By the mid-1950s Turner had 35 department stores in Kentucky and Tennessee. The switch to retailing resulted in annual sales above $2 million by the early 1950s. Turner and Son with an initial investment of $5,000 each. In October 1939, James and Cal opened J.L.

James' only child Cal Turner accompanied his father to these closeouts at a young age, gaining valuable business knowledge and skills. During the Great Depression, he began buying and liquidating bankrupt general stores. James left the sales job after 10 years and settled his family in Scottsville, Kentucky. After two unsuccessful attempts at retailing, James became a traveling dry goods salesman for a Nashville wholesale grocer. James had to quit school and never completed his education so he could work the family farm and help provide for his mother and siblings. James Turner's father died in an accident in 1902 when James was only 11. Turner and Son Building in Scottsville, Kentucky.ĭollar General has its origin in Scottsville, Kentucky, with James Luther 'J.L.' Turner and his son Cal Turner.

Dollar general store