Last week while the HH and I were on our adventure day driving though southwestern New Hampshire and Vermont, we stopped by the Harrisville General Store for an early lunch. We had actually been through Harrisville once before, in late fall and had stopped off at the General Store for a quick bite.
The store was packed with customers at the time and so I wasn’t able to take a bunch of pictures to share, but this time around I lucked out because we had stopped by just before the lunchtime rush.
Growing up in Western Washington, I had never stepped foot in an old fashioned general store, and so now, every time I see one alongside the road, I just have to stop and check them out. Well, if I can get my husband to turn the car around that is. 😉
The Harrisville General Store has been in business since 1838 {!} and is currently owned by the Historic Harrisville Society which owns and rents out the various old mill buildings around town {how cool is that!?}.
These general stores that are scattered all across the small towns of New England are such gems. Every time I walk around one I find myself wondering what the store looked like 50, 100, 150+ years ago and what sort of products were for sold in the store during that era.
I’m pretty sure even 100 years ago local maple syrup, honey and jams were on the shelves.
Local cheese and seasonal produce too.
The big draw to these country stores though, always seem to be the lunch counter. At least for me anyway. 😉
While some people might have standing lunch orders and just grab their meal and go, the HH and I both love to sit at the tables and people watch as the locals {and sometimes tourists} come and go or talk about the local happenings.
The first time we visited the Harrisville General Store we split an egg salad sandwich {which was OUTSTANDING!} and this time around the HH ordered a BLT and I ordered the Nelson…. A warm egg breakfast sandwich with red onions, avocado and cheese. Both sandwiches were excellent.
The Harrisville General Store, it’s AWESOME! The staff are super friendly, there’s plenty of places to sit {6-7 tables inside + the rocking chairs on the front porch} and the food is spot on. We give it two thumbs up.
So if you ever find yourself in southwestern New Hampshire, make sure to stop by and grab a bite to eat. And hey, all you yarn lovers, don’t forget to visit Harrisville Designs while you are in town too. It’s just across the street.
Have a great day everyone, enjoy the sunshine.
~Mavis
Harrisville General Store
29 Church St, Harrisville, NH 03450
Robin says
Thank you for all these great New England trip ideas! My husband and I will be visiting there in the future, and I’m taking notes. I love small towns, very old buildings/businesses, beautiful countryside, and a quieter pace. I do want to spend a little time in Boston on the oldest streets, the harbor, and at Faneuil Hall Marketplace. Seeing buildings that are 200-300+ years old will be thrilling.
Suzanne says
Oh my gosh, that sandwich counter looks absolutely amazing. I love a place that has fresh, ready-to-go things!
KC says
There’s actually quite a lot in memoir and in fiction (fiction written during the time period, about the time period) about general store contents! It’s pretty cool, but I would loooove to see store photos and inventories.
Practically guaranteed items: a barrel of molasses, vinegar, thread, candy, barrel of crackers, barrel of pickles, hard cheese, basic fabrics (calico, red flannel, and some sort of white “underwear” fabric at the very least), ribbon (for children’s hair ribbon or for trimming dresses), sugar, and tea. (for molasses and vinegar and kerosene, you brought your own receptacle; pickles were fished out and given in paper)
Other items mentioned repeatedly (too many to list, really): galoshes and other rain gear, hats, toys, guns, kerosene, apples, novelty items and cheap jewelry and “gifts” (bric-a-brac or plush albums or fancy books), materials to do the kinds of fancywork most in favor at that time, dried fruit, postcards, Christmas cards, and Valentines (sometimes on display all at once, as an indicator of a store owner not refreshing their wares or displays), candy, the local post office, yeast cakes, imported foods in jars or, when cans became common, cans (anchovies! olives!). Early on, larger stores in rural areas had absolutely all the things-you-can’t-reasonably-make-at-home that were necessary for farming and keeping house (from a saddle and a plow and seed to a washboard and dishes), but mail-order and improved travel options reduced some of that.
Many stores would buy local eggs and butter and re-sell them; some stores would buy locally picked berries or home-grown fruit and veggies, or locally caught fish, and re-sell them. But in other communities, the selling/trading was done directly between people without a middleman, and the general store stuck tightly to “non-perishable” goods. Most stores didn’t sell bread – crackers, yes, bread, no. Some stores took orders and then sent out a wagon to deliver things; small purchases were mostly picked up in person (or a child was sent with the jug for molasses or the order for thread).
In the late 1800s and at least early 1900s, in at least some cities there were Women’s Exchange locations where women could send items on consignment for sale; completed fancywork, jam, baked goods, etc. – and richer city women would go to purchase items better (or, in some cases, just *different*; ah, ennui) than they could get from their grocers or importers. Out in the country, someone looking to earn money from jam (or get items in trade) would either 1. make someone else’s jam for them in their kitchen, being provided with the fruit and sugar and jars and all, or 2. make it themselves and sell it to their neighbors, usually with some sort of prearrangement about how much so-and-so would like, such that they don’t buy more ingredients than they can sell as jam, or 3. take a gamble, make the jam, send it by rail to a Women’s Exchange, and hope it sold (you might enjoy Gentle Breadwinners, by Catherine Own; it’s an instructional novel about poor but genteel girls trying to make a living); they’d also sometimes sell directly to a hotel, if there was a prosperous hotel nearby. I haven’t heard of any general stores offering local preserves, but it could have happened somewhere? Mostly, small-town general stores seemed to focus heavily on the things you couldn’t reasonably make at home (like calico or store-bought candy or galoshes) or that a decent segment of the population didn’t have the time or inclination to make (vinegar), rather than re-selling homemade goods – I don’t know when that shifted, though.
But they’re fascinating institutions! 🙂
KC says
Sorry, that’s “Catherine Owen” not “Catherine Own.”
Lolly says
This made me think of my honeymoon. We visited the adirondacks in NY, and dh took me to some general store for breakfast one morning. Wooden floors that creaked, selling any/everything, and then in back was a place to order bfast or lunch. We got some amazing pancakes and bacon! I remember eating at a table and watching the owner-lady, after helping whomever, sit at a small table by a window. She stared out at some bird feeders and then got to work on some paperwork for the business. I wanted to move up there and do the same thing! Lol! Dh said he’d spent one winter up there already, and it was enough cold for a lifetime! It’s been 22 yrs now….but I still adore that morning spent in that little general store!
Pat Gaston says
Love all the pictures. Would love to visit for like 2 months and go see all of the stores, bakeries etc. you show us! Was the bread homemade?
Mavis Butterfield says
I don’t think in house, but I do know they sell locally made bread so my guess is they get it from a local bakery. The bread was excellent!
Gina says
Next time you go, ask if they have old photos of the store to see, or visit the city hall who probably has photos or even a published book of the towns history with photos. My town is only 60 years old and publishes a book for sale every 10 years. 🙂
Sara says
I found a general store in WA state! It’s in Longbeach and it’s pretty neat. Too bad we don’t have a lot of them here, they look so interesting.
Pat says
We were in Long Beach today and are still nearby. Which store are you referring to?
Sara says
I just looked it up and it’s actually in Ocean Park but that’s just right next door. It’s called Jack’s Country Store.
Betsy in MN says
Oh how fun. My husband and I drove through there last month and he wouldn’t turn around to stop! Lucky you!
I used to live in Brattleboro, VT and would go to Keene often. Love the area! So different than MN and now that my son is living in Mass, we will be visiting often. Yeah!
This is what I love about our country. As we travel the roads, we can learn so much about how the area developed and the history. My husband and I love to drive places and explore. If we can get off the interstate, we do, even if it takes a little longer.
Helen in Meridian says
I know you are always hoping to run into Ike Godsey behind the counter,
Sue says
I love the duelling pairs of glasses on the table alongside your lunch… So sweet!
Mavis Butterfield says
Yes!
Chip & Sandy Cirello says
Hi Mavis,
Today we went to Harrisville General Store and had lunch. We shared a Smoked Cheddar Cheese, Artichoke, Tomato on Olive Rye Bread Sandwich that was grilled. It was yummy!! Also went to the yarn shop across the street..Harrisville Design. Wow what a store!! Thanks for all your tips for our adventures. Next Big Papa’s Fruit & Veggies.
From, Sandy & Chip
Mavis Butterfield says
I love that you went on my recommendation. 🙂 If you over by Big Papa’s, check out the Omni Mount Washington Resort. They have afternoon tea service on Friday’s but just taking in the view and the property was such a treat.