The Botha Mercantile building is the oldest surviving commercial building in the hamlet, and as such, has a detailed history.
Coming from Nebraska by train, Mrs. and Mr. E.H. Prudden arrived in Lacombe on December 6th, 1902, with their sons Willis and Earl. The family operated a store at Old Red Willow before moving to Botha, Alberta. In 1909, Willis and Earl built a large building, 75 x 80 feet, known as the Prudden, Bassler, and Eyestone block. The building originally housed a Hardware Store operated by Lou Bassler and a General Store operated by E.H Prudden. In later years, the Hardware Store was managed by W.F Eyestone.
Additionally, before the Botha School opened in 1912, classes were held in the upper level of the Pruden, Bassler, and Eyestone block store.
Like most historical buildings, ownership changed many hands over the years. Initially, E.H. Prudden operated his General Store in partnership with his sons until 1928, when Willis died suddenly. E.H’s living son, Earl, then partnered with James Gibson, who took over the store entirely in 1931. Times were tough in the ‘30s, so James Gibson moved out of his house and converted a portion of the store building into living quarters to save money. The store operated this way until 1943 when Gibson sold the store to Joe Johnson. Johnson held onto ownership for a brief time, selling to the Groves brothers, Melvin and Morley, in the spring of 1945. Morley and Melvin Groves operated the business until 1974 when they sold to Bill and Ida Cross, who ran the store for five years before selling to Ed and Inge Schowalter.
