Harry MacLauchlan’s general store and Bruce Ellis’ service station 1951. photo by ME. MacLauchlan

with supplies. In lieu of cash, the owner took in trade such local commodities as eggs, pigs, pulpwood, lobster and other ground fish, pelts, labour, etc. Lack of money was no deterrent to trade.

In the 1940 8, cars were scarce, and customers devised various means of transporting their groceries. One man, then in his 70 s, walked, twice a week, a round trip of three miles, with a stick over his shoulder hooked into a back pack loaded with the necessities of life; two elderly sisters walked about two miles, ahnost daily, summer and winter, for their supplies; many customers travelled by horse and wagon, or sleigh, according to the season; one elderly gentleman, who never had a license to drive a car, came daily on his tractor; one customer came each fall from Oyster Bed Bridge and purchased his winter supply of groceries. As well as being a convenient place to shop, the country store was the daily meeting place of the com- munity — to exchange pleasantries, to settle arguments, to gather news and gossip, or to have a hand or two of cards while the clerk pre- pared your order — no self-service then!

In 1956 Harry MacLauchlan sold this business to Earl Higgins and it was operated by the Higgins family until June 17, 1959, when it was destroyed by fire. The storage barn was moved to Alvin MacLauchlan’s and the Stanhope School building was moved next door to Harry MacLauchlan’s. This was the last store in Stanhope, except for some operated during the summer months only. (see below)

From the above account, it can be seen that Stanhope had no store from about 1900 to 1932 and from 1959 onwards. However, the people of this district have been able to purchase supplies in Covehead, where David Auld operated a store in the kitchen of what is now Ira MacDonald’s house. In the early 1900 s a new store was erected across

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