About Us

Boone Drugs Incorporated, headquartered in Boone, NC, was founded by Dr. George Kelly Moose on June 15, 1919. Moose studied law at Georgetown University and was licensed to practice law in North Carolina. It is unclear of the specific personal motivation which convinced him to transition from law to pharmacy, but his friendship with John McNairy had an influence. G.K. (as Dr. Moose was called by friends) met John R. McNairy, who owned a pharmacy in Lenoir, in the early years of the 20th century.

McNairy was in search of a business partner and convinced Moose to attend pharmacy school at George Washington University. While in school, Moose served as part-time assistant to various pharmacists in the U.S. Department of Commerce. Moose returned to North Carolina with his pharmacy degree and together with McNairy, established the Boone Drug Company in 1919. Shortly after, G.K. took over full ownership to allow McNairy to return to his own drug store in Lenoir. Moose soon became a prominent distributor of medication and healthcare to the area. Boone Drug was your typical pharmacy and soda fountain; a place to greet your neighbors and bring your kids to enjoy vanilla cokes and giant cinnamon sticks.

For 50 years, George set the standards for friendly, honest service and made Boone Drug a place customers looked forward to visiting. Customers adored him for his good sense of humor and dependable service. People walked from miles away to get their medicine from Boone Drug. One man walked 15 miles from the small community of Sampson every time he needed medicine. Moose rented the second story of his building to a group of doctors who formed the Hagaman Clinic. The clinic was run by J.B. Hagaman Sr., his son, J.B. Hagaman Jr. and their nurse, Miss Mary Krider, and established itself as a popular and respected provider. There was also a well-known dentist named Dr. William Matheson who practiced upstairs from Boone Drug. These clinics meant constant traffic through the drug store and great business for Dr. Moose. He would keep his drug store open until each doctor had seen his last patient. This was sometimes very late at night. Boone Drug was incorporated in 1939. That same year, one of Boone Drug's future co-owners, Wayne Richardson, came to work for Boone Drug.

Wayne Richardson had worked for John R. McNairy in Lenoir. He made his way to Boone where he sought employment with Boone Drug. McNairy called on Moose and asked him to give Wayne Richardson a job. In 1947, Moose sold half of the ownership to Wayne Richardson and his brother, O.K. Richardson, who was a pharmacist at Elk Pharmacy in Elkin. O.K and Wayne Richardson had wonderful memories of their years at Boone Drug and working with Dr. Moose. Wayne remarked that in having worked with G.K. for close to 40 years, they never had a cross word, although, there was a lot of kidding going on, especially since George was a Republican and Wayne was a Democrat. Wayne recalled that Moose never turned anyone down who needed medicine. From 1919 to the mid 50's the entire store was in a small space downtown next to the Great Atlantic and Pacific Tea Company (A&P). A little-known secret is that Boone Drug's original location was the current space occupied by Mast Store's Candy Barrel, but it moved across the street after two years. The small space featured a full-service pharmacy which sold all the latest remedies for any ailment and sundries. It also held a soda fountain where you could sit and enjoy flavored cola, ice cream, or snacks. They even sold fishing tackle. In the 50's, it was decided by the owners, Moose and the Richardson brothers, to knock out the wall separating them from the A&P store. This allowed Boone Drug to expand in every way.

This expansion allowed the pharmacy to have more room for stocking medicine, the shelves could hold more sundries, and the soda fountain could add a grill which expanded not only space, but popularity as well. Memories of the small Boone Drug store are still there in the beams running through the middle of the store which show precisely where the wall once stood. The popularity of the soda fountain grew to a level where more seating was needed. A large dining area that seated 50 people was added to the back of the store in the early 80's. The room was appropriately named, "Joe's Bald Room", after Boone Drug's fourth co-owner, Joe Miller. Joe always had a special bond with Boone Drug since he was born in a car in front of the store because his parents couldn't make it to the doctor's office in time.

Joe Miller became a partner in 1963 adding a unique blend of wit and charm to the already famous drug store. When you walked through the doors of the original Boone Drug location, you would find yourself somewhere back in time and wanting to stay. The walls accumulated years of antique signs, medicine bottles and prescriptions from the past. The smell of home-cooked food and kind words from strangers made for a unique experience. In the sixties and early seventies Boone Drug's ownership transitioned from Moose and the Richardson Brothers to Joe Miller, Jim Furman, and John Stacy. It was under this leadership Boone Drug experienced their largest growth. Between 1964 and the early years of the next century, Boone Drug expanded from one location to multiple pharmacies in three states. During this time Boone Drug maintained the standards founded by Dr. Moose; a pharmacy devoted to friendly, honest service. Speaking about Boone Drug, John Stacy said, "our main goal is to do what we can for the community and to help in any way possible. There's more to being a pharmacist than just counting pills… it's all in treating people the way you want to be treated." John (Johnny) served as president of Boone Drug until 2016.

In 2016 Corey Furman became an owner and was appointed to the position of President. To this day Boone Drug continues to set the example of customer care through honest, efficient service. We have expanded our services to include vaccinations, medication synchronization, delivery, curbside care, comprehensive med reviews, point of care testing, online services, auto refills, and more to our existing line of pharmacy, DME, respiratory, and compounding programs. Speaking of Boone Drug, Furman said, "we are proud of the foundation passed to us from G.K., O.K., Wayne, Joe, Jim, and Johnny, and we are honored to be asked to continue their legacy. We thank God for our family of employees, and we pray consistently for the wisdom and ability of all our employees to seek to honor God by caring for our communities to the best of our ability." Boone Drug is simply a place like no other. Visit any of our Boone Drug locations and see why we've been around for over 100 years!