Harkin Store in New Ulm, MN 56073

Kids may see malls in a whole new light after a visit to this old general store, where they can get a feel for what consumer paradise might have meant in the 1870s. They can sample the store's wares, play a game of checkers, converse with the costumed staff, or just "set for a spell" on the porch and watch the river go by. The original store was forced to close when the railroad passed the town by. Much of its inventory was left on the shelves, and there it remains, under the care of the Nicollet County Historical Society. It's worth taking the time to read those old labels.