Lacey's Store

Daniel Lacey’s wholesale and retail store was among the earliest businesses in Eganville, opening its doors in 1854. What began as a small venture grew steadily over the decades until, by 1895, it was said to carry just about everything a household or farm might need.

An advertisement from that time boasted an impressive range: staple and fancy dry goods, leather and shoe findings, groceries and provisions, teas “a specialty,” crockery and glassware, stationery, hardware of every kind, bar iron and steel, coal, the well-regarded Merrickville ploughs and stoves, and even oils supplied by the Samuel Rogers Oil Company. It was the very definition of a one-stop shop in the Ottawa Valley.

Dan Lacey himself had begun as a cobbler, but his ambition carried him far beyond shoemaking. Working alongside his son Jack, he expanded his business interests to become a leading merchant whose store served as a cornerstone of Eganville’s early commercial life.