On April 15, 1869, George G. Tilden moved to Ames and started a business with B.A. Bigelow and Henry Huntington, operating a general store called Bigelow, Huntington & Tilden on the north side of Main Street near Douglas Avenue.
In 1883, Tilden decided that he wished to be in business for himself. He purchased two lots near the original store and built his own two-story brick building, called the “Tilden Block” (today, Emerhoff’s Shoe Store). In 1883, Tilden traded the Tilden Block for the Bigelow-Huntington building and continued his business. When Tilden died in 1892, his widow Lydia and sons Lucian, Galen, and George took over running the store.
The Tilden building was remodeled several times. In 1915, the Tildens purchased the building across the alley on Douglas Avenue (today Heroic Ink). This gave the Tildens two floors for an expanded grocery business. For a brief time there was a walkway across the alley, connecting the top floors of the buildings. By 1917, Tilden Grocery was said to carry the largest grocery selection in Ames. Clerks took grocery orders and delivered them using horse-drawn, double-deck wagons.
The Tilden Store was the largest and best-known department store in Story County. It was the only store on Main Street to have an elevator. Besides its large Main Street store, Tilden’s also operated branch stores in Campustown. While in operation, the Tilden Store was an important part of both the Ames economy and Ames social life. During business hours, it was a busy center of actvity. Clerks were well-acquainted with regulars.
In the 1940s, many large chain stores moved into Ames, making it more difficult for family-run businesses to operate. When the Tilden Store closed in 1971 with the retirement of Clark Tilden, it had operated for over a hundred years on Main Street.
The head clerks at Tilden's department store posed for a photograph in front of the store in the mid-1920's. From left are Ted Kooser, Agnes Poole, Mary Penfield, Phoebe Cramblit, and a woman named Judy whose last name is unknown. (Farwell T. Brown Photographic Archive)
1943 interior view of Tildens