Sedona, AZ: A recent Article Comment from visitor Leah Emery initiated a spate of inquiry into the history and location of the post office in Cornville, a historic and somewhat sprawling community located just a few miles south of Sedona . After reading the Gateway To Sedona article Cornville, Arizona, Leah contacted publisher Victoria Oldham, relating that her grandfather, Charles Sidney Chick, operated the Cornville Post Office from 1907 until December, 1931. The operation included a store, gas station, and the post office.
Her grand-mother, Jessie M. Chick, seen here in front of the store, served as Postmistress from the time of her husband’s death until 1961, carrying on the time honored family tradition for over fifty years.
The historic section of Cornville is alongside a stretch of road not even a mile long where it’s easy to imagine Mayberry’s Opie strolling easily across the bridge over Oak Creek with a fishing pole flung over his shoulder, whistling a happy tune on a hot summer day. The road’s been widened and paved over the years, a modern bridge crosses the creek, and new facades cover the older buildings now owned by small businesses.
Not surprisingly, more than one housed the post office “back in the day,” although following its tracks first down and then across a couple of country blocks turned out to be something of a mystery. I love a good mystery when it comes to historic buildings and photographs of them, and the off chance that the building still stands. With Leah’s pictures in tow, I set off on a mini-Cornville adventure.
According to Pat Shamrell, the current Postmaster in Cornville, back in 1907 the post office was located at the corner of Cornville and Loy Roads, where Banker Insulation is located. After that, the post office was located for varying periods of time (the length of which is no longer held in the local collective memory) in what is now the Cornville Trading Post home of Salon West and the Pretty Shabby Unique Boutique, as well as Vince’s Little Star Italian Restaurant.
Romano Scaturro, owner of the Little Star, is a friendly guy with a shared appreciation of local history who enjoyed tracking down the exact location of the store in the pictures Leah had shared with us. He knew right away that, sadly, the photos were not of the Little Star. He added a little more to the history of the post office however, saying that the front part of what is now his restaurant had been added on to accommodate postal operations.
From here, the post office jumped across the road to today’s Cornville Mercantile, until the new – and permanent – building was approved.
The days of rustic country stores, family run post offices, and 100 year old combination letter boxes have long vanished, although some of the old timers around still recall where in town they picked up their mail, or as with Cornville, the multiple locations the mail was fetched, news shared, and gossip swapped.
It’s unfortunate that the old Cornville Post Office and Store run for so many years by Charles and Jessie Chick is no longer standing. However, the memory of their post office and store is still strong in the community. And thanks to Leah Emery, the memory of her grandparents’ time as Cornville Postmaster and Postmistress has been celebrated once again.
Now, can anyone tell me the make and model of car reflected in the window in the photo of the store and Jessie Chick? I am betting my last country dime that someone out there knows….
The information and historic images of the Cornville Post Office and Store were provided by Leah Emery, Jessie and Charles Chick’s granddaughter. Thanks also to Pat Shamrell for clarifying the successive locations of the Cornville Post Office over the years.
Article and photographs by Terree Duncan, Editor.
Posted September 2, 2010 by GatewayToSedona.com.
Visitor Comment, September 4, 2010:
I am also granddaughter of the Chicks. The Post Office building was moved to a little western town which was built as a tourist attraction on HWY 17 near Camp Verde. I toured the town and especially the building in 1998. Some of the original mail boxes were still in the building along with other items of interest. The little town is now closed but I was by there a few years ago and most of the buildings were still standing. The tourist town was called "The American Dream." Someone had drawn a sketch of the post office and I was able to pick up a package of note cards with the picture on the front. Thank you for the article. It is interesting and brings back lots of memories. — Margaret Allen
