Ed McCauslen’s Florist business in Steubenville comes to an end

STEUBENVILLE -- Pam Thomas says it hasn't been easy coming to grips with the realization that Ed McCauslen's Florist, a business that's been in her husband's family for 148 years, is no more.

Their last day in business was Nov. 30. Since then, they've busied themselves with clearing their storefront at 173 N. Fourth St., Steubenville, out. Tuesday will be their last day there.

"It's so hard," she said. "It's been in our family for a long time, and we've seen a lot, you know? It's so emotional, very emotional, for us, just the memories down there, the good ones, the bad ones."

Established in 1875, the business has been passed from generation to generation. Thomas and her daughter, Melissa Gilham, were at last week's council meeting to accept a resolution honoring the family's commitment to Steubenville and the surrounding area, calling the shop an "essential asset to the community.

"It was time to step back a little bit and enjoy our life with our grandkids," she said. "Harry and I worked together every day, now it's time to enjoy each other not like working partners but as a married couple. It was hard (to adapt) at first but I'm starting to get used to it."

She said the hardest part is leaving her customers behind.

"I'm going to miss my dance moms," she said. "And I loved doing dances, weddings ... that was my favorite part about it. From dances to weddings to baby showers, you just get involved with families in their lives. I got to know a lot of good people; it was really nice.

She said their kids and grandkids were an integral part of the business as well.

"There's just a lot of memories - not only with our family but with our community family," she said. "We got attached to everyone's family, and it's hard to leave them."

She said her husband, Harry, started working at the shop when he was just 16. Like most employers, Thomas said it was "getting harder and harder" to find help these days.

"We needed more designers, more help, but nowadays you can't find any help," she said. "We have older designers who are going to retire, too. It takes a lot to design, to stand there and lift buckets - it's not easy, but it is rewarding."

She said they'd get calls at home from customers who needed something done in a hurry, "We'd say yes. It's just customer service -- Harry and I learned it from my father-in-law and he learned it from his dad. But we loved what we did, we both did. To create, for people -- to have them be happy about it, to put a smile on someone's face says it all, it makes you feel good.

"It's a lot when you own it. You're married to it - it's just time for us to step back a little bit and enjoy our life with our grandkids and each other. We've worked together every day, not it's time for us to enjoy each other, not like working partners but as a married couple."

Thomas told council last week it's "been a pleasure for all of us, for our family."

"We enjoyed serving this community -- Steubenville is a great community and we enjoyed so much helping with all the schools, the dances and parades. We loved what we did.

"Your family is our family, that's why it's so hard for us to leave," Thomas said, saying later that "it's always hard to turn the page, but we have a lot of good memories there."

The closing of Ed McCauslen's Florist in Steubenville does not impact the Weirton store, which has a different owner and a different name -- McCauslen's Any Occasion Florist.