1829 Country Store -- VisitingNewEngland
The Return of a Beloved Country Store in Mansfield, Mass.
1829 Country Store
reopens with a new take on the famous Old Country Store and Emporium at
this
wonderfully familiar Mansfield location
1829
Country Store, Mansfield.
Article, photos (unless otherwise
noted) by Eric Hurwitz
created for VisitingNewEngland.com on 5/24/2023. Find us on Twitter: @newenglandinfo
Immediately upon entering 1829 Country Store in Mansfield, Mass. customers can experience the
essential elements that have made country stores such a beloved, quintessential New England retail gathering place.
The pace slows down. The automated, modern outside world instantly
gives way to a nostalgic oasis virtually every step of the way on the
creaky old
wooden floors. The stillness of the air provides this almost
magical elixir that forces one to relax within the comforting confines
of a rustic, historic building. Additionally, the nooks and crannies of 1829
Country Store's layout proves that it's perfectly fine for a local store
to be perfectly imperfect as opposed to the sterile, predictable
presence of modern, generic chain stores.
An authentic country store.
Classic country store items such as pickles, fudge, penny
candy, vintage sodas and toys transform revered
trip-back-in-time memories to real-time, for sale items right in front
of our very own retro eyes.
The sweet side of 1829 Country Store.
Pickle jar.
Modern vintage items including hand-picked
home goods, specialty food items, novelty
wares and gifts offer the critical, timeless tenets that
brought us to country stores in the first place while, at the same
time, offering goods that possess firm footing in 21st century
preferences.
Summer merchandise for sale.
Old-time decorative flourishes like an antique Regulator Clock,
Candlestick
Telephone, early 20th century cash register and a historic Mansfield
Post Office sign lend further heartwarming remembrances of bygone eras.
There's even a player piano in storage to be displayed at a future date
once a dedicated space is determined. Stay tuned (no pun intended) to this article for
updates!
The overall scenes of items from an idealized past seem to
include everything except the kitchen sink. Oh wait, 1829 Country
Store has that, too...
The kitchen sink.
Ultimately, 1829 Country Store proves that sometimes the best
change is no
change at all. The timeless simplicity of kids riding their bikes to
this iconic country store location to buy nostalgic
candies with their saved allowances still remains to this very day. An
older married couple recently
returned to remember their very first kiss on the country's store's
front porch when in
their teens. The myriad long-time customers who have faithfully and
lovingly
supported this country store location keep returning. It's an aged
store that is simply ageless with stories and traditions having been
made
for so many years.
Something sweet and retro.
Old-time candy layout from the recent grand opening.
"I love it here," said 1829 Country Store employee Lisa Hamar, who grew
up in Mansfield and remembers the countless times walking to the
previous country store at this location (more on that shortly). "So
many fond memories of this place.
And it's rewarding seeing kids creating
new memories. They figure out the money side of things, use their math
skills and work together to buy something."
Lisa Hamar is surrounded by nostalgia at 1829 Country Store.
Saving the Country Store
Brian and Mary Pat McSharry at 1829 Country Store. Photo credit: 1829 Country Store.
Prior to 1829
Country Store's opening in November 2022, the Old Country Store and
Emporium closed in Jan. 2022 after more than 190 years in business at
this location. It was like
taking away the lifeblood of a customer's collective New England soul.
Social media -- acting in this instance like the modern day version of
a spirited, traditional
New England town square meeting -- revealed countless people
expressing their sadness, disappointment and sometimes anger of how a
landmark, centuries-old local business could close. Fortunately,
however, that outcry and the thoughtful vision of a Medfield, Mass.
couple
brought this country store location back to life again.
A timeless country store treat.
Brian and Mary Pat McSharry, who have owned and operated Closet & Storage Concepts (a
custom closet and storage company) for more than 21 years, had looked
to move and expand their business from a long-time rented space in
Franklin, Mass.
When deciding to look for a building they could own for their business,
Brian and Mary Pat found the Old Country Store in their searches.
Despite
initially finding the structure a "little quirky and
unconventional," they decided this was the building for them.
Brian and Mary Pat loved the history of the country store that was
originally established
in 1829 (hence the current name, 1829 Country Store), and soon learned
how much
the building and the store meant to the community. It was at that point
that 1829 Country Store was founded and Closet & Storage
Concepts
found a new home, all under one roof.
A new home for Closet and Storage Concepts.
While most of the 14,000-plus sq. ft.
building is dedicated to Closet & Storage Concepts, 1829
Country
Store space is still pretty large by country
store standards at around 2,800 sq. ft. The Country Store is
located in the
front -- the
oldest part of the building -- with the squeaky door and beautiful
original wood floors gloriously intact.
The new "old" 1829 Country Store remains remarkably true to form --
certainly not an afterthought to appease the public but rather to carry
on the
grand legacy of one of New England's great country stores.
A trip back in time.
Mary Pat and
Brian have made sure, also, to take their country store beyond a place
just to sell retro candy.
"We focus on things that you don't always see at other stores," said
Mary Pat. "We are not trying to just be a candy store. We focus on
the 'hard to find' items."
A nice variety of unique merchandise.
Brian nodded with a smile, "Yes, definitely, you'll find gifts here
that you wont find anywhere else."
What is not hard-to-find, however, is ways to purchase items
through modern transactions technology but more importantly, that
personal human touch.
"We have a modern system like accepting Apple Pay but spend that extra
time putting old-fashioned values on the store," said Lisa Hamar. "Like
if you buy a gift, we can gift wrap that and provide other extra values
that you might not see somewhere else. We'll put that extra bow on. You
get the welcoming, helpful customer service here in a one-of-a-kind
setting."
That extra touch is what country stores have been all about over the
past four decades -- that is, a local store selling a wide variety of
goods in a modest space to service
peoples' needs in town and surrounding communities.
A festive, busy, official grand opening on June 3, 2023.
Daughter Megan works at both 1829 Country Store and Closet &
Storage Concepts. She is enjoying the experience.
"I enjoy interacting with customers," said Megan. "It is also a unique
perspective of seeing your parents in action at their business. I liked
to go antique shopping growing up and this is the type of place we
would go to. It's a nice place to be."
An Unlikely Country Store Location
Nostalgia on the wall.
A great New England country store like 1829 Country Store also
shows beyond a doubt that this kind of retail business doesn't have to
be located in Vermont or New Hampshire where most of the country stores
in New England have been long time situated. An old time country store
can, in fact, be
located in
the fast-paced Boston suburbs!
Away from all the high-tech companies on nearby Forbes Blvd., the
modern
Mansfield Crossing (L.L. Bean, Kohl's, Best Buy, etc.) shopping complex
and modern apartment developments, 1829 Country Store is relatively hidden and pleasantly tucked away in
the more
tranquil
neighborhood of West Mansfield Village. It's a bit of a surprise
to see this antiquated but still highly relevant landmark in a suburban
Boston landscape that otherwise
keeps modernizing, updating and displacing open land and history.
A classic candy.
Surrounded by neighborhood Colonial and
Victorian homes, 1829 County Store, at first glance, looks like a
modest-sized country store that might sell a few souvenirs and candles.
Inside, however,
tells a completely different story. 1829 Country Store packs a
significant country
store
presence without a wasted space of general
store charm. As the closest country store to Boston, this is the real
deal and definitely a must-see retail attraction.
Homemade chocolates from from locally-famous Winfrey's Fudge and
Chocolates, of Rowley, Mass.
About Brian and Mary Pat's Closet & Storage Concepts
Modern displays in an old building.
Closet & Storage Concepts designs, creates, and installs beautiful
custom closet solutions. With a five-star rating on Yelp,
Brian and Mary Pat's business has certainly
found a beyond impressive new home in Mansfield. The showroom is
beautiful and
expansive, located primarily in the furniture sections of the
former Old Country Store. Closet & Storage Concepts offers
solutions for closets, wall beds, the office, garage, pantry,
entry and laundry and wall units.
"We welcome designers, builders, architects and professional organizers
to create innovative solutions to some of the 'quirky' New England
spaces we come across," said Mary Pat.
Mary Pat and Brian at their new Closet & Storage Concepts
showroom.
Brian didn't initially see the Mansfield location the way Mary Pat did
but soon realized her vision of the space.
"The
previous owner wasn’t selling the business, just the building, and we
were looking to stop paying rent to someone else, so we set out to find
a property," said
Mary Pat. "I fell in love with the building. He
(Brian) went along but first with hesitation. Now he can see what I saw
in the place."
"I tried to get
her to explain
the appeal of the place to me," said Brian. "I was thinking, what does
a closet company and a country store have in common? And the answer was
'Us!'". You (Mary Pat) asked
me to take a leap of faith and I am glad I did."
Mary Pat added, "We finally got the store open in November (2022),
but
the majority of the building is for our custom closet company which we
moved here at the end of July, and it has been a huge undertaking with
just the physical move as well as setting up all new displays, offices,
shop, etc. It has come together well."
A wall bed display.
Brian and Mary Pat bring years of success to their new,
expanded location, as well as accolades. Most recently, Closet &
Storage Concepts was recognized with a "Best of Houzz" award by Houzz,
an American website, online community and software for architecture,
interior design and decorating, landscape design and home improvement.
The Best of Houzz awards are given to businesses based on the reviews
and support of the Houzz community.
Conclusion
Retro chewing gum.
It would be safe to say the McSharrys own the only combination country
store and closet and storage business in New England and perhaps the
entire United States (nothing came up on Google search for such a
coalescence). But that merging of two businesses under one roof
ultimately makes a lot of sense. Brian and Mary Pat created a
successful "Build it and they will come" business out of storage and
closet needs many years ago and have done exactly the same thing with a
country store that needed to be revived, resuscitated and reopened.
Every step bring country store joy. Photo credit: 1829 Country Store.
They essentially took a country store out of storage and filled it back
up again with a wardrobe of classic country store favorites and modern
vintage items.
A classic country store layout. Photo credit: 1829 Country Store.
It's truly the best of both worlds for Brian and Mary Pat -- that is,
meaningfully and enthusaistically preserving an iconic country store
landmark while
continuing to expand their work of love in the form of a storage and
closet business.
"We wanted to
honor the
building" said Brian. "It took a lot of doing but we are glad to be
here with both businesses!"
1829 Country Store is located at 26 Otis St., Mansfield, MA
02048
Tel. 508-530-7244
Web site: https://www.1829countrystore.com/
Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/1829CountryStore
Instagram page: https://www.instagram.com/1829countrystore/
1829 Country Store hours:
Thursday–Saturday, 10 a.m.– 5 p.m.
Sunday, 11 a.m.– 5 p.m.
Closed Monday–Wednesday
Additional reading:
What it feels like to visit Sunapee, N.H.
Visiting the Old North Bridge in Concord, Mass.
A North Shore of Massachusetts scene to remember
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