Rhode Island general store closes its doors after 224 years

[aGameOfThrones]

Gray's Store in Adamsville village in Little Compton, R.I., was known by customers for years with its old-fashioned marble soda fountain, cigar and tobacco cases, and Rhode Island johnny cakes, the Associated Press reported.

The store near the Massachusetts line opened in 1788.

Owner Jonah Waite, 21, inherited the shop after his father died of cancer last month. He told the AP that closing the store Sunday was a hard decision, but the shop's finances aren't sustainable and a supermarket down the street has siphoned business.

"Obviously, I understand the historical aspect of it, and I would really love to keep it the way it is, but it doesn't seem to me that that's the most feasible option," Waite told the AP. "With the economy ... the place has lost its attraction, lost its luster."

Gray's Store featured general store standards like penny candy, a small selection of groceries, and antiques and collectible knickknacks. It's been in Waite's family for seven generations, since 1879, and comprises the front part of the family's home.

http://news.yahoo.com/blogs/sideshow/rhode-island-general-store-closes-doors-224-years-173728506.html

[2young2vote]

Looked like a dump on the inside. I'm not surprised that it went out of business. It needed to be renovated and turned into a tourist trap. It would make a cute little ice cream shop.

[jkr]

"johnny cakes"

[DamianTV]

This is where our Herritage has gone. Out of Business.

[donnay]

This is where our Herritage has gone. Out of Business.


All done by design. Very sad.

[DamianTV]

Then we need to follow the lead of Iceland. They threw their Banksters in Jail, forgave the Debt, and are now one of the strongest economies in the world! We are going Out of Business as a country because everything our government does is to support the Banks at OUR expense! How could ANYONE stay in business with that as their economic philosophy?