My love for flowers and a desire to work in my hometown drove me to my 6-month journey of inquiry to decide if uprooting my career and following my passion was a feasible option for me and my family. With their unrelenting support, I purchased this iconic business on August 26, 2022. Sherry has been an integral part of this decision, as she agreed to stay on for a year and possibly part-time there
after. We realized during this process how important it was to us to allow an established business to continue in our community. Small businesses are the heart of any town, and we hope that DuQuoin and the surrounding areas will continue to support us in this endeavor. Giving this town another 100+ years of enjoying the beauty, comfort, and joy of fresh flowers and gifts offered by this little gem will be an awesome addition to the overall history of this small business! While in discussions with Sherry and Leonard, Tracy and I learned some very rich history regarding Thill’s inception and longevity. Please read on for a detailed history from a Thill family member. The History of Thill’s Flowers
Per Wallace P. Hunt, son of Wally and Juanita Hunt (3rd generation owners), from his recollection of the Thill family history:
“...the shop is still there, Sherry Rice runs Thill’s now since she and her husband, Leonard, bought it in 1985. My maternal great grandfather, William, moved his family and business to the 800 North Washington location from either St. John’s, Sunfield or Tamaroa (I’ve gotten two different versions of the story) around 1900- before Marshall Browning Hospital was constructed in the 1920’s. This image was taken about 1910 to 1920 given the model of the vehicle and the profile of the tires. The Purina store (William had at least two sons- one of whom moved to Peoria, IL and started a Thill’s Florist there for many years) had a warehouse on the south side (right out of frame) that was preserved and made into a home for my Aunt Harriet and her husband Vallie West after the store was demolished prior to my birth in 1947. The greenhouses (3) were where my maternal grandfather, Harry, worked each day until his death in 1960. He primarily raised beds of carnations, gladiolas, snapdragons and mums for fresh cut flowers and floral arrangements. My maternal great grandmother, Catherine Thill, used to take fresh cut carnations from the greenhouse and sell them for a nickel apiece during the Great Depression. Hunt, worked in the shop as the primary floral designer from about 1946 to his death in 1984. During the summer, grandfather and Adam Berg, long time right-hand man for my grandfather, would work to whitewash to keep the heat down (under 130F). You can see the whitewash on the glass in this image. During the winter (colder then), grandfather would get up around 2AM each night and walk across North Washington from my grandparent’s home to tend to the coal fired hot water system designed to keep the plants in the houses from freezing. You can see the brick chimney that exhausted the coal fire on the north side behind the Purina shop. In the summer of 1960, my grandmother, Juanita, had her son-in-law, Vallie West (DuQuoin Excavating) tear the greenhouses down. Until 1960, we had ordered a few items from St. Louis Wholesale suppliers- these came by bus- but from that point on, my father made more frequent, weekly trips to St. Louis to hand-pick fresh cut flowers from the markets. He guaranteed the product he sold his customers, so he wanted to start with the best possible. So, all that is left is the first Thill home (725 North Washington), shop, garage (on the north of the image and a modified version of Vallie and Harriet’s home.”
-original photos are in the Facebook feed-
Sherry Rice has owned Thill’ Flowers for 37 years, carrying on the iconic history by keeping the shop at its original location. Thill’s Flowers is now over 120 years old with parts of the store remaining from the initial build.
