Only four years after opening his drug business in the 600 Block of the Public Square, his daughter Mary Alice Vick married John M. Cline in 1876. John learned the drug business from his father in law and in 1877 switched from being a livestock dealer to opening his own drug business in the southeast corner of the Square. This location was in the building where the Stylart Shoppe later spent decades doing business just south of where the current City Hall is located in 2013.
After 14 years in this location, John moved his store to its popularly known location at 1203 Public Square in the northeast corner of the square, then just two doors from the old City Hall.
John M. had two sons follow in his footsteps. Leo V. opened up his own drug business in Herrin, Illinois in 1900 and Samuel Philip opened up his drug business in Murphysboro at the corner of 10th and Walnut Streets.
When John Cline retired in 1920, two years before his death, he sold out his business to his son Leo V. Cline of Herrin and his nephew Snyder S. Vick of Johnston City.
The younger Cline and Vick had already formed the Cline-Vick drug stores in 1918. By then Leon V. Cline was operating his store at Herrin and another in West Frankfort. Vick had a store at Johnston City and with his younger brother Jay Vick, owned a store at Carterville he had purchased in 1904. Together they acquired a store at Zeigler, Illinois in 1918 when their Cline-Vick Corporation was formed and added Benton, Illinois in 1924 and Harrisburg, Illinois in 1928.
In 1929, Cline and Vick merged their Illinois stores with the H.A. Woods chain of drug stores in Evansville, Indiana. Snyder Vick later went Jackson, Mississippi to manage a chain of drug stores there but returned to Marion in 1932 to resume management of the Southern Illinois stores. He died here in 1937 at the age of 55.
An outgoing individual, Snyder Vick was active in business and civic affairs of the county in which he held citizenship at various periods of his life in three of its principal towns, Marion, Johnston City and Carterville. He was Vice President of the Williamson County Fair Association and Secretary-Treasurer of the Illinois Association of Agricultural Fairs.
Upon his death, Vick’s son Edwin took over the management, but sold his interest when he was called to military service in World War II.
The younger Vick later rejoined the Rexall Drug Company of which he became Vice President before becoming President of a national pet food company headquartered in Chicago, Illinois.
The number of stores bearing the Cline-Vick name was eventually reduced to the store in Marion which operated for several years under the ownership of Mrs. Margaret (Cline) Hendricks and her husband Arthur Hendricks, a Marion attorney. Mrs. Hendricks was the daughter of Leo V. Cline of the original Cline-Vick drug store chain. She continued with the business with her sons, John Hendricks and Dr. Roger Hendricks after the death of her husband.
John Hendricks became manager of the Marion store as a representative of the fifth generation of his family in the business.
The drug store has seen its share of disaster. On October 10, 1923 a fire did serious damage to that section of the square with a fire originating in the basement of the drug store. On May 18, 1942, another fire originating in the storage room of the store caused damage. Then again, on August 10, 1964, yet another fire did serious damage to the store.
The last fire, in 1964, broke the camel’s back and the drug store, after being in one location for over 70 years, relocated to 403 W. Main Street.
On February 2, 1966, during a heavy snow fall, the brick building’s wall and roof began to collapse causing the evacuation of the store and adjacent professional offices.
Following that disaster, the drug store occupied a building built for it adjacent to the then Super Saver Food Mart at 1914 West Main Street
John Hendricks remained with the store until 1976 when the family store ownership ended with the purchase of the business by Lowell Reigel of Harrisburg, Illinois.
(Data from Glimpses of Life, Homer Butler; 1905 Souvenir History, WCHS; compiled by Sam Lattuca on 02/28/2013)