J.A. Bookman General Store Historical Marker
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Location: Ingomar
J. Abraham “Abe” Bookman came from Ireland with his wife, Anna, and brother-in-law, Simon Sigman. By 1912, they had settled in Ingomar where Bookman operated the town mercantile and Sigman served as postmaster. The business was so prosperous that once when Bookman was at the depot to receive a shipment of groceries and clothing, settlers waiting for the next train bought every single item before it could be carried to the store. In 1914, Bookman’s success allowed him to finance Sigman’s opening of a general store in nearby Vananda. Although Rosebud County’s economy was obviously in trouble by 1921 and many homesteaders had moved on, Ingomar’s commercial area remained relatively stable. When a fire devastated the small district that year, this prominent brick building with its lively diamond pattern of polychromatic brick was built to replace Bookman’s original store. Now connected to its neighbor through an interior doorway, the well-preserved vintage building is a classic example of the commercial structures once common in small prairie settlements. The intact survival of its two-bay storefront is particularly noteworthy. Although most Ingomar
J.A. Bookman General Store Historical Marker