JC Penny Put Second Store In This Tiny Utah Town

Massive Department Store Chain Started Where? 

In 1902 James Cash Penney had an idea for a retail store. At the time in mining towns, stores sold goods on credit. Most of these items were bought at the company store and involved haggling. James decided to sell things at his store with a no haggle price for cash. 

He opened his store in the Wyoming mining town of Kemmerer. Even today, most of us don’t like haggling over the price of a car or a house. It was a huge success, and he soon opened a second location in Eureka, Utah.  

Don’t Blink or You May Miss Driving Through It 

Wait, where? It’s true. The second JC Penney location was in this little blip of a town in the middle of Utah. I visited Eureka and even had dinner there. The restaurant was in a place that could be an old west bar on a set from the movies. It was very authentic as was the food. 

They were out of almost everything on the menu. I settled for a sandwich and a coke with very little ice. This was many years ago and I don’t mean to disparage any current establishment.  The current size of Eureka doesn’t reflect its past. 

Read More: Strange Petroglyphs In Utah Where You See Severed Heads

In the late 1800’s and into the next century, Eureka was a bustling city of 5,000 people who worked in the four surrounding mines. This was pretty big at the time as it was the 9th largest city in Utah. 

Now you know. Eureka is part of JC Penney’s history. That’s not all. This town had a role in the creation of the Zamboni. A very small role as it was the birthplace of the inventor. It might be worth a trip, but you may want to pack a lunch.