Toponymie | Canton de Potton | Place Names

Located in Vale Perkins and constructed around the mid 1840's in the second empire style, the building was built by Charles H. Gordon.  The Belden Historical Atlas of 1881 lists C.H. Gordon as “ general merchant, and Councillor in East Potton.  Is proprietor of 150 acres in Lot 16, Con. 9.  Has lived in county since 1842 ».

Take it from one who knows this building well, it would appear to have been designed to house a shop or store.  The symmetrical shelves and decorative elements found in the front portion of the store are original and very typical of stores of that period.  The current owners built an extension to the store in 1991-92, but until that time, the building had remained virtually unchanged.

Owners after Charles Gordon were J.M. Alex and his wife, Cora Gilman, a Mr. Morrison and his wife, Robert R. Magoon and his wife Mamie Geer.  For a short time, Armand Brière was the proprietor, but in 1944, he sold to George U. Jewett, oldest son of F.A. Jewett and his wife, Avis Belle Jones.  The present owners Sandra, Carolyn and O. Jane Jewett are the daughters of George U. Jewett and his wife, Orma Jane Booth.

Jewett's Store is unique in that it is located within the Jewett family home.  Half of the main floor is public space, while the other half and the upper floors are private.  (It was unusual to have been brought up “ in » a store, though it seemed very normal to my sisters and I at the time!  Sometimes, living close to stocked grocery shelves was downright handy.)     

George Jewett was born in 1914, the first son of twelve children, and was brought up on the family farm nearby.  He was a carpenter and later became the area's plumber.  He died in 1990.  His wife, Orma Jane (Booth) Jewett (1916-1982), was the daughter of George and Lilian Booth from West Shefford, Quebec.  She met her future husband in 1936, when she taught in the one-room Jones School # 12 at the corner of Peabody and Lake Roads, in Vale Perkins.  They were married in 1944.  (West Shefford is now Bromont.)

Before roads were suitable for cars and Vale Perkins grew into the popular tourist area it now is, Jewett's Store was a true general store of the type likely found throughout the rural Townships.  One could buy provisions of all types: from foodstuffs, veterinary products, milk filters, farm tools, to rubber boots and woollen blankets sold by the pound.  Sugar arrived in 50 lb bags, to be sold by weight.  Cheese was purchased in large waxed “ wheels », to be cut and retailed in wedges.  In the 1950's, weekly shipments of meats packed in dry ice were shipped from Montreal to the CPR station in Highwater.  Merchandise included kerosene and naphtha gas by the gallon, wicks, mantles and lamp chimneys, along with men's overalls, tea sets, yard goods, knitting supplies and darning needles, threads and sewing notions, canning supplies, aluminium cookware and the like.  Milk and cream were delivered regularly only when Traverland Dairy began operating locally.  Previous to that time, milk and butter was purchased fresh from farms nearby.  In the summer months, local farmers or their children peddled excess fresh garden produce door-to-door.  Little perishable food was available for resale before electricity came to Vale Perkins in 1949.  For years after that however, large cakes of ice were hauled from the icehouse, hosed clean of sawdust, and sold to many summer cottagers.  Telephone service became available in the store in 1908, some 15 years after the first telephone rang in Mansonville.

George Jewett was an authorized Imperial Oil dealer from 1944 and was also this area's plumber for years.  Gas pumps were initially installed directly in front of the store.  These were moved across the road in the late 1940's, when the storage tank leaked and gasoline was discovered seeping into the basement.  Orma Jewett was the “ face » of Jewett's store, much as it is presently that of her youngest daughter, and namesake, Jane.  In 1957, Orma Jewett was stricken with breast cancer.  Her left arm was amputated some 9 years later, as a result.  She nonetheless cared diligently for her store and family in spite of the handicap. 

The “ Store » has always been something of a gathering place for the local population where news and views are well aired, as most weekend mornings even today will witness.  Two movies were filmed here: Le Matou, an adaptation of the novel of the same name written by the celebrated Quebec novelist, Yves Beauchemin, a Pottonite by adoption; and L'Enfant des Appalaches, a made for TV movie released in 1997.  It was filmed almost entirely in Potton and has great shots of Dunkin, the rail-lines in Highwater, and our covered bridge.

Jewett's Store, in continuous operation since 1944, is the second oldest family owned business in Potton.  The Giroux family of Mansonville may claim first place, with reason.