Lehman’s store: Where shopping meets an American museum experience (photos)

DALTON, Ohio – Going to Lehman’s is like shopping in a museum.

It’s a jaunt through American history, a collection of antiques mixed with modern gifts, baubles and necessities and survival goods packaged under one large roof.

The store contains more than 25,000 items under 40,000 square feet. It actually extends a quarter mile from one end to the other, and it’s been added on to six or seven times, store manager Stephen Lindenberger said.

“Jay Lehman was into antiques,” he said of the store’s founder and namesake. “He would buy things and restore things. All these are all his collections. It’s neat to watch grandparents with their kids and hear, ‘Yeah, I used to have that tool.’ Or there is a typewriter over here – ‘Yeah, I learned to type on that.’ He had a passion for it, for restoring older things.”

Those older restored items create the museum vibe, a coexistence with the many items for sale.

“We tell people the first time you look at it you have to look up, because that’s the museum part,” Lindenberger said. “The second time you look down and come buy something.”

The back part of Lehman’s is the original store from 1955. Lehman started out selling appliances and goods to the Amish, and over time it blossomed in both inventory and reputation as well as the scope of its customers.

In the 1970s, when it was known as Lehman’s Hardware and Appliances store, it was estimated to be the state’s largest store specializing in coal- and wood-burning stoves and fuel-oil or kerosene heaters.

Beams are original in what was a barn, and the aisles of products are actually old horse stalls that hold the eclectic but well-organized selections. Lehman had purchased a barn and had it rebuilt, refurbished and reinforced to expand the store.

Assorted mechanical pieces dot the walls and beams. Old sanding belts hang high and loop downward. Posted near the checkout are donated collections of pens and yard sticks.

One area – the “buggy barn,” named for its original purpose – holds carvings from Paul Weaver, who creates intricate reliefs. The beautiful artistic works are made of wood, showing settlers’ scenes and other tranquil settings. They are for display only.

The entire space is a giant photo opportunity. An Amish buggy sits near an English phone booth Lehman restored (it has a working phone). An old Sohio gas pump stands, reminiscent of a time when they were common in roadside stations.

And you can buy a piece of fudge to nibble on while you peruse the artifacts.

The family that owns Hartville Hardware bought Lehman’s a few years ago. But the mission of what Lehman’s is about remains. As Lindenberger says: “What kind of experience can we create for customers to make it memorable?”

Ninety-five percent of people who walk into Lehman’s are tourists, he said. A typical week will see customers coming from an average of 40 states.

“As the tourist traffic has increased, the Amish traffic has decreased,” said Lindenberger, who said they tend to buy from their own community.

Shoppers walk past a 1955 pickup truck out front before entering the trove of Lehman’s delights. A whiteboard holds notes from visitors who scrawl their hometowns. The board is a testament to Lehman’s drawing power as customers saunter in and out of the store’s organized areas and rooms.

Housewares comprise the biggest-selling area, Lindenberger said, with some items offering astounding options. More than 300 cookie cutters cling to a wall. Old-fashioned candy fills bins. And 400-plus options of sodas in bottles – some of which bear the likeness of the founder who had a fondness for the beverage – line shelves.

Part of the store’s reputation comes from its selection of wood-burning stoves, some of which go for more than $3,000. Lehman even had a license plate that read STOVES.

Born in Kidron, Lehman was a Mennonite who traveled the world and had been a mechanic before taking over the store. Three pivotal moments in U.S. history all contributed to giving Lehman’s a boost on the national scene: The oil crisis of the 1970s, Y2K preparation in 1999 and the aftermath of the terrorist attacks on Sept. 11, 2001.

“We have everything from folks who want to live off the grid to folks who want to have some modern conveniences and everything in between,” Lindenberger said.

That includes oil lamps, canned meat that lasts for years and canning supplies. Not to mention knives.

A designated area holds cases filled with shiny, sharp knives, many from W.R. Case & Sons, a company that dates to the 1800s. Some are display only, others for sale.

Bee-keeping products include a display of live bees scurrying in a hive. A few shelves hold books covering topics that include cooking, first aid, survival – even knot-making.

One wall really has a museum feel, extolling the virtues of Jay Lehman, who died at 91 on July 26, 2020.

“For a simpler life” it reads, with informational placards describing five tenets of Lehman’s: Understandable, Satisfying, Comforting, Preparedness and Sustainable.

A simpler life doesn’t mean easy, though. The store – built over a creek – has endured two serious floods. Seven inches of water filled Lehman’s last year while one in 2011 is remembered with a water line marked near a cash register.

And as simplistic as the store’s approach is, it has enjoyed a bit of limelight. Country singer Craig Morgan recently bought a stove from Lehman’s. Hollywood productions regularly buy equipment, including purchases for films including “Brokeback Mountain,” “Pirates of the Caribbean,” “Back to the Future III” and others.

“There’s more than you think,” Lindenberger said.

What keeps Lehman’s thriving is its uniqueness: There simply are no places with its variety and volume, he said.

“You can get lost in here pretty easy,” Lindenberger said.

Location: 4779 Kidron Road, Wayne County (Lehman’s uses Kidron in promotional addresses, but its map location is Dalton.)

Hours: 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday to Saturday. Closed Sunday.

Miles from downtown Cleveland: 58.

Food: A small café within the store has sandwiches and ice cream. Everything is under $8. Kidron Pizza is across the street in a building that shares space with the Post Office.

Nearby: J.M. Smucker Co. Store in Orrville (5 miles), Paradigm Shift Brewing in Massillon (10 miles), JAFB Brewing in Wooster (12 miles), McKinley Presidential Library & Museum in Canton (22 miles), Pro Football Hall of Fame in Canton (23 miles).