Shopping

Two of Minnesota [1]’s largest antiques stores—Mill Antiques (410 Main St. N., 651/430-1816, 10 a.m.–5 p.m. daily), in the 1870s Isaac Staples Sawmill and Midtown Antique Mall (301 Main St. S., 651/430-0808, www.midtownantiques.com [2], 10 a.m.–5 p.m. Mon.–Thurs., 10 a.m.–7 p.m. Fri.–Sat., 11 a.m.–6 p.m. Sun., open one hour later Mon.–Sat. in summer)—sit at opposite ends of Main Street, and about a dozen more sit in between. Prices are high, but so is the quality.

Books are Stillwater [3]’s other consumer claim to fame. “King” Richard Booth of Hay-on-Wye in Wales officially proclaimed Stillwater North America’s first Booktown (www.booktown.com [4]) in 1994. Collectively, the city’s outstanding bookshops have around half a million used titles on sale, about half of them at Loome Theological Booksellers (320 4th St. N., 651/430-1092, www.loomebooks.com [5], 9 a.m.–5 p.m. daily), the largest secondhand theology book dealer in the world—housed, appropriately enough, in an old church.

There is less volume but more variety at Loome Antiquarian Bookstore (201 Main St. S., 651/430-9805, noon–6 p.m. Sun.–Wed., 10 a.m.–6 p.m. Thurs.–Sat.) and St. Croix Antiquarian Booksellers (232 Main St. S., 651/430-0732, 11 a.m.–5 p.m. Mon.–Thurs., 11 a.m.–7 p.m. Fri.–Sat., noon–5 p.m. Sun.).