Ashmore's in Frenchtown to hold last rummage sale Saturday before renovations start
Tallahasseeans have a chance to get their hands on pieces of local history.
The old Ashmore Drug Store, located on Brevard Street in the heart of Frenchtown, is hosting a rummage sale this Saturday from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. to clear out the store, which has been vacant for years. Cash and cards will be accepted. The interior is quite dusty, so masks are recommended.
"What we heard from working with the community was to give people who have visited here a chance to own some of these treasures," said John Baker, policy and program development administrator for the city of Tallahassee.
Glassware, vinyl records, tools, Florida license plates and political memorabilia are just some of the items available. Some items date to the 1950s.
This isn't the first time there has been a rummage sale at Ashmore's, but Saturday's will be the last.
The history of Ashmore
Tallahassee Democrat columnist and local historian Gerald Ensley wrote plenty about the old general store in Frenchtown.
"Rob Roy Ashmore, a native of nearby Sopchoppy, founded the store at 509 W. Brevard St. in 1946 after serving in World War II," Ensley wrote. "He sold groceries, merchandise, ointments and potions such as the famed Red Rooster pill, the Viagra of its day."
The store also became well known for its pecans. Ashmore, who was white, became close with his predominantly Black clientele; pecans were of one of many reasons why.
The store was also a major political hub, becoming a frequent stop for politicians throughout the years.
"Located just five blocks from the Florida governor's mansion, Ashmore's was a touchstone for politicians. Governors LeRoy Collins and Claude Kirk were regular visitors," Ensley wrote.
"In 1968, presidential candidates Hubert Humphrey, Shirley Chisholm and George Wallace stopped by — as did England's Duke of Windsor in 1952."
Ashmore's also was a go-to for many dates, celebrations, and everyday errand runs. The sign that long hung over the front door read: "We are small but we have it all."
In December, "a gentleman came in who knew Mr. Ashmore, was friends with Mr. Ashmore and was going through what he would purchase, and he found a little notebook where Mr. Ashmore had his name and old phone number," Baker said, sharing a memory of a local resident.
Ashmore died at the age of 94, and the store finally closed in October 2008.
Future of the site
Baker says Ashmore's will be renovated into a local cultural center and African American museum.
The city acquired the building in 2004. The Frenchtown Community Development Corp. had plans at the time to resurrect the store's original pharmacy counter, as well as its soda fountain. The president of the group helped broker the city's $250,000 appropriation to purchase the property from Ashmore as part of the ongoing project to revitalize the historically black Frenchtown neighborhood.
In 2022, the Tallahassee City Commission OK'd $717,000 in grants from the Florida Department of State towards the renovation. Baker said Saturday's proceeds also will go toward the renovations.
The designs and renderings for the buildings, designed by Lewis + Whitlock, have been completed and approved by the Tallahassee Trust for Historic Preservation. Baker says they're hoping "by maybe May, June or somewhere there, we will begin to mobilize for the renovation."
Not everything will be for sale on Saturday. Some items will be kept for the future museum there, and others will go to the John G. Riley House.
Baker says the community is ready for the building's future: "They are looking forward to the opportunity to have this corner on Brevard and Macomb renovated into a nice looking building they can be proud of."
Arianna Otero is the City Solutions Reporter for the Tallahassee Democrat. Contact her via email at [email protected] and follow her on Twitter/X: @ari_v_otero.
This article originally appeared on Tallahassee Democrat: Ashmore's in Frenchtown to hold final rummage sale before renovations
