Lögberg-Heimskringla - 01.12.2019, Page 7

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Lögberg-Heimskringla • 1. desember 2019 • 7
Stefan Jonasson
Tergesen’s store at the
corner of Centre Street
and First Avenue in Gimli,
Manitoba, is one of the town’s
iconic places – and it’s not just
because of its central location.
Along with the expansive
beach, inland harbour, and
towering Viking statue,
Tergesen’s is familiar to anyone
who has ever visited Gimli. It’s
a reference point, a meeting
place, an architectural gem, and
the source of some of the most
interesting merchandise you’ll
find anywhere.
From the tin siding to the
old wooden floors, and from
the old-fashioned cash register
to the antique cameras and
paintings behind the counter,
the store speaks of family pride
and small-town virtue. It’s
like stepping into an old-time
general store that is stocked
with the latest merchandise,
albeit with a few items bound to
trigger feelings of nostalgia.
H.P. Tergesen & Sons
opened its doors more than 120
years ago – on the very first day
of 1899 – when Hans Pjetur
Tergesen . H.P. had immigrated
to Canada a dozen years earlier,
working in Saskatchewan
and Winnipeg before moving
to Gimli, where he supplied
residents with handmade tools
and implements. He was a
tinsmith by trade, which helps
explain the store’s uniquely
recognizable façade. The store’s
inventory rapidly expanded and
H.P., who was sometimes paid
in barter with farm produce
and forest products, traded
both ways between Gimli and
Winnipeg. It wasn’t long before
H.P. Tergesen & Sons was a full-
service general merchant with
dry goods, clothing, housewares,
and even groceries. H.P. and his
wife, Sigríður Pálsdóttir, lived
with their family on the top floor
of what was originally a two-
storey building before moving to
a spacious new home on Fourth
Avenue nearly a decade later.
H.P. Tergesen was
progressive in business and
an early adopter of new
technologies. He served on
the municipal council and,
following its incorporation as a
town, he twice served as mayor.
In the 1920s, the second floor
was removed from the building
and the materials recycled to
build a satellite location to
serve the growing number of
cottagers. You can still visit the
second floor, if you’d like – it’s
now home to Brennivins, the
town’s much-loved pizzeria.
Over the years, various
merchandise lines have come and
gone, and side businesses have
been operated out of Tergesen’s
store, but the Tergesen family
has overseen both the continuity
and the change. H.P.’s son,
Johann (Joe), took over the
store with his wife, Lara (née
Solmundson), and their son,
Terry, helped out along with his
wife, Lorna (née Stefanson).
Then their son, Soren, joined the
business and expanded it in a
way that captured the attention of
a new generation before he was
tragically killed in a car accident
in 1991. Soren’s younger brother
Stefan stepped in to carry on. In
each generation, family members
have involved themselves in the
business in one way or another.
Today, H.P.’s great-grandson,
Stefan, operates the store with
the same creativity and common
sense that has characterized the
business since it began.
I’m not a big shopper myself.
Shopping for clothes, especially,
is a chore, not an entertainment.
But I rarely venture into town
without stopping at Tergesen’s.
And I can linger there for hours,
although sometimes other
customers get in my way – it
can be pretty crowded, at times,
particularly in the summer
months.
Most of my family – and
most visitors, I suspect – head
for the clothing that occupies
the main part of the store. The
clothing, which includes daily
wear, outerwear, sleepwear,
and footwear, is distinctive
and attractive. If you pick
something up, nobody’s going
to mistake what you’re wearing
for something you picked up
any old place. You will make a
statement. And there’s equally
distinctive jewellery and
accessories to complete your
look. However, I always head
to the next room, where the real
treasures are for sale.
Tergesen’s has the best
small-town book department in
Manitoba and it’s on my personal
Top Ten list for bookstores across
the continent. Having visited
every province and the vast
majority of states, where I’ve
accumulated a personal library
of more than 7,000 volumes, I
consider myself an authority on
this particular subject. While the
book department is large for a
small town, it’s not especially
large compared to other
bookstores, but the volumes it
contains are judiciously selected,
timely, and relevant. Of course,
the book department contains
more books about Iceland than
you’ll find anywhere outside
of Iceland itself. I can honestly
say that if it were the only place
I ever bought books, I would
never want for something
interesting to read.
The housewares, novelties,
and giftwares are equally
enticing. While many people
may think of Tergesen’s as the
quaint store where they shop
in the summer, it’s one of my
major Christmas shopping
destinations. From stocking
stuffers to kitchen gadgets
to apparel, I complete my
Christmas list each year without
the stress that affects those who
frequent city malls. And the gifts
I spy (and buy) at Tergesen’s
are invariably distinctive –
sometimes genuinely unique.
Tergesen’s continues its
founder’s community spirit
and, far beyond its commercial
activities, the store is a centre of
community life, a promoter and
sponsor of cultural activity, a
champion of local business, and
a symbol of tried and true values
that make Gimli a good place to
live and an attractive destination
for visitors.
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The ConsulaTe General of ICeland sends ITs very besT wIshes for
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we Thank all people of ICelandIC desCenT In norTh aMerICa
for TheIr frIendshIp and CooperaTIon In 2019!
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TERGESEN’S – MODERN GOODS, OLD-TIME CHARM
The pride of history is everywhere at Tergesen’s. The 1910 cash register attracts people’s attention.