Gidday. Can we help you?
Pakenham’s general store. Since 1840.
A bakery that starts before dawn, a lunch counter the road crews argue over, a gift floor under the old beams upstairs, and a noticeboard for the whole village. Same building. Same corner.
Sticky buns, ready by ten. Our own recipe.
Baked in the sauce, then flipped.
The sticky buns are what people drive for: a cinnamon roll baked in a caramelized maple brown sugar sauce, then flipped out onto the tray so the sauce ends up on top.
Everything else is plain and made in-house. White, harvest and sourdough bread. Blueberry and morning glory muffins. Pies, cookies and fudge on fudge mornings. Treats come out first, because that’s what you’re coming in for, then the bread. And we bake enough that there’s still something on the shelf at three in the afternoon.
“A croissant that’s actually a bun.”
On the butter flakies
The board changes. Check it when you come in.
Soup, sandwiches, and a special every day.
Deli sandwiches made to order, hot soup, grab-and-go for the lunch box, and coffee from the 1840’s Café Brew board. In summer, pulled pork and beef brisket on a bun, which tend to be gone before noon.
The road crews get dispatched from Almonte, and the men argue over who gets to work in Pakenham, so they can come here for lunch.
A true story, told at the counter“A healthy little village needs healthy local businesses, and when one of us does better, it really does make a difference to the others.”
The Shopkeeper’s Bulletin, September 2026
Where history still lives.
The history here isn’t behind glass. You walk on it, open it and read it. Come in, have a look around, and tell us what you think.
The floors
Original hardwood, blemishes and all. Asked separately what they notice most in this building, both of us gave the same answer: the floors, and the different types of wood planks.
The drawers
The original shelving and drawers, still in use.
Older than the telephone
The store was open before the telephone was invented.
The 1862 ledger
Kept in pounds, shillings and pence, “because we were not Canada yet.”
- The train. A 1953 set running the full way round the store, above the shelves.
- The horse. Mechanical. A quarter a ride.
- The Royal Bank calendar. Older than the one at the bank.
- The post office. This building was one. The mail slots came back as a donation.
Thirteen names on the board by our door.
The store has been kept by a line of people, each for a while. Ours is the last name on the board. We don’t think of ourselves as the owners so much as the current keepers of a store that belongs to Pakenham.
- Archibald McArthur & Robert Brown 1840–1859
- Robert Brown –1876
- Robert Brown & David M. Scott –1879
- Robert Scott & William Halliday –1888
- Robert Scott & Son (Albert) –1905
- Albert, William L. & G. Harold Scott –1927
- William L. & G. Harold Scott –1947
- William L., G. Harold & Robert A. Scott –1964
- Robert A. Scott –1981
- John & Yvonne Hayes –1987
- Brian & Carol Bean –2002
- Rodney R. Bell –2021
- Wanda & Brian Clark today
As it reads on the board inside the store.
The village sees it as its own. So do we.
Can’t make it before we close? We leave your celery on the front stoop. You pay next time you’re in.
It has happened more than once. Nobody has ever not come back.
Lost cats, garage sales, the quilt show, the potluck on Macfarlane Street.
Village notices go up by the door, free, for as long as they need to.
The 1953 train, the old mail slots, the calendars and photographs: donated by neighbours, labelled with their names.
Not ours to sell or give away. We just keep them where everyone can see them.
Kept by the Clarks since 2021, the thirteenth name on the board by the door.
The thing you should have bought.
Up the stairs, under the old timber beams, is the gift floor: leather that’s unique to us, hats, sweaters, local books and the things you’ll think about on the drive home. If you were here once and wish you’d picked something up, our online store ships it to you, starting with the Irish knits.
Can’t find it online? Call us at 613-624-2022 and we’ll ship it out to you.
We don’t carry everything. On purpose.
A general store that won’t sell what the shop down the street already sells has decided what it’s for. If a neighbour has what you need, we’ll send you there.
- ShieldsYour roast, and your sliced meat for tomorrow’s sandwiches.
- The feed storeRope, string, twine and rubber boots.
- ScoopsThe ice cream. It’s around the corner.
- UsBread, lunch, fudge, the gift floor, and a spot on the noticeboard for your lost cat.
“When one of us does better, it really does make a difference to the others.” — The Shopkeeper’s Bulletin
The Five Span bridge, around the corner.You’ve driven through. Next time, stop.
Pakenham is a village of about 650 people on County Road 29, between Almonte and Arnprior, with a school, an arena, a beach, the Trans Canada Trail, and the Five Span stone bridge around the corner. Cyclists stop in off the trail. Day-trippers stop for lunch. And the locals usually answer your question before we can.
What’s new at the store, what’s happening in the village, and a page from the archives. Printed for the counter and sent by email. A lot of our customers aren’t on Facebook, and neither is the news that matters.
Get the Bulletin
The dog will find you before we do.
That’s Waylon. He greets everyone, inspects the floors, and has a regular game of toss with the Saturday crowd. He works every day we’re open.
Good to know before you come.
What are your hours?
Monday to Saturday 7 a.m. to 6 p.m., and Sunday 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. We are closed only three days a year: Christmas Day, Boxing Day and Easter Sunday.
Where is the store?
At 2524 County Road 29 in the village of Pakenham, Ontario, between Almonte and Arnprior. The Trans Canada Trail and the Five Span stone bridge are close by.
How old is the store?
The plaque out front says it is the oldest continuously operating general store in North America, in its same location. A general store has done business in this building since 1840, and a board inside lists every owner since then.
What do you bake?
Sticky buns, ready by ten each morning, plus white, harvest and sourdough bread, butter flakies, muffins, pies, cookies and sausage rolls, all made in-house. Fudge is made in the store too.
Do you serve lunch?
Yes. Deli sandwiches made to order, hot soup, a daily special on the board, and grab-and-go for the lunch box. In summer there is pulled pork and beef brisket on a bun.
Can I buy online, or have something shipped?
Yes. Our online store ships your order to you, starting with our Irish knits. If you saw something in the store that is not online, call us at 613-624-2022 and we’ll ship it out to you.
Do you speak French?
Some of our team do. Visitors from Quebec stop in all the time, and we are happy to help in either language.
What is the Shopkeeper’s Bulletin?
Our monthly newsletter: what’s new at the store, news from the village, and a page from the archives. It is printed for the counter and sent by email. Sign up on our contact page or ask at the counter.
Come in, have a look around.
Find us
2524 County Road 29
Pakenham, Ontario K0A 2X0
In the village, between Almonte and Arnprior.
Hours
| Monday to Saturday | 7 a.m.–6 p.m. |
| Sunday | 8 a.m.–5 p.m. |
Closed Christmas Day, Boxing Day and Easter Sunday. Waylon works all the rest.
Getting here
On the Trans Canada Trail by bike, or by car on County Road 29.