Butler’s Store
In 1959 Raymond Butler built his own store across the highway from Gayle’s Store. He and his wife, Florence Gayle Butler, ran the store together while raising their sons, Raymond, Jr. and John Robert. Raymond and Florence eventually moved into an apartment they made in the store. Their store was well supplied with groceries as well as hardware, shoes and other household goods. Raymond even trapped muskrats and sold the meat and pelts. Florence raised and sold beautiful cut flowers. Their grandson, Michael, assisted them in their later years. John Robert now operates the store and caters primarily to hunters and fishermen and the goods within the store are limited. During the summer months fresh vegetables are available, many of which are grown nearby and harvested daily. Nothing could be fresher than that.
Raymond’s brother, Gerline Butler, started an automotive repair business in 1960 in the garage behind his home near Butler’s Store. He soon built a garage next to his home and Bernice, his wife, kept books for 50 years as well as running errands for the business. Bernice said their son Philip worked in the garage beginning at age 8. Sometimes he would fall asleep on the creeper as a child and she would go over and pick him up to put him in bed. Philip started working full-time when he graduated from high school and he has continued to run Butler and Sons Auto Service since Gerline’s death in 2007.
Brickyard Store
This general store was on the east side of Route 10 where the land went down to a point along the Nansemond River. It was known as the Brickyard Store, also better known then as the Reid’s Ferry Corporation store. It was a gas station and general store that housed the post office and the postmaster’s residence upstairs. The inclusive dates of this being a post office was from 14 June 1904 until 31 January 1915. The following is from records obtained from Gary Butler regarding the incorporation of the Nansemond River Brick Company. “Information from the minutes of the first meeting of the incorporation and subscribers to the capital stock of Reid’s Ferry Corporation on the 22nd of October 1925 involved the purchase of a general stock of merchandise and opened a store in the building situated on the Suffolk-Chuckatuck road at Reid’s Ferry, Nansemond County and also to purchase said store, etc.” Elwood Gayle ran this store before opening his store across the highway in approximately 1928. After that, the store was operated by Happer Oliver and his wife. The Brickyard Store was ultimately torn down circa 1980.
Gayle’s Store
James Elwood Gayle built a store in 1928 between the current home of Raymond Butler, Jr. and the former home of John Gayle. Mr. Gayle ran the store at this location for 4-5 years. In 1932/1933 he moved the store to its present location after receiving a parcel of land from his father’s estate. Two horses pulled the store to the new location on wood rollers. While he operated the store at that location he also conducted a potato shipping business with Mills Godwin, Sr. Potatoes were shipped in sacks from the local wharf. In the meantime, he set up his son, James, with a store in Eclipse. In the early 1940s, Mr. Gayle began commuting to Eclipse to run that store. Mrs. Gayle and their son Frank then ran the store at Reid’s Ferry until Raymond Butler came home from WW II and operated it. When Raymond was called back into the reserves James Gayle ran the store. Raymond once more took over after he left the reserves and ran it until he built the current Butler’s Store across the highway. The Gayle family consisting of Mr. and Mrs. Gayle and daughter, Brenda, moved to Eclipse in 1957 to run that store. Mr. Gayle died in 1959 and in 1962 Mrs. Gayle sold the store and moved back to Reid’s Ferry. The store was converted into two apartments with Mrs. Gayle living upstairs. Brenda married Mack Wright and they moved downstairs where they now live.
In the early years of the Gayle’s store, there was an automotive garage next door for repairs. This full-service garage known as “Gayle Brothers” sold Sinclair gas and Kerosene. The garage was operated by Elwood Gayle and his brother, Leslie.