W.H. and H.W. Cely were successful merchants in antebellum Greenville. This receipt from their dry goods store shows typical things bought there in 1872. Three-quarters of a century later, five other Cely brothers started a lumber company after returning from fighting in World War II. Today it is known as Cely Construction and has building projects all around Greenville.
John M. Nolan is owner of Greenville History Tours (greenvillehistorytours.com) and author of “A Guide to Historic Greenville, SC” and “Lost Restaurants of Greenville, SC.”
