Jones General Store & Post Office, 1897, Matthews

This general store is built in the same style as the one pictured in the next post, located on the other end of Oak Street. Jenny Pennington, at the suggestion of Lynn Walden Williams shared a history of Matthews first posted on the Remembering Wrens Facebook Page and which was very enlightening.  It’s a compilation of memories of the town from some of the oldest members of the community including Jenny’s parents Herbert and Sara Pennington, Bessie Neal Jones, Dorothy Barrow Atwell and H.C. Stewart, Jr. The history notes that the store was built by Levin A. Ganus who partnered with William A. Tarver as Ganus & Tarver, Dealers in General Merchandise. The partnership only lasted a year, but the Ganus family operated the store and post office for many years. According to a comment, however, the store was known as the Jones Store.

Thanks to Keith McLendon for first identifying it as the post office, noting it was open until about 15-10 years ago.