EMERSON—When this photo was taken, in 1930, this building, at 184 Kinderkamack Road in Emerson, was home to Bamond’s Grocery Store. Note the Ford Model A coupe.
The store was founded and owned by Rocco Bamond (1890–1955) and his wife, Carmela. According to author Dwight de Stefan in “Emerson: From Basilicata to Etna,” Rocco was the son of Frank Bamond, a local farmer. Many times a week, Frank traveled for several hours by horse and wagon to Paterson and to the ferry in Edgewater to sell his produce.
As Rocco aged, it seemed more practical to sell the vegetables locally.
Rocco and Carmela, who disliked farming, handled the mercantile side of the family business. Rocco’s nephew, Johnny Bamond (1916–1975), later took over the grocery, expanded it, and improved the building.
The building stood for a century, though in later years a nail salon took the place of the old grocery storefront. Still, the exterior of the building was largely unchanged, with its little arched doorway that was a throwback to a different era in Emerson.
The structure, like those around it, was razed as part of Emerson’s ongoing downtown redevelopment project.
— Kristin Beuscher, a former editor of Pascack Press, is president of Pascack Historical Society in Park Ridge and edits its quarterly members’ newsletter, Relics.