Bill Garwood Closes Common Sense Bookstore
 | Author:
Nancy Marks, MT43 News reporter
Nancy Marks: MT43 News Secretary and News Editor |
The Final Chapter of Common Sense Bookstore
MT43 News Staff Reporter
Bill Garwood’s Common Sense Bookstore is closing for good. He began calling his regular customers last week to let them know. He says some of them cried when he told them. Then they came out in droves to buy up his books.
“It is what it is,” he said in an interview on the first day of his half-off sale. “It’s time to do something else.”
Bill was euphoric and speaking in his familiar way with shoulders lifting and hands flying. He said people had come from all over to buy books. Some came from Bozeman, Three Forks and Helena. His collection in the airy, bright space on Broadway Street included all kinds of Bibles, five shelves of the Classics and a shelf of books in various languages. Books of poetry filled an entire shelf. He has a “Son of Tarzan” antique book published in 1917. And of course, cookbooks.
His children’s book collection was on display. “You never know what kind of books people want, but they will always buy a children’s book, for their grandchildren, you know. They sell the best,” he said.
Bill can always find comedy in life. He said an older lady came in when his store was earlier in the Betsy building. He asked if he could help her. Nope. She went through each aisle carefully. “Can I help you find what you are looking for?” Nope again. Finally, she came to the counter. “I told my friends, if I find shelves and shelves of romance books, I’m outta here!” She did not find any romance books.
Bill, who served 33 years in the Army, moved to Townsend with his wife Linda in September of 2011. He said they came from California thinking they might like Colorado. Montana was not an option: Linda hates the cold. But when they got to Montana, they realized it was a dry cold. That was okay.
They were driving through Townsend when the Broadwater High School homecoming parade was happening on the main street. They could not get over how enthusiastic and friendly people were. “Yes, Townsend was the place where we wanted to settle down,” he said.
Opening the bookstore had been Bill’s longtime dream. He said it filled him with joy to see people walk out with a book and a smile on their face.
As to Bill’s future, tears came to his eyes. He will miss his beloved bookstore, but he thinks he will look for a part-time job, and maybe spend time collating the columns he wrote for years for the Broadwater Reporter and Broadwater County News. He enjoyed writing the column every week. “Maybe I’ll publish them in a book of my own,” he considered.
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PhotoCredit: Nancy Marks Photo
Image 1 Caption: Common Sense Bookstore owner Bill Garwood displays his children's book section.
Nancy Marks Photo
Image 2 Caption: Bill at his bookstore desk before closing down for good. Bill is very proud of his 33 years in the United States Army. His rank was Sergeant 1st Class-E7.
Nancy Marks Photo
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