Portsmouth, New Hampshire, Community Devastated that this Downtown Store is Closing after 26 Years

I know they say that change is the only constant but this one hurts.

If you are a frequent flyer of downtown Portsmouth, New Hampshire, you know that there are a few staples in town that have stood the test of time. If you went for a stroll and didn't see those things there you would say, "this is not the Portsmouth I know and love!"

North Church is one of those places:

Gilley's is another:

And I would put Stonewall Kitchen up there in that list of "quintessential Portsmouth places"

A member of the Portsmouth, NH Facebook group named Karen Alderfer Whelan shared to the group that she was devastated about the news that Stonewall Kitchen will be closing it's doors after 26 years in Market Square at the end of March 2025. It is truly the end of an era.

She mentioned that she heard it was because of rents increasing downtown. She noticed a lot of empty storefronts and it feels like the city of Portsmouth is losing yet another treasure.

Someone had an awesome idea in the comments that the city of Portsmouth should #makethemallgreatagain

Think about it. If the real reason all of these great places have to close their doors is because of rent increases, you know where there are TONS of vacant stores available to rent for cheap? The Mall at Fox Run! Not to mention the mall has FREE PARKING. Parking can be such a burden downtown it deters many people from going at all, especially during the holiday season. I am rooting for malls to make a comeback.

In the meantime, we all need to pop into the Stonewall Kitchen location on 10 Pleasant Street and grab your gourmet jams and other accoutrements while we still have it in town.

Is there a local store that closed and you still miss it to this day?