End of the Commons Mesopotamia, Ohio - Amish, Penny Candy, Popcorn, Tours, Bulk Food, Country Setting.

The Schaden Family
and
Stocking up at the General Store

End of the Commons General Store


Feeding a large family gave owners experience with buying bulk

Ken and Margaret Schaden and their 11 children run the End of the Commons General Store, located at routes 87 and 534, just 6 miles east of Middlefield, Ohio. They sell over 1000 products in bulk to Amish families who shop for their own large families. Most arrive at the store in horse-drawn buggies, which are parked out front at the hitching rail.

Like its name indicates, the store is at the end of the park-like central Commons. 25 years ago this year, the Schadens found what they were looking for in Mesopotamia. They purchased the general store in 1982. Ken was born and raised in Chicago. He was transferred to Cleveland where he worked for a Cleveland clothing manufacturer. His position was to coordinate all of the clothing operations in the Orient with those operations in Cleveland. Due to the constant travel and pressures that came with this position, Ken and his family felt that a change of jobs would be in order. Ken, living in Mesopotamia, visited the general store quite often to purchase milk, groceries and penny candy for the children. When the store was for sale he thought that it would be a great way for his family to work together in a family business and serve the needs of the local community.

Familiar with shopping in bulk for their own large family, the Schadens decided they could best serve the Amish with bulk products at reasonable prices. The old grocery store had to be cleared out of its back rooms to make room for the bulk products. As the cleaning process began, it soon became clear that what was thrown into backrooms and into the basement and attic, was not junk, but store history! They found hundreds of items of old store products, supplies, furniture and fixtures. Cash registers, scales, needle boxes, dry goods, and actual food products in cans, tins and boxes dating from the late 19th century!

Today, upon entering the store, one will find on display old clothes, shoes, a barber chair, a post office, a player piano, and many antiques of bygone days on display. Outside the store on a sunny summer afternoon, a visitor may find the Schadens collection of cars which range from a 1916 Depot Hack to a 1959 Plymouth.

Penny candy still lines the shelves by the checkout counter, where slots and boxes of the old post office remain. In summer, hand-dipped ice cream is dispensed from a window where stamps once were sold. People actually ask "How much is the penny candy?" but around here it still is a penny!

One will find licorice creams, honey-filled queen bees, gummi bears, jawbreakers, salt water taffy, orange slices, cherry bites, spearmint leaves, horehound drops, old time chewing gum, and licorice twists among the array of Old Fashioned candy. It's a treasure trove of products for those filling Easter baskets or shopping for Valentine, Halloween, or Christmas. Many thousands of pounds of chocolate wafers are sold for candy making at Christmas time.

Bread bakers who come across the general store by accident return again and again. They find the unusual flours they seek in quantities suitable for frequent baking of all kinds of goodies. Get rice flour, potato flour, rye flour and semolina flour here along with wheat gluten. Whole grains are bagged in another section. Fat plastic bags hold 2-pound quantities of Trix, Lucky Charms, Rice Krispies, Cheerios, and oatmeal, ideal for large families and thrifty shoppers. Buy Cream of Wheat cereal by the pound or by the 50 pound bag.

One entire shelf section is devoted to soup mixtures of beans, rice and other ingredients. A section for jellies has dandelion jelly, corncob jelly, and jellies made from elderberries, gooseberries, and pumpkins.

As the Amish community expands, so does the store's business. All of the Schaden's 11 children have worked in the store. Currently one son, Peter Schaden, is the general manager. Various children and grand children now work the store as well.

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