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Brooklin General Store
In Brooklin, Maine, on the Blue Hill Peninsula
The town of Brooklin is home to boat builders, artists, writers, musicians and local potters. The stunning landscape provided the setting for many of E.B. White’s books such as Charlotte’s Web and Stuart Little. The people that visit The Brooklin General Store stop in for a meal, coffee and conversation. There are just under 800 year round residents which jumps in the summertime to around 3,000. Years ago Brooklin was known for canning lobster and smoked herring.
While walking down the road or sitting on the porch of the Brooklin General Store, people stop to wave and say hello. This is a town hub for people to stop by and get their gas, food and spirits. This business is an excellent choice for the person or people that would enjoy the many things a small town has to offer.
Visit Maine says: “General stores are one of those things that seem to get better with age. Take Maine’s many general stores found in towns and villages across the state. They are the place to go for just about everything you could need, found tucked in among busy shelves, and narrow aisles. Some have been around for nearly 200 years; others have been re-imagined and reinvigorated, but all draw visitors from near and far….”
Some of these general stores have been fully renovated, revitalized and are foodie destinations. Brooklin General Store owners have revitalized the building and facility and now is a buyer’s opportunity to step in and enhance the business. The kitchen is larger than many restaurant kitchens!
Offered at $950,000
General Property Data
- 4 Reach Road, Brooklin, ME 04616
- Map and Lot 015-010
- Book 6333, Page 210-212 Hancock County Register of Deeds
- Lot size: .21 acres
- 1 1/2 story building, originally built in 1866 as a residence, then sold and opened as the Brooklin General Store in 1872. It was completely rebuilt in 2016
- Building is on a poured concrete foundation with crawl space
- 2022-2023 tax bill $2,775.74
- seating indoors for 20, at picnic tables for 30 and 10 on the front porch
- 2 gas pumps; gas tanks are 6 years old and are owned (not leased)
- Beautiful hardwood floors in the store and vinyl in the kitchen area
- All store shelving is moveable, on rollers, so the layout is up to your imagination. Brilliant!
- soft serve ice cream machine with takeout window
- Commercial kitchen with Ansul hood system, pizza oven, salamander, 6 burner gas stove, gas grill, convection oven, large dish washing station and enough equipment to operate a full restaurant in a cool setting! And with the moveable shelving for merchandise, the space could be configured to the buyer’s imagination!
- Heating /Cooling: forced air, propane
- Hot Water: propane on demand
- Private well water
- Private septic – holding tank
- Siding: hemlock clapboard
- Roof is asphalt shingle
- Propane generator on demand
- 20 parking spaces, (paved)
- EV charging station
- ADA accessible
Location
The Blue Hill peninsula is a convenient home-base for exploring the small seaside villages and coastline of the secluded and beautiful peninsula, or for day-tripping to Acadia National Park, Bar Harbor, Camden, or Downeast Maine.
Hiking, biking, kayaking, boating, sailing, whale watching, sightseeing, listening to concerts, perusing art galleries, antiquing, flying, and exploring islands and lighthouses by foot, car, and boat are all area activities that guarantee guests will leave filled with the wonder of the Blue Hill Peninsula.
Brooklin’s location is ideal for visitors from Bar Harbor and Mount Desert Island, Stonington, Deer Isle, Ellsworth, Bangor, and all of the quaint coastal towns dotting Route 1 headed South: Searsport, Belfast, Lincolnville, Camden and Rockland.
The Brooklin General Store is located:
- Stonington – 35 minutes
- Ellsworth – 35 minutes
- Castine – 50 minutes
- Belfast – 1 hour
- Bar Harbor – 1 hour 10 minutes
- Bangor – 1 hour 15 minutes
- Camden – 1 hour 40 minutes
- Waterville – 2 hours
- Augusta – 2 hours 15 minutes
- Portland – 3 hours
Fun Facts
According to Wikipedia, Brooklin was originally part the larger town of Sedgwick. Brooklin broke off and formed its own town in 1849. A few weeks later, the name was changed to Brooklin, after the brook line which separated it from Sedgwick. Using pogie oil as a fertilizer, the difficult soil was made productive, and hay became the principal crop. With excellent harbors, however, the main occupations were fishing and seafaring. By 1859, when the population was 1,002, it also had five boot and shoemaking factories, as well as two barrel manufacturers. By 1886, the town was noted for producing smoked herring in considerable quantities. Canning lobster had also become an important business. The town has a total area of 41.18 square miles (106.66 km2), of which 17.92 square miles (46.41 km2) is land and 23.26 square miles (60.24 km2) is water. Brooklin is bordered by the Benjamin River, Salt Pond, Blue Hill Bay, Jericho Bay and Eggemoggin Reach
An excerpt from an article in Maine Home + Design Magazine:
“Wedged between Deer Isle to the west and Mount Desert Island to the east, Brooklin is surrounded by some of the premier sailing waters on the East Coast. It might be best known for its picturesque bays and waterways—Blue Hill, Herrick, Jericho, Eggemoggin—and its harbors filled with locally built wooden crafts. The view from these waters offers an important perspective on the downeast town. By boat, one can see points and inlets unreachable by car, as well as evidence of Brooklin’s robust summer community in the grand cottages, quaint Capes, and old stone homes tucked away on private dirt roads. One can also watch fishermen starting up their motors, riggers assembling masts, and painters prepping yachts for fresh coats of varnish at the beginning of a busy day.
Because so much of the town’s economic activity is oriented toward the water, the village, slightly inland, is decidedly quieter, composed of a modest collection of old buildings and homes clustered around the juncture where Route 175 meets Naskeag Road. You’re not likely to catch a crowd unless you drive by during the Fourth of July parade or early in the morning, when locals gather for coffee and conversation at the Baptist church—a temporary meeting place until their beloved Brooklin General Store is rebuilt. Across the street is another community staple: the Friends Memorial Library, which has the highest circulation in Maine for a town of this size. This is a point of pride here, and partly a result of the town’s rich literary history, which more or less began in 1957 when author E.B. White and his wife, New Yorker fiction editor and writer Katharine White, moved permanently from Manhattan to an eighteenth century farmhouse on Route 175.
Click to read the full article: https://mainehomedesign.com/portrait-of-place/thrives-in-brooklin/#close
This is an opportunity to own a fantastic 'community hub' and enjoy a wonderful lifestyle, while living in one of the most beautiful spots in Maine!
