HISTORY
John George Reiner arrived in Wellesley in 1866 and built the building circa 1880. Made of yellow brick, the building reflects the architecture of the late 19th century. The building originally known as 44 William St South housed a general store operated by Reiner with various partners, including his brothers. Eckhart Stein was a partner during the 1880’s and in 1907 the general store was owned and operated as Reiner Bros & Co. In 1930, Albert Reiner bought the building and by 1941 Mary E Bowman owned it. Reiner had a woolen mill constructed behind the store and opened the mill along with other enterprises, one of which was Forsyth shirt factory. By 1950, Andrew Steckley bought the building and operated as Steckley Insurance.
On September 25 1989, the building became Schmidtsville Restaurant, operated by Rita and Harold Steinmann. They named the place after the original name of the village.
The Beginning of Schmidtsville
In 1835 John Schmidt, an adventurous fellow moved from Lancaster, PA to Canada. He settled in the area before the land was surveyed and built a house on David Street, as well as a sawmill and a dam. The community grew around him so it was naturally called Schmidtsville. Schmidt only stayed a few years until he had his squatters rights legalized, then he sold out and moved on. Harold and Rita sold the business to Linda and Mike Robinson who only owned it a few years before selling to Rosalie Gerber on March 12, 2001. She renovated and opened the restaurant, a gift shop and the Sears depot on April 3, 2001. From the fall of 2001 to spring 2002, the bricks were sandblasted and the front porch built. In December 2003, Rosalie bought Ropps Pro Hardware and extensive renovations were done in 2004 which opened a new dining room, expanding seating from 50 to 104. In 2010 she added more kitchen space, a new entrance, elevator, and washrooms for the banquet facility located below the dining room. The project was completed in 2011. In the following Christmas breaks into January, Rose completely gutted the gift shop and made new washrooms. In 2008, I, Miriam Kuepfer joined the team as a server, then a supervisor. I’ve always loved serving our customers! On March 1, 2022, my husband Glenn and I bought the business and building from Rose.
Our Mission Statement
To provide a warm and inviting atmosphere where friends and family meet to eat and fellowship together
Where strangers become part of our Schmidtsville family
To be a support to our community
THANK YOU FOR YOUR CONTINUOUS SUPPORT!
Miriam & Glenn Kuepfer
