JEFFERSON, Maine — The restoration of a historic store in Jefferson has brought life back to its downtown community and filled a void for nearby residents.
The Jefferson Market and General Store has long been a fixture in some capacity, in downtown Jefferson. That is until a few years ago when the store suddenly closed and fell into disrepair.
That’s when Wayne Farrin, a Jefferson resident, stepped up to purchase the historic market at an auction.
“I'm in real estate. That's what I do,” Farrin said. “I purchased this [store] at an auction, I think five years ago—five summers ago.”
Farrin said his initial plan was to clean it up and lease the store to new owners.
“He had an interested person so the renovations started to happen,” said Lynn Farrin, Wayne’s wife and co-owner of the store. “And then COVID hit.”
A relatable feeling for many, as some of the best-laid plans were disrupted, or changed due to the pandemic.
One of those changes happened to Wayne and Lynn's son, Caleb, who lost his job during the pandemic, like so many other Mainers at that time.
“I was out of a job because the whole world shut down,” Caleb explained. “So it was kind of like ‘Hey do you want to come and swing a sledgehammer around?’”
Caleb was recruited to help with renovations at the store, making the whole process a family affair. Caleb, Lynn, Wayne, and even the next generation of grandparents, were all working together to bring back a store they all grew up with.
Unfortunately, during the height of Covid and deep into renovations, Wayne said the potential buyers "walked out on me."
Wayne said he looked around at all the work his family had done on the store so far, and said, “Hey let’s just start it up.”
Renovations continued, and through the process, Lynn said there were so many knocks on the door from people interested in the revitalization efforts.
“We got a lot of knocks—'What are you doing? What are you up to? When are you going to open up?” Lynn shared. “We started to get that feel of, you know, a really, really important piece of this community was missing.”
And Lynn was right. Over the years, Jefferson’s downtown has seen businesses come and go, but the store has always been a constant. And maybe the Farrin family didn’t realize it at the time, but the store is a vital resource for several rural, Midcoast communities, that simply don’t have another store nearby.
“It just became a fly through town; nothing was here,” Wayne said. He said in the first few months the store was reopened, they heard from so many happy customers who were thankful they didn’t have to drive far to pick up groceries, or necessities.
“We’ve heard so many, ‘Ah, I don't have to go and drive to Waldoboro, or I don't have to drive to Augusta. Oh, all I needed was an onion, all I needed was a tomato—we’re so glad you’re here.’ We’ve heard that so many times," Wayne said.
The store is not only meeting the needs of residents, but it’s also opening up opportunities for local farmers, artists, and more.
“One of the things that was really important to me was to have a lot of local stuff,” Lynn said. “For instance, the tea towels hanging up over there—I was a teacher prior to this, and it was one of my former students, she’s an artist—it’s not just local, it’s here in town, people that do these things.”
Outside of its products, Jefferson Market and General Store offers local fare as well. The store serves up a full menu of sandwiches, soups, pizzas, and prepared foods, with the kitchen overseen by Caleb.
“I really tried to keep our ingredients as close to home as possible,” Caleb said.
Caleb's expanded menu with new offerings was a hit with customers like Karen Moran.
“This is such a nice place to stop, I love to get some soup,” said Moran. “If I have some reading or some work to do, I bring my computer or devices and use their WiFi. And I appreciate their homemade items.”
Another customer, and Midcoast resident, Neil Simmons said he remembers when the building was a general store, but hadn’t been back since the Farrin family reopened it.
“This is very impressive,” said Simmons.
The Jefferson Market and General Store offers everything from gifts to groceries, prepared food, and food made to order. It’s located at 242 Waldoboro Road in downtown Jefferson.
And for those who have memories of visiting the store by boat, that’s still an option.
Wayne also revitalized the docks and an outdoor deck. The store is situated on Davis Stream and can be accessed from Damariscotta Lake; although you may want to wait for warmer months, with winter just around the corner.
For more information, visit the Jefferson Market and General Store’s website.