Our Past Is Present October 15, 2018

October 15, 2018

            You are reading to “Our Past Is Present” from the Geary County Historical Society.

            Most of our stories this week and next will come from the marvelous collection of stories found in the book Set In Stone, which is available at our Museum.  Today’s story was written by Gaylynn Childs and may be found on page 144 of that book.

            “Dwight D. Eisenhower’s brother, Roy, owned and operated a drug store at 622 North Washington Street for about 25 years. Net Quest Computer Sales and Repair is currently located in that building.  Roy always referred to himself as a “druggist”, Ike preferred the term “pharmacist”, when describing his brother.

            Roy Eisenhower was a thirty-second-degree mason, a lifelong member of the Chamber of Commerce and was active in many service clubs and community organizations.  He was an avid sportsman and like his famous brother enjoyed playing golf whenever he could get away from the store. 

            He was described as a “red hot Republican” and took an active interest in local politics.  Because of the relationship between Fort Riley and Junction City, Roy was much better known to the officers and men at the post was his military brother.

            Roy died in 1942.  His widow, Edna Eisenhower, continued to run the drugstore.  

            There are no documented accounts of Dwight Eisenhower visiting in Junction City after he was President, however it was reported by Fred Beeler, that when Ike was in Abilene, during and after his presidential years, “he would drive his Secret Service guys nuts” when he’d occasionally slip away and borrow a car from one of his Abilene friends and drive himself over to Junction City to pay a visit to his brother’s widow. She died in 1989 at the age of 97.

            And… that is today’s story on “Our Past Is Present” from the Geary County Historical Society.