Originally Posted by Goodpasture

I hadn't been in the Kendall-Whittier area in several months. Last night I went south on Lewis to the Reasor's store to hit the bank and passed by a passing icon.

Swinney's Hardware......the hardware place where you could get just about anything.....has a for sale sign on it. When I was doing renovations and remodeling that was the place that had just about anything you could possibly need.

Just to make sure I wasn't seeing things, I checked the Tulsa World and sure enough, back in May they announced their closing.

Tulsa World: Swinneys closing store



I know it is a sign of the times.......I watched it in clothing, I've seen it in lumber, now it is hitting the hardware. Once upon a time you could go to a mens store and the guy in there could tell at a glance what you needed, what style was best for you.........he was a consultant as much as a salesman......today I go to Drysdales and a shelf stocker is the most likely "consultant" available. I used to go to a lumber yard and tell them I needed some 5/4 Oak S2S and the guy behind the counter would know exactly what I was talking about. Now I have a small selection that comes in precut lengths and sizes.........and don't even try to get numbered sheets of paneling. At todays hardware stores you are lucky to get someone that knows what you are talking about, let alone know what part of the store they stock it in........I wanted a hand held cherry pitter the other day, went to a hardware store, asked if they had one, and the girl at the counter looked puzzled and said no. I wandered around and found a peg with about a dozen of them on it. At Swinneys you could not only get absolutely anything in hardware, they would know what kind of stuff was needed to make it work properly. I am going to miss them just being there.......knowing I could get it there made life a bit less stressful. I wonder where I can go to get the odd ball but needed hardware now...........

It IS so very sad, and to top it all off, who has to time to even TRY to seek out anything made in this country anymore, not to mention the loss of quality. I'm glad I'm O L D already and don't need much. I still have American made clothes and shoes that are 40 to 50 years old and some tools, power and otherwise still truckin'.

AND the help, in general, FURGIT IT!!!!