The Smith & Bishel hardware store on Main St., between the Middlesex Historical Society and Brewbaker’s, has been around since 1898.

“My Dad worked here 50 years,” said current owner Scott Bishel. “My uncle worked here 45 years. I’ve only worked here 30 years, so I have a ways to go.” 

The wall to the right as one walks in displays photographs and newspaper articles related to the store from throughout the store’s history. In his grandfather’s time, it was a classic hardware store, with hardwood paneling and large drawers and running ladders that Bishel’s father and uncle played on whenever they could.
University students, according to Bishel, have made interesting customers, often looking for objects for art projects not based on their function as tools, but rather on their color, shape and movement.
Bishel has noticed an increase in customers buying from Home Depot and Wal-Mart over the past thirty years. Even before arriving in Middletown, these chain stores have been a source of competition for Main Street’s hardware stores. However, Bishel explained that “sometimes it’s cheap, not inexpensive,” since stores like Home Depot have a product line comprised of lower quality components in order to offer the items at a certain price. This is part of what Bishel calls”the Home Depot effect” where, “if they don’t sell a gazillion [of a product], they don’t make them anymore.”