"I never wanted to own a bookstore, but if I was going to, this was the one," Fran Keilty, owner of Hickory Stick Bookshop, Washington Depot, Conn., told Rural Intelligence. "This is where I came when I was a child. I've always been a bookseller; before this I was part of [New Haven's] Atticus, commuting over two hours a day. Then this opportunity presented itself about ten years ago, and everything fell into place. Not to mention this is eight minutes from my house."
Keilty, the fourth owner in Hickory Stick's 60-year history, noted that real estate agents "use having a local bookstore as a great selling feature. Litchfield County is filled with so many writers, artists, literary agents, and people who make books and like books, it's perfect.... You have to be connected to people. This is a people business. Lots of other towns have high-end things. But Washington is rare. It's where you can really live. It has a hardware store, clothing stores, a grocery store, and good restaurants. The Hickory Stick is one of the amenities.... We are a community bookstore. If we are not going to act as a community bookstore, we have no reason to exist."
