From the Lawrence Daily Journal-World for April 2, 1915:

“Lathrop Bullene, age 89 years, one of the oldest and perhaps the best known businessman of Lawrence, was born July 7, 1826, at Hannibal, New York, and died at his home in Lawrence last night. Mr. Bullene has a most interesting past having suffered the hardships of the early life in Kansas…. He was married to Susan F. Read of Bedford, New York on November 3rd, 1847. Soon after this event he bought a store in New York at the corner of Third Avenue and Eighty-sixth street. At the time of the western movement Mr. Bullene decided to come west but had no particular place in mind. He came to Dubuque, Iowa, as far as the railroad extended and came overland to Kansas City where he stayed for some time. There he hired a horse and started west going as far as Stanton. He liked the place very much and was almost ready to buy it, but he decided that he wanted to see Lawrence before he made the purchase. He had heard a great deal of Lawrence and at that time it promised to be the metropolis of the West. Mr. Bullene came to Lawrence March 10, 1857, and found that everything was alive and there was a big business here. Every building was occupied and there was no place to get in. He went up town one evening and dropped into a grocery store where an argument was progressing with no little heat. He found that the owner of the stock of goods was threatening to vacate the store because some of the plastering had fallen from the ceiling into his pies and done other damage. Right then and there Mr. Bullene leased the building for five years. A stock of goods was purchased in St. Louis and was shipped to Wyandotte and was hauled overland in wagons…. During the year of the severe drouth Mr. Bullene was sent to St. Louis by the people to purchase food that was shipped to Lawrence and was used to keep the people alive until crops grew again…. The first store he owned in Lawrence was built on Massachusetts and Henry [Eighth] streets. It was destroyed by fire at the time of the Quantrell raid…. The store was rebuilded in 1864 and a brick structure was put up…. In 1865 a three-story structure was built for the Bullene store, but was destroyed by fire in 1873, but was rebuilt the same fall and A. D. Weaver was taken into partnership. In a few years [Bullene] decided to go out of business and he sold to his partner, Mr. Weaver…. He has been very active since the sale of the business in 1885, and has been in the store the greater part of the time, never more contented than when he was active in business. Only since he was stricken last summer has he been unable to be around the place of business.”