Freshman on The Hill

Photo by María Helena Carey

Being a newbie on the Hill, I heard some things mentioned over and over from different people.  Some of these things were painted in a good light by some and in a more unflattering one by others.

But Frager’s, much like the Cheverly pool, always drew a special degree of reverence from those who mentioned it.

Frager’s Hardware is a mom and pop store that has anchored down the corner of Pennsylvania Avenue and 11th street SE since 1920.  Originally owned by the Frager family, its current owners are two lifelong friends who are committed to supporting the Capitol Hill community in any way they can.  (I guess, technically, that would make Frager’s a pop and pop store, wouldn’t it?)  Any way you look at it, Frager’s is celebrating mom and pop stores this weekend by hosting the author of a book appropriately called “The Mom & Pop Store: How the Unsung Heroes of the American Economy are Surviving and Thriving.”  Also, mayor Fenty declared September 14th “Mom and Pop Store Day,” so celebrate accordingly.

Frager’s is simply more than a hardware store: it’s like our local Piccadilly Circus.  Not only are the tiny aisles overflowing with anything and everything you could ever dream up for a do-it-yourself project that my husband wants to make his own; but it also has all manner of interesting publications and novelties; toys that my three-year old always seems to uncover and then want to make his own; seeds, which his mother always wants to make her own; and anything within grabbing reach of the baby, which he always wants to drool upon.  I am quite convinced that if we ever got the cat to visit Frager’s, she would find something she couldn’t live without.

Add to that bounty the fact that you are invariably attended from beginning to end by the staff, who are always a few feet away and ready to answer any question or to pass it on until someone can actually fulfill your query and the fact that this being Capitol Hill you are bound to bump into someone you know,  and you are bound to start to chat to this someone in one of the very narrow alleys at Frager’s, where everyone coursing through is bound to, in turn, bump into you because you are causing a traffic jam, and so on, and so on.

Frager’s has seen more change and more history in this neighborhood than most– it has seen the Hill and the city at large through wars and peacetime, and through riots and unity.  But as an independently-owned store, it’s a testament to how the community can rally together and keep businesses that provide excellent service afloat and thriving even in tough times.

Go celebrate this independent spirit this weekend, if you can, by going to Frager’s and perhaps getting a copy of the book “The Mom & Pop Store” signed by the author; or you can celebrate anytime, by just shopping in, enjoying, and letting the best hardware store ever be a part of your life.