Mob The Merchant: Joseph's, Dark Sea Glass

When he hears from visitors patronizing his store, Eli Silverstein said there's a common thread.

"We had a store like this my hometown," visitors tell the owner of in Havre de Grace.

The key word: had.

Stores like Joseph's simply don't exist anymore. But in Havre de Grace, the clothing store is still running after all these years.

"Business has gotten more difficult today than I can every remember. It's really tough for a small business," Silverstein said. "We could not be in business without the fact that we own the building. If I had to pay the going rate for rent at a mall, we couldn’t exist. It’s tough. It’s really tough."

Silverstein has seen more businesses come and go than most property owners in Havre de Grace.

"Havre de Grace has a lot going for it, with regard to the location on the water, we have a lot of really fine restaurants," Silverstein said. "I’m hearing from a lot of people that have moved into Bulle Rock. The new people in town are very downtown oriented. They’re supporting us. They go into the Vineyard, Laurrapin Grille and the other restaurants."

Silverstein hopes on Saturday they'll patronize and —which are being mobbed by Havre de Grace Main Street.

The Mob The Merchant event hits both downtown businesses Saturday morning, in an attempt to drive a high volume of traffic into the shops.

The mob starts at Josephs—at 122 North Washington St.—at 9:30 a.m., followed by a visit to —at 358 Pennington Ave.—at 10 a.m.

Patch placed calls to Dark Sea Glass but did not hear back.

from local photographer , which features some of the shop's fine work.

TELL US: Are you planning to join the mob on Saturday? Leave a comment.