Five Points, Tennessee: The Big Red Store - Coffins, Moon Pies, Vintage

If you can make the stop (hope the owner is there with the door open), The Big Red Store is a step back in time! In the summer, 3rd Saturday of the month through August, there is live music inside.

If it wasn't for a few makeshift signs on the highway it would be easy to miss the Big Red Store. Situated on a lonely but picturesque country road, it seems amazing it was once a thriving enterprise. Linda Boyd and her husband who live next door to the store purchased and restored it to its former glory. It is only open on certain occasions, but you can call the number listed and Linda will open the store for you to visit.

The Big Red Store has many claims to fame. When it opened, it was hailed as the largest country store in the world. It's been called the world's first mall, claimed to have the fanciest soda fountain in the south (still there), and is a mile away from where a civil war skirmish involving Gen. Nathan Bedford Forrest took place. A sign tells the story of the skirmish. The store contained everything you could imagine, including coffins. It was the sight of a U.S. Post Office from 1858-1949. The general store opened in 1902.

It closed its doors in 1950, and was renovated in 2006. It now houses a museum that contains many original items, including a child's coffin, the soda fountain, and original receipts. There's even an outhouse out back. There is a quilt block mural on the side of the building that is part of the Appalachian Quilt Trail.