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Hammond General Store Sucuumbs To Time
Store Operated On Idea:
‘When the farmers gather their
Crops, then they can pay.’
BY JAN HUGHES
News Feature Writer
Standing amidst a country at
mosphere, everything from a
' 1920 grape soft drink bottle,
selling at 25 cents to a child's
red wagon, built with a wooden
bottom, was auctioned away at
the Old Hammond General St
ore, Saturday, June 17, at noon.
In its history of business pr
osperity, the old general store
was supplied with everything fr
om a grasshopper muzzle to
furniture. For the last time,
people gathered from vast ar
eas at the junction of 306 and
369, where the old general st
ore stands.
Built around 1897, the huge
General Store is one of the
last 19th Century buildings st
anding in Forsyth County. Wi
lliam Henry Hammond began
PAT MARTIN PIANO COMPANY^^W9.oo ERS
Studio Pianos ... Reg.JJOOO.. . $695. >3^
ADA AN Spinet Pianos ... Reg. $620. . . ssso.^^
. AA Consolet Pianos ... Reg. J 762.
Console.. 111.t1355.
USED PIANOS
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T&Sr MARTIN PIANO COMPANY
Cleveland Road 534-3596
operation of the store on an
Ante-Bellum idea, “When the
farmers gather their crops then
they can pay." A round the year,
he sold goods and supplies on
credit. During the fall, the far
mers would pay their accounts
by cotton, corn and other pro
ducts grown on the farm.
Hammond would exchange
goods for butter, ducks, chic
kens, geese, eggs and even it
ems from hunters. In the back
of the General Store was a
rabbit room.
Hammond would hang rabbit
skins up until he drove a wagon,
teamed with horses, into Atlanta
to purchase stock for the store.
As the trip would take several
days, the store had several
clerks employed. Hammond
would camp overnight in the
Roswell area.
Occupying most of the lower
•simiCE
expission
floor were general goods to be
used on the farm or to be worn
by members in the large fam
ilies. All sorts of hats from
Sunday bonnets to field straw
hats, dresses, shoes and men’s
• suits were carried on the main
floor. The upstairs carriedfur
niture such as pot heaters, sto
ves, beds, sofas and chairs.
OLD HAMMOND STORE TO BE TORN DOWN: NEW ONE TO BE OPEN BY FALL
Some of the items auctioned
off dated back to the 20s, 30s
and 40s. Many of th e items
auctioned were unique as their
quality captivated years of the
Great Depression when the Am
erican economy was in its
depths of gloom. The large nu
mbers of bottles, made from
Depression glass, contained
many of the patented-medicines
on the market during the two
World Wars.
On February i, 1943, Ham
mond died. Hammond’s three
sons left the General Store open
until 1956. The silent R. C.
Cola posters have remained
posted on the old store for
16 years. Once again, it is a
setting of a culture “gone with
the wind."
Now, the Hammonds are ma
king plans to construct a new
variety store. One of the mem
bers of the family reported
they “anticipate the new store
to be of great success as this
junction serves such a major
ity of Atlanta’s travel going to
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THE FORSYTH COUNTY NEWS-JUNE 29. 1972-
and from the lake homes.”
Paul Hammond told the Co
unty News, “the family regrets
to see it go down but you can
not stand in the way of pro
gress.”
Construction should begin
next month on the new variety
center and an opening date is
scheduled for fall.
Forsyth
Receives
Allotment
Capital outlay application^ 1 *
totaling $19,580,000 were ap-°*
proved for 20 Georgia school 1 ®
systems by the State Board of"
Education at its June meeting®®
The applications are for the’ - '
1972 A Bond Series “P”.
Systems receiving approval" 1
and the amount of capitalized 1
allotment for each were Baldwin
County, $350,474; Camden Co
unty, $290,183; Cherokee Co
unty, $557,056; Clayton County 1 ”
$3,079,040; Cobb County, sl,- < j
513,512; DeKalb County,s2,l44,j-* w
142; Douglas County, $1,037,536;"
Fannin C0unty,51,223,337; Fay
ette County, $636,636; Forsytti*
County, $630,630; Gordon Co
unty, $742,819; Gwinnett
$2,336,334; Hall County, $839,-;®
338; Lowndes County, $384,384;*
Murray County, $256,756; New 1 --®
ton County, $513,513; Paulding 1
County, $735,735; Polk County*/
$1,015,784; Rockdale County*,®
$803,302; and Decatur City.
5489.489.
Capital outlay funds are use/
for construction of new
or for additional classrooms ijk
existing schools.
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