The Financial Post Moneywise Magazine at one time ran a monthly column entitled “Endangered Species”.  One of the articles written by the Post correspondent, Nina Aprile, was on the Damascus General Store.
The Damascus store had been built in 1884 and had been in continuous operation since then. When the above-mentioned article by the Post was written it was at a time when most of the general stores in Ontario in the smaller hamlets had closed due to lack of patronage. 
Gordon Robinson and his wife Gladys owned and ran the store when the Post correspondent arrived to carry out her interview. Gordon was certainly qualified, not only to describe the daily business of a rural general store, but also answer any inquiries regarding events in Luther Township.
The Post’s article mentioned that Gordon had been born on a farm not far from Damascus and had not only farmed but was the Township Road Superintendent for a number of years, working five days a week from 7.00 a.m. until 6.00 p.m. “At one time” said Gordon, “Country stores were the hub of the smaller communities. Saturday nights in the winter the locals would congregate to listen to the hockey game, discuss the latest developments in the area and make predictions as to the next spring’s crop. Today, that has all changed with the coming of TV.”  However Gordon felt there was still a place and a need for the country store if only the community would support them.
At one time Damascus had supported three General Stores, two churches, an Orange Hall, Grain and Lumber mill and a blacksmith and wagon shop.
However, things changed over the years. The post office that brought a lot of people to the store on a daily basis has been moved out as well as the gas tanks that were a fixture in front of the store for so many years.  The highest volume of sales was in the confectionary and tobacco business. A customer would walk into the store and Gordon would automatically reach out for his favourite brand of cigars. “Will that be one or two today, Bill?” Gordon asked. After the customer would leave, Gordon claimed that he not only knew that customer’s father but his grandfather as well.

Business picked up in the summer months when visitors to the nearby Luther Marsh showed up. Most stood and stared on their first visit to the store when they saw the variety of goods stocked: canning pots and jars, hardware, fan belts, blankets, tea pots, needle threaders and needles, dishes, boots, patent medicines and Christmas decorations.
Near the cash register was a box with pen nibs in it-three cents each or two for five cents. There didn’t seem to be any particular order in which the many items were stacked. It did not matter; Gordon and Gladys knew where everything was.
They took orders for fresh strawberries in season and bedding plants from a nearby nursery in the spring. He sold pails of black and red cherries for the freezer. He was looking for a new supplier of garden seed as last years customers complained of poor germination. An electronic cash register stood in the corner but Gordon preferred doing calculations in his head and on a nearby pad of paper. The store was open seven days a week but tried to close at 7.00 p.m. “However” said Gordon, “there are few nights we don’t get someone knocking on the door needing something in an emergency”.
At the time of the article by the Post, the Robinson’s couldn’t predict as to how long they would be able to carry on their business. They felt their health would probably determine that but they hoped that if they had to sell out, their successors would carry on the business as they felt it provided a need in the community.
The Historical Society would like to thank the following who have donated items to the Historic Exhibit Rooms: Denelda Green, Louise Dingman, Helen Ritchie, Gail Donald, Agnes Brunskill, John Szablowski, Ken Hanson and Jim Dingman. There are now over 1,400 items donated to the Historical Society, most of which are on display. The Historical Rooms are open each Wednesday 1-3pm with a member of the Historical Society in attendance.
The next meeting of the Arthur and Area Historical Society will be on Tuesday April 27 at 7:30pm in the Historical Rooms at 146 George St. Everyone welcome!