the owner's ability to judge credit worthiness was vital to his success. The store was often a gathering point for local men to chat, pass around the weekly newspaper, and talk politics. In the South the general store was especially important after the Civil War, as the merchant was one of the few sources of credit available until the cash crops (usually cotton or tobacco) came in. There were few towns and very few cities, so rural general stores and itinerant peddlers were the main sources of supply. During the first half of the 20th century, general stores were displaced in many areas of the United States by many different types of specialized retailers in trading towns and small cities. But from the 1960s through present, many small specialized retailers have in turn been crushed by the so-called "category killers", which are "big-box" wholesale-type retailers large enough to carry the majority of best-selling goods in a specific category, like sporting goods or office supplies. Gray's General Store of Adamsville, Rhode Island is reputed to be the oldest continually operating general store in the United States until its temporary closure in 2012. It subsequently reopened in the summer of 2013. However, the convenience inherent in the general store has been revived in the form of the modern convenience store. A few variety stores draw upon the concept of having a broad variety of goods servicing small communities where big-box retailers are absent; Dollar General Stores, in particular, draws its name from both the "dollar store" concept of having items at a fixed price point and the general store. List of general stores This is a select list of historical general stores in the United States, listed in alphabetical order. See also Types of retail outlets Footnotes Further reading Dannhaeuser, Norbert. "The role of the neighborhood store in developing economies: the case of Dagupan City, Philippines." Journal of Developing Areas (1980): 157–174. in JSTOR English, Linda. By All Accounts: General Stores and Community Life in Texas and Indian Territory. (University of Oklahoma Press, 2013) Kaynak, Erdener, and S. Tamer Cavusgil. "The evolution of food retailing systems: contrasting the experience of developed and developing countries." Journal of the Academy of Marketing Science (1982) 10#3 pp: 249–268. Lejoyeux, Michel, et al. "Prevalence of compulsive buying among customers of a Parisian general store." Comprehensive Psychiatry (2007) 48#1 pp: 42–46. Retail formats Western (genre) staples and