Village Squire, 1976-03, Page 14The store on wheels
had something
for everyone
in the family
We think many aspects of life in
yesteryears were crude and inconvenient.
But, when I was a girl, we did our weekly
shopping without leaving home. A travelling
storekeeper brought a mobile general store to
our back door.
Every Thursday about four o'clock an old
ton truck crept down our road. Because it
carried a fragile load, its maximum speed
reached only ten to fifteen miles per hour.
The driver, who was also the store's
proprietor and clerk, detoured into every farm
lane.
When he stopped, he unlatched two
horizontal hinged boards on both sides of the
truck. The bottom boards served as counters,
and the top ones were propped up like
awnings. Inside were home-made wooden
shelves resembling the ones in the village
store. They were stacked with literally
everything from soup to nuts: every member
of the family found something they needed.
The mothers bought groceries, such as
bread, potatoes, canned meats and vege-
tables, brown and white sugar, flour, vinegar,
salt and pepper, tea bags and coffee. To help
with their baking, they selected pie plates,
cake pans and muffin tins, rolling pins,
wooden spoons and paring knives.
For house cleaning, they obtained
brooms, dust pans, mops and floor was. They
12, VILLAGE SQUIRE/MARCH 1976
The
Travelling
Storekeeper
found detergent, dishcloths, pot holders,
aprons and toothpicks as well as toothpaste
and toothbrushes. In addition, they acquired
pins and needles, thimbles, thread, yarn,
zippers and buttons for sewing.
The portable store carried more than
housewares, though. Hair brushes and
combs, curlers, rollers and bobby pins were
available for the ladies. Meanwhile, the
farmers outfitted themselves with overalls,
plaid work shirts, polka dot handkerchiefs,
caps, socks, and rubber boots. For the barn,
they nabbed on to stable brooms, forks and
shovels.
Smokers were satisfied; the shelves
displayed pipe tobacco, chewing tobacco and
snuff, cigars, cigarettes, matches and
lighters.
For the handy men, the store stocked
hammers, screwdrivers, wrenches, pliers and
hand saws. They also contained nails, screws,
nuts and bolts, extension cords and light
bulbs. In case of accidents or minor ailments,
the store provided bandages, liniment,
aspirins, cough drops, vitamins and hot water
bottles. Sometimes it resembled a travelling
medicine show!
Of course, the children's eyes popped at
the sight of the licorice sticks, jawbreakers,
peanuts and chocolate bars. For school, the
students collected pens, pencils, erasures and
ink, scribblers, scrapbooks, scissors, glue and
Scotch tape.
How the travelling merchant packed all
that merchandise neatly into a ton truck
remains a mystery. The items were never
damaged and seldom even dusty.
He hit the road as soon as the snow melted
in the spring, and he continued until the
return of snow in the fall forced him to
hibernate. Each day he followed a planned
route, beginning shortly after dawn and
ending at dusk. While he was away, his wife
tended their village store. Each night they
restocked the truck's shelves; sometimes they
toiled until eleven o'clock.
He visited almost every home in the
township and called everyone by name. Few
people failed to recognize or to welcome him
and his truck.
Of course, the brand names on his shelves
were few; the selection was limited. He
certainly couldn't compete with our modern
markets. Nevertheless, his service was
convenient and reliable; it was invaluable to
our community in those days.
We may call it rustic or quaint. But
sometimes I long to see again that mobile
general store and to hear once more the
friendly greeting of the travelling store-
keeper.