The character of a small village tends to come to life in its public meeting spaces – the school, the church… and the country store. Long before mail-order catalogs and supermarkets sprang up – and long, long before shopping online – country stores were serving the needs of their towns with foodstuffs, household goods and pretty much anything that people couldn’t make or grow on their own.
A new book, Country Stores of Vermont: A History and Guide. has been published about country stores in Vermont. VPR’s Patti Daniels stopped by the Panton General Store to talk with the book’s author, Dennis Bathory-Kitsz, and the store’s owner, Andy Megroz, about how these small businesses still serve an important role in modern village centers.