Walsmith’s opens in Rehoboth in 1948

Hundreds, if not thousands, of businesses have operated on Rehoboth Avenue in Rehoboth Beach since its founding as a Methodist camp in 1879. This image was made in 1949 of Walsmith’s Variety Store at the corner of Rehoboth Avenue and Second Street.

The building might look familiar to some, as it still stands today, home to Scandinavian Occasion, Bike To Go, in2soles and Sharee’s Fashion, Jewelry and Accessories.

According to an excerpt written by Scott Walsmith in the the book “When Life Was a Day at the Beach” by James D. Meehan, Walsmith’s started from scratch. It opened in June 1948 in the Moore Building and stayed there until 1964 when it moved across the street.

Walsmith’s was the first tenant in the building, and the family lived in an apartment on the second floor.

“My dad was just somebody who really knew the variety store business and could come in and open a store. He and my mother were both Woolworth people,” Scott wrote. The Walsmiths also had a store near the old Belhaven Hotel, but it closed in the fall of 1961. Also occupying the building in this image are a drug store and an appliance store.