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The History of the BGS
The store was established in 1832 and was was originally run as a union cooperative before Joseph B. Danforth bought it.
He later sold it to his son, William Cullen Danforth, who ran it from 1857-1882.
In 1882, it was sold to James and Thomas Trevillian.
Edwin Wells owned it briefly from 1900-1902 and then Pelea Hadley stayed with it from 1902-1909.
E. Holmes and Frank H. Thayer purchased the store in 1909 in the same year Frank's wife, Jeannie, became Postmaster in Barnard. Frank and Jeannie's son, Forrest, and his wife, Thelma, first helped in the store and then owned it from 1926-45.
At that time, it was purchased by Walter and With Miller, who operated it from 1945-1955.
It was next owned briefly by Wallce deGiacomo and Goerge Price, who sold it to James and Margaret Maynes in 1956.
The store was sold to Harry and Naomi Hull and in 1960, they sold it to their daughter and son-in-law, Joan and Ralph Lessard, who owned it until 1972. That year, they sold it to Thurston Twigg-Smith Sr, who operated it for a year and then sold the business only to Bob Nye, who operated it until 1976.
The store was then sold to Terry and Sue Harlow.
In 1987, Walter and Virginia Green purchased the store. They sold it in 1994 to Carolyn and Ted DiCicco, after Walter's death.
In 2001, ownership transferred to Carolyn DiCicco and her partner Kim Furlong. The building was sold to William Twigg-Smith in 2004 while Kim and Carolyn continued to run the business.
In 2012, the Barnard General Store closed it's doors for the first time since 1832. The community of Barnard, with the help of the Barnard Community Trust non-profit organization, rallied together to successfully raise over $500k in order to buy the building after the business closed to ensure that it remained the Barnard General Store. Volunteers ran the store for three hours a day, offering coffee, newspapers, and baked goods in exchange for donations to help "Restore the Store."
In 2013, the Barnard Community Trust successfully met their goal to purchase the building.
The business was re-opened (May 2013) by current owners Joe & Jillian Minerva.
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