WALDEN – There’s a small store at the corner of South Walden Road and Route 15 where the “Open” flag seems to always be flying. Diane Cochran, 78, has run that store in Walden for 34 years. The Corner Stop Inn Shop is open six days a week from 7 a.m. to 5 p.m.
“I tried hiring in a teenager once, but it just didn’t work out and the workmen’s comp. is so complex,” she said.
Like so many older people who grew up in the area, Cochran was raised on a dairy farm. Her parents were Francese and Wilfred Cochran and three brothers, Ron, Don, and Reg, are all still living in Walden.
She graduated valedictorian from her class of 36 students at Danville High school. With the help of scholarships and grants, she attended Chapman College in California for two years. She studied sociology which she believes has helped her work with customers over the years.
“I seem to be a non-certified counselor for a lot of people,” she said with a smile.
After college she had various jobs including running a daycare in Plainfield, spending time in Alaska, and closer to home, working for Mark Abbott at Walden Heights.
In 1976 Frank Pinette, a Cabot plumber, hired her part-time to help with administrative work. They got along very well and she worked with him full time for 16 years.
“When he retired I couldn’t imagine working for anyone else,” she said.
She had two uncles who had stores in Eden and Waterville and she decided to open a store in Walden. The building on the corner was originally the Stagecoach Inn and Tavern built in 1799. It is owned by her nephew and he gave her a lenient rental situation where she could operate the store and live in the house.
“Gary Larabee at Hastings Store in Danville is the person who really helped me get set up,” she remembered.
The house has 14 rooms and Cochran’s store is all in one compact room, but she manages to offer a full line of grocery items from meat and milk to beauty and health aids. She has a storage room in the back of her selling space. She likes to supply customers with local products including syrup from Rowell’s Sugarhouse and baked goods and pickles from Top of the Mountain Bakery. Most of her other orders are through Hibbert and McGee in Barre.
“At one point I sold cigarettes,” she remembered, “but it was too much of a problem checking ID’s.” The store acts as a community hub.
“People leave off things here to be picked up by someone else and people call for road conditions,” she said. Often neighbors drop by for a cup of coffee and a chat. They appreciate her selection, which includes hard-to-find Stewarts shell beans, canned corn beef hash and Hershey ice cream.
“Meeting and visiting with people is the best part of running the store,” Cochran added. When things are quiet she says she always has paperwork to tend to. Managing the store has not prevented her from getting involved in community activities.
She has been president of the Home Dem for 14 years and is chair of the trustees of the Walden United Methodist Church. For 16 years she was active with restorative justice and for 12 years she worked as an advocate in Hardwick for AWARE. She is a notary and a justice of the peace, marrying more than 25 couples. Seven of those unions took place right in the store. Right now she is working with the local planning committee for Walden’s celebration of the country’s 250th anniversary.
Yard sales to benefit local churches are held in the store parking lot and planning is underway for the June sale.
In 2025 Cochran’s good works were recognized by the Hardwick Area Kiwanis Club and she received the Humanitarian Award. In the presentation they concluded, “She is a trusted friend and neighbor to all who know and love her.”
This article was previously published in the June Cabot Chronicle.
