Gluckauf Store

                                   The Store at Bidwell built by Joseph Gluckauf

Joseph Gluckauf built the first stone store in Bidwell after the 1854 fire destroyed an earlier wooden building.  On April 7, 1855 the Butte Record newspaper advertisement announced the opening of the new Fire Proof Store! John Bendle leased and operated the store in 1858, then purchased the business on July 5, 1859, and continued to operate it for several years. After the store closed, the building foundation on the riverside (left) was undermined by mining activities, and later a portion of the wall and the roof collapsed. The outer shell of the building remained standing until 1964. The remnants of  the walls represented the last standing building in the historic town of Bidwell at Bidwell’s Bar.

Front of Gluckauf Store at Bidwell’s Bar. Newcomb Street was located parallel to the front of the building in the area where the ladies are standing.  The visible road in the foreground is a more recent pathway. In this view, the Bidwell Bar Suspension Bridge was located directly behind the store building. A faint trace of the road to the bridge can be seen near the back corner of the building on the right side. Also the road on the north side of the Feather River can be seen near the lower left foreground corner of the building. In this photo it is evident the earth has been removed from the area on the left side of the building, too the area of the Feather River, by several years of mining activities. For the photo detective’s an enlargement of the photo shows the shadowy outline of a pre-1920’s vintage automobile located in the dark area about half way between the left edge of the building and the edge of the photo. The identity of individuals and the date of the photo are unknown.       Photo: Lois McDonald Collection/Authors Collection

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