Haas Brothers general store in barely remembered Calhoun Village
of Hassig along the West Fork of the Little Kanawha
River between Richardson-Rocksdale, had bananas hanging on store porch in 1913, the produce coming up the Little Kanawha River to Creston and up the West Fork of the Little Kanawha (Randall Whytsell Photo)
By Bob Weaver
"Yes, We Have No Bananas" was a fanciful song written by Louis Prima about a Greek fruit seller who often responded in a confusing manner to his customers.
Surprisingly, in the long forgotten Village of Hassig along the West Fork of the Little Kanawha, near the Village of Richardson, in a 1913 photo there is an ample string of bananas on the front porch, with a large display of vegetables.
Considering the remote location of the store, having fresh bananas seemed far-fetched.
The fresh fruit and vegetables delivered up the Little Kanawha River on pack boats, and in this case, up the West Fork on a paddle boat that had steel spikes on the paddles to pull over the sand bars.
Hassig was the site of early natural gas development, and had another store or two with a couple saloons.
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