Ripton General Store, Ripton, Vermont

By Erin on September 12, 2014

Vermont’s General Stores pique my interest… You never know what you’re going to find when you step inside. We always stop at Country Stores when we’re travelling around the state to see what kind of unique things we can find collected under one roof. General stores in Vermont have so much history and character. They’re a great way to get a sense for a town and the surrounding area.

One of the most authentic general stores in Vermont is in Ripton, located on Route 125 in Robert Frost country, situated between East Middlebury and Hancock. Ripton is a quintessential Vermont town set among the Green Mountains with the general store at its center, serving as a post office, gas station and grocery. You can find penny candy, beef jerky, locally pickled beets and eggs, wine, maple syrup, loose onions and potatoes, a glass case full of knives (I’m assuming for hunters in the area), local crafts,cards and gifts—all centered around a woodstove and bright red rocking chair.

Visiting Ripton General Store in Ripton, Vermont

Climbing up the creaky stairs to the entrance with antique signs and gasoline tanks decorating the porch, you can’t help but be taken back to simpler times. There’s so much to see. Beautiful, well-aged wide planked floors. Oil lamps and antique tools lining the walls and upper shelves. Our favorite item in the store is the Ripton Country Store soda, old-fashioned Root Beer, Birch Beer, Vanilla Cream and Orange Cream good for a splurge. The soda is marketed and distributed by the Vermont Alliance of Independent Country Stores, a nonprofit organization whose mission is to “promote and enhance country stores, while preserving their unique heritage and contributions to their communities.”

If you’re driving through Ripton, stop for a minute and take in all of the history of the General Store. Don’t miss the antique crank cash register, a definite flashback. And if you are passing through Ripton in urgent need of a bathroom, keep on driving. You’re out of luck; no public restrooms here.