ELLSWORTH, Maine — After more than 100 years of doing business under ownership by one family, a local store on Water Street has closed its doors and sold off its inventory.
But there might be new life ahead for Mike’s Country Store, which was run by several generations of the Povich family from 1897 until earlier this fall. According to people familiar with the property, it has been purchased and will re-open early next year.
Multiple recent attempts to contact Jody Colson, the most recent proprietor of the store, have been unsuccessful. Colson took over the business after her stepfather, former state representative Eddie Povich, died in 2008. She closed the business at the end of October and put it on the market.
The store sold convenience-types items, plus pizza and sandwiches made to order, newspapers and penny candy.
A sign recently posted in the window of the front door thanked customers for their patronage.
“Our heartfelt thanks to customers, neighbors and friends for 115 years of support,” the sign read.
On Dec. 1, the front windows were covered up on the inside by brown paper and people were working inside. A man who came to the back door but declined to identify himself said the store had been purchased and the new owner planned to reopen the store sometime in January.
The man declined to identify who the new owner might be, but he said the store will sell the same type of goods offered in recent years.
A Sargent real estate sign in front of the business on Dec. 1 showed the property was “under contract.” This past week, Mary S. Haynes, Eddie Povich’s widow, was still listed in the Hancock County Registry of Deeds as the owner of the property.
Michael Povich, former district attorney for Hancock and Washington counties, is one of the neighbors of the property. He owns the former Povich family home next door, which he uses as an office.
Povich’s grandparents, Michael and Fanny, founded the store 117 years ago, then it was operated in succession by his parents, brother and step-niece. The former prosecutor’s brother, Eddie, took over the business in 1981, after their father, Shirley Povich, died. Michael and Eddie’s mother, Helen Povich, died in 2001 at the age of 83.
Contacted on Wednesday by cellphone while he was vacationing in California, Povich recalled spending a lot of time in his youth at the store, which is named after his grandfather.
“I’ve always had good memories of it because I grew up next door,” Povich said. “My concern was that someone would tear it down and make a parking lot out of it.”
He added he does not know who the new owner might be.
The store did not operate continuously since it was founded 117 years ago, the former prosecutor noted. It was closed for two years, from 1943 to 1945, while his father, Shirley, served in the Navy during World War II. He said his parents operated the store as a “glorified pantry” — Shirley’s law practice was the family’s primary source of income — and credited his brother with adding more services, such as the prepared foods and making it more of a business.
He said he understands Colson’s decision to sell the business but hopes it continues to operate more or less the way it has for decades.
“I’m just happy it will still be there,” Povich said. “Frankly, I think they should [continue to] call it ‘Mike’s.’”
