A Visit to Mendenhall: Part 2

Last week I visited the small Mississippi town of Mendenhall, and shared a little of its story, plus a few pictures I captured of its historic Main Street district. If you missed A Place Called Mendenhall , or would like to refresh your memory before reading this follow-up post, you can click on the link. As promised at the end of that post, today I am going to take you back in time as we visit a unique little shop called Mendenhall G & G. The building was once home to Mendenhall Grocery and Grain Co., established in 1928 by Mr. and Mrs. Fred Bourn. At that time, it was the quintessential "country store," providing locals with a place to purchase everything from feed, seed, and grocery items to nails, boots, and overalls. But with the passage of time, the needs of the community and the clientele changed, and in the summer of 2004, Pam and Kent Jones purchased the store. By the first of October 2004, they added Mississippi-made products, gifts items, and specialty foods to their inventory, and continued with the original product line until the summer of 2006. Even though there have been changes, Pam and Kent have tried to maintain some of the old fashioned ambiance created by the Bourns in 1928. The old wooden floors, original glass display cases, and a 1928 hand-crank cash register which Mr. Bourn bought used, are all still in use today. The old feed bins that once contained grain are a showcase for bath and body products, and the old nail bin currently holds a wide variety of Mississippi tee shirts. An extensive selection of Mississippi-made products, such as jewelry, candles, foodstuff, and collegiate items now line the shelves that once held overalls and boots. G & G has been featured in Mississippi Magazine, Mississippi Woman Magazine, Our South Magazine, and in Mississippi Farm Country Magazine. But enough talk — Let's go inside! I was greeted by Pam Jones as I entered the shop, and Pam graciously gave me permission to take pictures. The first thing that caught my attention was this colorful hand painted "rug" featuring fruits and vegetables ... And front and center was this beautiful display of pottery, birdhouses, and accessories featuring butterflies and bunnies in aqua and brown tones. {You can click on all of these pictures if you would like to get a closer look.} I love this bunny platter. Wouldn't it be cute for Easter! I couldn't wait to get a closer look at the old cash register. This is the original roll top cash register that was purchased used by Mr. Bourn, in 1928. I think it's interesting that after hurricane Katrina hit the area, it was the only cash register in town that was working! The drawer showed signs of being pried open at some point in time, and I would love to know the story behind that. I assume these are the original old wooden file drawers, too ... Birdhouses always catch my attention, and I love this one made out of old tools and odds and ends. This watercolor of Mendenhall's Main Street caught my eye, too. Everywhere I looked, there were pretty things, and I was impressed with the creative and imaginative way in which they were displayed. The old worn floors, original shelves and cabinets, and the old glass display cases gave the shop a unique "homey" atmosphere that you don't encounter very often in gift shops. I found some delightful lagniappe tucked away in the very back of the store, behind an old battered screen door — it was a tearoom! Notice the phone number on the old Grocery & Grain sign ... I love these old seed jars ... View from tearoom looking back into front of store. Let's take a look at some of the other displays. Isn't this little owl ring cute! And if I was a coffee drinker, I would have bought one of these mugs! When I'm doing a photo shoot for Southern Lagniappe, I take literally hundreds of pictures, but a lot of the time, especially when photographing a shop like this one, I don't really get to look at the things I'm shooting, except for the view through my camera lens. When I was editing these pictures, I saw lots of stuff I'd like to go back and get a closer look at — especially this gorgeous whimsical glass chandelier. I know a five-year-old little girl who would love to have that hanging in her room! I hope you enjoyed browsing this unique little shop through my pictures. You can also visit G & G's web site at Mendenhall G & G Gifts. And if you are ever traveling US Highway 49 South, I hope you will take the time to see G & G and the charming little town of Mendenhall for yourself. You just never know what treasures you might find when you get "off the beaten path."