Prentis Store

Part of the Colonial Williamsburg «Rev Quest» — a scavenger hunt for kids — this was a welcome respte from all the walking and running around we did.
You can buy a few cold drinks and souvenirs here and learn about how shopping was done «way back when».
Interesting.

When taking a stroll down DoG street don’t miss this shop. Oh, where are my manners… DOG street is an acronym for Duke of Gloucester. I personally have found it to be one of the most unique shopping experiences in CW.
So what’s in the store, well a little bit of everything. However, think of a Nordstrom of the 18^th Century it’s high end quality goods and you have the idea. Leather luggage, pewter, jewelry, cuff links, wine, beer, baskets, dishes, mugs, hats and there is more. This is the hard to find unique item gift store of the CW. Some items are within a price range that makes it difficult to justify a purchase. However, the quality is great! Many items I would consider affordable lower price point and still very nice.
The store presents beautifully and the two staff members on the day of my visit were extremely helpful and ready to answer questions. This is a store that usually has a lot of foot traffic and the day I visited was no exception. One of my favorite aspects of the store has to be the long counter and next would be it’s wonderful front window with dishes and other items displayed.
When striking up a conversation with the older male staff member about the history of the building the place got much more interesting. It is one of the 88 original structures in CW. That alone made it intriguing to me because I believe there are more originals off DOG street than on, but could be wrong. The Prentis shop holds the distinction of being the longest continual running commercial brick building in the CW. That is a bold statement folks because the building is early 1700’s. To give how old the building perspective George Washington was 7 years old when it was completed. It’s built like a fortress with four layers of brick on the bottom half of the walls and three up to the rafters Most of the bones of the original structure are present. The original wood floor was replaced due to a modification in the 1920’s when it service as a tire and parts store of all things.
Cool shop, cool history, cool people working here. Don’t pass on it.