Tidnish Country Store
Thanks to Ken Grafton for the information and picture.
THE STORY OF THE TIDNISH COUNTRY STORE
The beginnings of the Tidnish Country Store are found in a mouldy Land Registry document on file with Access Nova Scotia, and numbered 114-1928. The document is entitled “Deed – Jacob A. Baxter to Otis N. Baxter”. It reads in part “This indenture, made the 5th day of January in the year of Our Lord, one thousand nine hundred and twenty eight between Jacob A. Baxter of Tidnish Crossroads in the County of Cumberland and Province of Nova Scotia, Farmer, Widower, of the one part; and Otis N. Baxter of Tidnish Crossroads aforesaid, Merchant, of the other part. Witnesseth that the said Jacob A Baxter for and in consideration of the sum of one dollar of lawful money of the Dominion of Canada to the said Jacob A. Baxter in hand well and truly paid by the said Otis N. Baxter at or before the delivery of These Presents, the receipt whereof is hereby acknowledged, has and hereby doth grant, bargain, sell, alien, enfeoff, release, remise, convey, and confirm unto the said Otis N. Baxter his heirs and assigns all that lot, piece or parcel of land situate at Tidnish Crossroads Roads in the County of Cumberland on the north side of the main road leading from Northport and being a portion of the farm of Jacob A. Baxter, it having been conveyed to the said Jacob A. Baxter by Silas Taylor…”
The property is described as “Bounded on the south by the said main road leading from Baie Verte to Northport and commencing at the easterly corner or junction of the Shore Road, so called, and the said Main Road leading from Baie Verte to Northport and running from said corner in an easterly direction along said Main Road a distance of 120 feet; thence in a northerly direction along said Jacob Baxter’s property a distance of 263 feet; thence in a westerly direction along said Jacob Baxter’s property a distance of 145 feet; thence in a southerly direction along the said Shore Road a distance of 263 feet to the place of beginning…”
One gets the sense that then, as now, lawyers were paid by the word; as the document continues “…together with all and singular, the buildings, leasements, tenements, hereditaments, and appurtenances to the same belonging or in anywise appertaining with the reversion and reversions, remainder and remainders, rents, issues and profits thereof and all the estate, right, title, interest, claims, property and demand both at law and in equity….” One wonders what Otis thought as his lawyer read the Deed. He probably hoped to sell enough milk and flour to pay the bill.
If the purchase price of one dollar seems suspect, it was actually fairly common in instances of property transfer between family members; or in other cases where the parties hoped to avoid paying land transfer taxes. Sometimes referred to as an atypical transfer of convenience, the practice is still in use today.
Elda Baxter, Otis Baxter’s grand-daughter, recalls that the store building may have been moved from the family farm to it’s present location once Jacob gifted the land to his son, and had actually been in operation prior to the move. The store was painted “Baxter Red”, faded evidence of which remains to this day on the original roof facia boards.
Elda also remembers that the house which currently sits attached to the original store structure was also relocated from another site directly across Highway 366. The date of the house move is lost to history, however a somewhat cryptic clue may possibly be found in another land transaction from 1919, this one between local farmer Job Ogden and Otis Baxter. The Deed reads “This indenture made the 12th day of May in the year of our Lord one thousand nine hundred and nineteen between Job Ogden of Tidnish in the County of Cumberland, Farmer, and Ellen Ogden his wife of the one part, and Otis Baxter of Tidnish in the County of Cumberland, Farmer of the other part; Witnesseth that the said Job Ogden and Ellen Ogden for and in consideration of the sum of one dollar of lawful money of the Dominion of Canada…” and goes on to describe the property as “…of land and house situated at Tidnish and bounded as follows northerly by the Main Road, easterly by lands possessed by Bliss Wells, south by lands of Jacob Baxter, westward by house and lot of Stephen Oxley, one eight of an acre more or less, together with all the buildings, easements, tenements, hereditaments, and appurtenances…” So, in 1919, Job Ogden sold a lot and house on the opposite side of Highway 366 to Otis Baxter. It may be that this was the house which was subsequently moved across the road and attached to the store structure sometime after Jacob Baxter deeded the store property to Otis in 1928.
Otis operated Baxter’s Store through difficult times; the Great Depression years of 1929 to1939, when most people didn’t have money for groceries, through World War II 1939 to 1945 when Canadians participated in a food conservation program; finally selling on June 17th 1946… to Curry Greeno. Perhaps Otis was tired of holding it together through what were probably the toughest years of the twentieth century, but thus began a new episode in the history of the Tidnish Country Store.
Many people remember the store as “Greeno’s”. When long-time seasonal resident Edith Anne Purdy first visited the Douglas cottage on Tidnish Cove Lane in 1952, the country store was Greeno’s. Many have stories about Elma Greeno ruling the store with an iron fist. Current store co-owner Linda Grafton, who first visited her Aunt’s cottage as a child, remembers enjoying ice cream at Greeno’s.
On April Fool’s Day 1974 Curry Greeno and Elma V. Greeno sold the store to Paul N. Kyle and Kathleen M. Kyle, thereby beginning one of the most fondly remembered chapters in the history of the store…the legendary K’s Korner. The Kyles’s managed to truly connect with the community and create an enduring legend in Tidnish folklore. Many customers today still recall warmly the days when K’s Korner offered a friendly atmosphere to engage friends and neighbours, while buying their bread and butter. On a recent visit to Charlotte & Wendell’s Tidnish Country Store, the Kyle’s first since selling the property twenty one (21) years earlier, it was suggested that they had managed to set the gold standard in country stores. Paul Kyle replied that he thought they were just friendly to people. That was the secret.
The Kyle’s operated K’s Korner for twenty three years, selling on June 18th, 1997 to Clayton and Linda Elliott of Amherst. Little remains of oral history from this period, however Land Registry documents record a sale by the Elliot’s to K’s Korner Store Limited on September 25th, 2001. Another document of the same date records a mortgage involving K’s Korner Store Ltd. wherein the President is listed as Sherry Pitcher.
In 2007 the store became The Tidnish General Store, owned by local resident Richard Plett. It closed in 2014, the property sadly abandoned. It remained closed for several years, a deteriorating reminder of a lost community gathering place.
The property was finally purchased on November 21st, 2017 by Ken and Linda Grafton of Wakefield, Quebec. Linda is Edith Anne Purdy’s niece, with a long history of Tidnish summer visits. She and her husband Ken noticed the hole in the community that the closing of the store left and decided to re-open it. The main store building, abandoned with inventory in place, had deteriorated badly over years of neglect, and required a lot of work. Following five (5) weeks of clean-up, all electrical and plumbing was replaced. The floor was jacked and deteriorated timber replaced. A complete interior renovation of the store building was undertaken and cooler doors replaced. Charlotte & Wendell’s Tidnish Country Store opened on July 13th, 2018, to much public acclaim. Renovations would continue.
Unfortunately the renovations in the old store proved to be too much for the couple and the store closed again in 2019.
The store was purchased by Jay & Samantha Robinson in 2021 who also own the Amherst Shore Country Store and after some renovations the owners decided it was not feasible to have two general stores in the area so the decision was made early in 2022 to not reopen the Tidnish General Store.
The couple has plans for the building and we will see what the future brings.
The beginnings of the Tidnish Country Store are found in a mouldy Land Registry document on file with Access Nova Scotia, and numbered 114-1928. The document is entitled “Deed – Jacob A. Baxter to Otis N. Baxter”. It reads in part “This indenture, made the 5th day of January in the year of Our Lord, one thousand nine hundred and twenty eight between Jacob A. Baxter of Tidnish Crossroads in the County of Cumberland and Province of Nova Scotia, Farmer, Widower, of the one part; and Otis N. Baxter of Tidnish Crossroads aforesaid, Merchant, of the other part. Witnesseth that the said Jacob A Baxter for and in consideration of the sum of one dollar of lawful money of the Dominion of Canada to the said Jacob A. Baxter in hand well and truly paid by the said Otis N. Baxter at or before the delivery of These Presents, the receipt whereof is hereby acknowledged, has and hereby doth grant, bargain, sell, alien, enfeoff, release, remise, convey, and confirm unto the said Otis N. Baxter his heirs and assigns all that lot, piece or parcel of land situate at Tidnish Crossroads Roads in the County of Cumberland on the north side of the main road leading from Northport and being a portion of the farm of Jacob A. Baxter, it having been conveyed to the said Jacob A. Baxter by Silas Taylor…”
The property is described as “Bounded on the south by the said main road leading from Baie Verte to Northport and commencing at the easterly corner or junction of the Shore Road, so called, and the said Main Road leading from Baie Verte to Northport and running from said corner in an easterly direction along said Main Road a distance of 120 feet; thence in a northerly direction along said Jacob Baxter’s property a distance of 263 feet; thence in a westerly direction along said Jacob Baxter’s property a distance of 145 feet; thence in a southerly direction along the said Shore Road a distance of 263 feet to the place of beginning…”
One gets the sense that then, as now, lawyers were paid by the word; as the document continues “…together with all and singular, the buildings, leasements, tenements, hereditaments, and appurtenances to the same belonging or in anywise appertaining with the reversion and reversions, remainder and remainders, rents, issues and profits thereof and all the estate, right, title, interest, claims, property and demand both at law and in equity….” One wonders what Otis thought as his lawyer read the Deed. He probably hoped to sell enough milk and flour to pay the bill.
If the purchase price of one dollar seems suspect, it was actually fairly common in instances of property transfer between family members; or in other cases where the parties hoped to avoid paying land transfer taxes. Sometimes referred to as an atypical transfer of convenience, the practice is still in use today.
Elda Baxter, Otis Baxter’s grand-daughter, recalls that the store building may have been moved from the family farm to it’s present location once Jacob gifted the land to his son, and had actually been in operation prior to the move. The store was painted “Baxter Red”, faded evidence of which remains to this day on the original roof facia boards.
Elda also remembers that the house which currently sits attached to the original store structure was also relocated from another site directly across Highway 366. The date of the house move is lost to history, however a somewhat cryptic clue may possibly be found in another land transaction from 1919, this one between local farmer Job Ogden and Otis Baxter. The Deed reads “This indenture made the 12th day of May in the year of our Lord one thousand nine hundred and nineteen between Job Ogden of Tidnish in the County of Cumberland, Farmer, and Ellen Ogden his wife of the one part, and Otis Baxter of Tidnish in the County of Cumberland, Farmer of the other part; Witnesseth that the said Job Ogden and Ellen Ogden for and in consideration of the sum of one dollar of lawful money of the Dominion of Canada…” and goes on to describe the property as “…of land and house situated at Tidnish and bounded as follows northerly by the Main Road, easterly by lands possessed by Bliss Wells, south by lands of Jacob Baxter, westward by house and lot of Stephen Oxley, one eight of an acre more or less, together with all the buildings, easements, tenements, hereditaments, and appurtenances…” So, in 1919, Job Ogden sold a lot and house on the opposite side of Highway 366 to Otis Baxter. It may be that this was the house which was subsequently moved across the road and attached to the store structure sometime after Jacob Baxter deeded the store property to Otis in 1928.
Otis operated Baxter’s Store through difficult times; the Great Depression years of 1929 to1939, when most people didn’t have money for groceries, through World War II 1939 to 1945 when Canadians participated in a food conservation program; finally selling on June 17th 1946… to Curry Greeno. Perhaps Otis was tired of holding it together through what were probably the toughest years of the twentieth century, but thus began a new episode in the history of the Tidnish Country Store.
Many people remember the store as “Greeno’s”. When long-time seasonal resident Edith Anne Purdy first visited the Douglas cottage on Tidnish Cove Lane in 1952, the country store was Greeno’s. Many have stories about Elma Greeno ruling the store with an iron fist. Current store co-owner Linda Grafton, who first visited her Aunt’s cottage as a child, remembers enjoying ice cream at Greeno’s.
On April Fool’s Day 1974 Curry Greeno and Elma V. Greeno sold the store to Paul N. Kyle and Kathleen M. Kyle, thereby beginning one of the most fondly remembered chapters in the history of the store…the legendary K’s Korner. The Kyles’s managed to truly connect with the community and create an enduring legend in Tidnish folklore. Many customers today still recall warmly the days when K’s Korner offered a friendly atmosphere to engage friends and neighbours, while buying their bread and butter. On a recent visit to Charlotte & Wendell’s Tidnish Country Store, the Kyle’s first since selling the property twenty one (21) years earlier, it was suggested that they had managed to set the gold standard in country stores. Paul Kyle replied that he thought they were just friendly to people. That was the secret.
The Kyle’s operated K’s Korner for twenty three years, selling on June 18th, 1997 to Clayton and Linda Elliott of Amherst. Little remains of oral history from this period, however Land Registry documents record a sale by the Elliot’s to K’s Korner Store Limited on September 25th, 2001. Another document of the same date records a mortgage involving K’s Korner Store Ltd. wherein the President is listed as Sherry Pitcher.
In 2007 the store became The Tidnish General Store, owned by local resident Richard Plett. It closed in 2014, the property sadly abandoned. It remained closed for several years, a deteriorating reminder of a lost community gathering place.
The property was finally purchased on November 21st, 2017 by Ken and Linda Grafton of Wakefield, Quebec. Linda is Edith Anne Purdy’s niece, with a long history of Tidnish summer visits. She and her husband Ken noticed the hole in the community that the closing of the store left and decided to re-open it. The main store building, abandoned with inventory in place, had deteriorated badly over years of neglect, and required a lot of work. Following five (5) weeks of clean-up, all electrical and plumbing was replaced. The floor was jacked and deteriorated timber replaced. A complete interior renovation of the store building was undertaken and cooler doors replaced. Charlotte & Wendell’s Tidnish Country Store opened on July 13th, 2018, to much public acclaim. Renovations would continue.
Unfortunately the renovations in the old store proved to be too much for the couple and the store closed again in 2019.
The store was purchased by Jay & Samantha Robinson in 2021 who also own the Amherst Shore Country Store and after some renovations the owners decided it was not feasible to have two general stores in the area so the decision was made early in 2022 to not reopen the Tidnish General Store.
The couple has plans for the building and we will see what the future brings.