Frank Levenson

Frank Levenson (1884-1970) came to America from Pusville, Lithuania as a young boy in the late 1800s. His family name was originally Abbalovitz, but his uncle chose the name Levenson upon arriving in America and other family members followed suit.¹ For a time, Frank and his parents settled in Baltimore, where his father, Louis (c.1855-1910), tried his hand at farming. Unsuccessful in that endeavor, Louis and Frank began peddling and gradually headed south before settling in Bethune, South Carolina. In 1910, Frank moved to Bishopville and opened a general merchandise store at 56 Main Street. In a 1995 interview, Frank’s son, Sam (1918-2006), explained how his father acquired the store:

“every weekend he would come into Bishopville. The bank ran the store and the stable…one weekend he came in, put his wagon up, his mule, and came in the store, and they said, ‘Frank, how would you like to buy this business?’ He said, ‘I ain’t got no money to buy no business.’ ‘Say we want to know how you would like to buy this business?’ He said, ‘I’d like it, if I could afford it.’ ‘So, you take over the stable and the store and you’ll sell horses and mules and groceries, everything the farmer needs right here.’ He said, ‘That sounds good. Where am I going to get the money?’ ‘You want it?’ They shook hands on the deal and that was it. Your word had to be your honor, or you die.”²

In 1915, Frank met his wife, Nettie Cahn Levenson (1895-1988), while she was in town visiting her brothers and fellow merchants, Julius (1880-1968) and Ellis (1882-1938). Together Frank and Nettie eventually had four children and six grandchildren.

According to local historian, Rachael Bowman Bradbury, Frank “also operated livery stables behind the downtown store, one for cows and goats and another for horses and mules.”³ It was said that Nettie always had an abundance of buttermilk, cheese, and sour cream since the animals had to be milked. In time, Frank also opened a liquor store which his son Sam later managed. By the 1960s, Frank was the town’s oldest active merchant, and in 1962 was awarded the title “Dean of Merchants.” After nearly sixty years in business, Frank passed away in 1970.

¹ “Jewish Heritage Collection: Oral history interview with Ella Levenson Schlosburg,” Lowcountry Digital Library, College of Charleston Libraries, May 25, 1995.
² « Jewish Heritage Collection: Oral history interview with Sam Levenson, Carolyn Baruch Levenson, and Ella Levenson Schlosburg” Lowcountry Digital Library, College of Charleston Libraries, May 24, 1995.
³ Rachael Bowman Bradbury, Images of America: Bishopville and Lee County (Charleston, SC: Arcadia, 2010), 28