Address
516 Moriches Road, St. James, NY 11780
Phone Number
(631) 854 -3740
Date Visited
10/07/2013
Website
St. James General Store
Description
The St. James General Store is located at 516 Moriches Road, St. James, NY.A few parking spaces in a gravel lot are located just outside the store. More parking is available across the street.
Three wooden steps with no handrails get one to the double door entrance.
Once inside the aisles are narrow.
There is a staircase to the second floor.
There are no restrooms .
One can purchase a variety of baked goods, candies, and fudge.
- Surface of lot: gravel in front of store, more parking in field across the street
Terrain: uneven
Doors: double doors
Number of floors: 2
Elevators: 0
Ramps: 0
Steps and staircases: stairs to second floor
Width of aisles: very narrow
Places to sit: none
Location of restrooms: none
Ease of entry and exit: OK
Available food services: only items like taffy, etc.
Friendliness of staff: very friendly and helpful
Notes: *Note that this venue is not handicapped accessible. There are three wooden steps to get to the entrance. There are no handrails at the steps.Once inside the aisles are quite narrow.
The St. James General Store, at the northwest corner of Moriches and Harbor Hill Roads, was founded in 1857. It is structurally unchanged since 1894 and is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. It is the oldest continuously operating general store in the United States. “In July, 1990 the 133 year-old store was purchased in a joint preservation effort between Suffolk County and New York State.” (website)
As such it is understandable that this attraction is not handicapped accessible. There are some gravel parking spaces just outside and more parking is available across the street, on grass. One must climb three wooden steps with no handrails to get to the front door. Once inside, the aisles are quite narrow.
If you are able to navigate the steps (perhaps with some assistance) you will find an old-fashioned general store, chock full of late-Victorian-era artifacts (1880-1910) as well as many interesting gift items. There is lots of old-fashioned penny candy as well as some cookies and chocolates. In addition, there is a second floor with old books and toys related to Long Island history. “…ongoing interpretive programs at the store include popular period craft demonstrations or events held each weekend with special quarterly festivals or holiday celebrations, all of which are themed to the turn of the century date…” (website)
It was fun to look at the many Victorian-era artifacts and think about what life was like back then. We found the books and toys especially interesting. Of course we had to taste the goodies, all of which were quite tasty!
“Preservation means more than saving the wood and nuts and bolts of a structure, it also means preserving the entire human experience.” (website) This is obvious at the St. James General Store.
As always, we at Destination Accessible advise you to check a venue’s website www.suffolkcountyny.gov when planning a trip, to “know before you go.”
Contact us