In small-town Texas, the general store or hardware store was the Walmart or Amazon of their day. The stores sold everything from cradles to coffins. Today, entering these general merchandise shops is like stepping back in time.
The Windthorst General Store in northeastern Archer County survives as the primary retail outlet for miles around. About 23 miles south of Wichita Falls, Windthorst calls itself the “Dairy Capital of North Texas.”
The store opened in 1892 as Weinzapfel’s General Store. The current storefront was built in 1921 at U.S. Highway 281 and TX-25. The store sells everything from groceries to plumbing supplies. This is a great place to grab a quick breakfast sandwich or lunch, and the local German-style sausage is delicious. The store even has its own line of spices.
Braly’s Ace Hardware in Palestine was founded in 1932, and now the fifth generation of the family works there. There is no telling the treasures hidden in the 1938 elementary school building at 420 W. Palestine Ave.
As well as normal hardware odds and ends, it has a large selection of gardening implements and grills filling the former gym. As you shop, watch for hidden pieces of the school’s history. Ace Hardware named Braly’s the coolest hardware store on the planet in 2014.
In Marlin, about 30 miles southeast of Waco, the red brick building at 122 Live Oak St. has housed a hardware store for just shy of a century. Keith Ace Hardware still has the original pressed tin ceiling.
The store is part of a chain of hardware stores in small towns around Central Texas founded by John Keith. The UT graduate purchased his first historic hardware store in McGregor in 1983. Since his death in 2007, the company has grown to include 21 stores under the leadership of his wife, Karen Keith.
1,828th in a series. Everywhere is a day trip from somewhere. Follow “Day Trips & Beyond,” a travel blog, at austinchronicle.com/day-trips.
This article appears in October 16 • 2026.
