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I-95 road-trip field guide

Weird Stores Near I-95

17 unusual stores worth leaving I-95 for.

Curated stops
17
States represented
9
Direction
North → South

The interstate idea

Seventeen better reasons to leave the interstate

Long hours on I-95 can flatten into a loop of lanes, interchanges, and familiar service stops. This guide offers 17 better reasons to pause: an indoor RC racetrack, a furniture store with a ropes course and IMAX theater, a working glass studio and grist mill, book-filled barns, curiosity cabinets, architectural salvage warehouses, and a landmark roadside complex.

Every destination already has a place in the OddStopsUSA directory, and all 17 sit within five straight-line miles of I-95. Together, the 17 stops reach nine represented states, from New Hampshire through South Carolina, with the strongest cluster in Maryland. It is a curated set rather than a comprehensive account of the corridor.

Distances here are straight-line measurements from each store coordinate to I-95, not driving distances or estimates of the detour. A shop less than a mile from the highway can still require several turns, and the listed exit may work differently by direction. Treat the mileage as a consistent comparison, then use the access notes, local roads, and current navigation for the actual drive.

01 · North to south

New Hampshire

1 OddStop

New Hampshire supplies the northernmost stop in this guide: a club-run indoor RC course in Seabrook. It sits near the highway, but its public rhythm follows scheduled practice and race programming, so the calendar matters as much as the map.

  1. Maximus RC Raceway Club Corp radio-control racing destination in Seabrook, NH

    Seabrook, NH

    Maximus RC Raceway Club Corp

    Maximus RC Raceway makes miniature motorsport the whole attraction. The club-operated indoor carpet course changes layouts, surrounds racers with purpose-built barriers and pit activity, and runs scheduled practice and weekly competition. Even non-racers can appreciate the technical precision of a full circuit built at model scale. Check the event calendar before visiting; ordinary walk-in retail hours do not define access here.

    View OddStopBrowse New Hampshire OddStops
    0.743 mistraight-line from I-95

    I-95 ACCESS

    Verified highway access

    Verified exit
    Exit 1 — NH 107 toward US 1 and Seabrook

    The Seabrook course sits near the New Hampshire–Maine line, with NH 107 carrying travelers toward US 1 and the destination.

    I-95 Details & SourcesVerified

    Evidence notes

    Current federal highway data supports the retained 0.743-mile straight-line result. NHDOT material supports Exit 1 and the NH 107 approach, while the destination page confirms scheduled activity.

    Public sources

02 · North to south

Massachusetts

1 OddStop

Massachusetts contributes a retail spectacle in Reading. The furniture showrooms are only the beginning; the same property layers in giant jellybeans, indoor aerial attractions, food, and a full commercial theater, each with its own schedule.

  1. Wide interior of the Reading Jordan's Furniture Beantown area with the two-level ropes course, zip-line rails and oversized jellybean-themed sculptures

    Reading, MA

    Jordan's Furniture — Reading

    Jordan’s Furniture in Reading starts with sofas, mattresses, and dining sets, then veers into full-scale spectacle. The property also contains It at Beantown, a two-level indoor ropes course with more than 30 activities and a zip line, plus giant jellybean sculptures and a commercial IMAX theater. Attraction and theater schedules differ from furniture-store hours, so check the component you want before arriving.

    View OddStopBrowse Massachusetts OddStops
    0.16 mistraight-line from I-95

    I-95 ACCESS

    Verified highway access

    Verified exit
    Exit 56A/B — Route 28 / Walkers Brook interchange area

    The Reading property is in the Walkers Brook area beside the Route 28 interchange complex.

    I-95 Details & SourcesVerified

    Evidence notes

    The retained federal measurement places the store 0.160 straight-line mile from I-95. MassDOT and Town of Reading sources support the Route 28 and Walkers Brook interchange relationship.

    Public sources

03 · North to south

Rhode Island

2 OddStops

Rhode Island offers two very different reasons to turn off: a Providence glass studio joined to an ice-cream café, then a working historic mill in West Kingston. Together they pair contemporary craft with centuries-old production.

  1. Visitors inside Gather Café looking through the full glass wall into the adjoining Gather Glass studio in Providence

    Providence, RI

    Gather Glass + Gather Café

    Gather joins a handmade-glass gallery and working hot shop to an adjoining small-batch ice-cream café. A full glass wall gives café visitors a view onto the glassblowing floor, while the retail side offers finished vessels, ornaments, jewelry, and custom work. Classes add hands-on possibilities, but they follow reservation calendars rather than regular storefront hours, so confirm the experience you want.

    View OddStopBrowse Rhode Island OddStops
    0.755 mistraight-line from I-95

    I-95 ACCESS

    Verified highway access

    Verified exit
    Exit 37A — Atwells Avenue / BroadwayThe approach is direction-dependent.

    The Atwells Avenue destination is reached from the Atwells Avenue and Broadway area; the useful approach depends on travel direction.

    I-95 Details & SourcesVerified

    Evidence notes

    The store-to-highway result is 0.755 straight-line mile. RIDOT identifies the current exit number, and Gather’s current contact page confirms the Atwells Avenue destination.

    Public sources

  2. Red Kenyon's Grist Mill building in West Kingston with its stone-ground meal and flour sign

    West Kingston, RI

    Kenyon's Grist Mill

    Kenyon’s is both a pantry stop and a working piece of Rhode Island milling history. The 1886 grist mill still uses original Westerly granite millstones on a site documented to 1696, producing stone-ground cornmeal, flour, johnny cake meal, and baking mixes for the shop. Weekend tours depend on staffing, making a call ahead worthwhile if the machinery is the main draw.

    View OddStopBrowse Rhode Island OddStops
    4.159 mistraight-line from I-95

    I-95 ACCESS

    Verified highway access

    Verified exit
    Exit 7 — Route 138 / South Kingstown

    Route 138 carries travelers east from I-95 toward South Kingstown and the West Kingston mill area.

    I-95 Details & SourcesVerified

    Evidence notes

    Current highway evidence supports the 4.159-mile straight-line result. RIDOT and the mill’s directions support Exit 7 and Route 138 as the documented access relationship.

    Public sources

04 · North to south

Connecticut

2 OddStops

Connecticut moves from Niantic’s sprawling outdoor book world to a Bridgeport showroom of medical curiosities, antiques, and taxidermy. Both reward slow browsing, though their settings could hardly be more different.

  1. Main Barn sign and barn building at The Book Barn, 41 West Main Street in Niantic

    Niantic, CT

    The Book Barn

    The Book Barn spreads more than 350,000 used and rare books across barns, sheds, gardens, and wonderfully named corners including Hades and The Haunted. Browsing can also lead past an old book-filled outhouse, roaming cats, and a pen of carrot-loving goats. It feels less like entering a conventional bookstore than wandering an eccentric campus, with three related shops around Niantic extending the hunt.

    View OddStopBrowse Connecticut OddStops
    1.891 mistraight-line from I-95

    I-95 ACCESS

    Verified highway access

    Verified exit 1
    Exit 74 — Niantic accessNorthbound approach.
    Verified exit 2
    Exit 72 — Niantic accessSouthbound approach.

    Northbound travelers can use Exit 74 for Niantic; southbound travelers can use Exit 72.

    I-95 Details & SourcesVerified

    Evidence notes

    The retained highway calculation places the Main Barn 1.891 straight-line miles from I-95. Current transportation and Niantic directions support the direction-specific Exit 74 and Exit 72 approaches.

    Public sources

  2. Wide view of taxidermy, skulls, antiques, art, and furniture inside CVRATED in Bridgeport

    Bridgeport, CT

    CVRATED by Ryan Matthew Cohn

    CVRATED fills a former industrial space with the kind of objects usually kept behind museum glass: medical skulls, taxidermy, anatomical art, historical artifacts, rare antiques, strange furniture, and giant pieces that could pass for film props. Nearly everything is for sale, but the scale and presentation feel like a private collection. Public hours are limited, with weekday visits handled by appointment.

    View OddStopBrowse Connecticut OddStops
    0.466 mistraight-line from I-95

    I-95 ACCESS

    Verified highway access

    Verified exit
    Exit 30 — Route 113 / Surf Avenue–Lordship Boulevard

    Route 113 leads through the Surf Avenue and Lordship Boulevard area toward the Union Avenue showroom.

    I-95 Details & SourcesVerified

    Evidence notes

    The current federal highway reference supports the 0.466-mile straight-line result. CTDOT identifies Exit 30 and Route 113, while the showroom page confirms the destination address and access.

    Public sources

05 · North to south

New Jersey

1 OddStop

New Jersey’s lone entry is built for scale: a two-level toy flagship inside American Dream, complete with interactive play, demonstrations, a towering indoor slide, and a café. The store’s attraction hours can differ from its retail schedule.

  1. Wide interior of Toys “R” Us at American Dream with colorful game and toy aisles beneath branded fixtures

    East Rutherford, NJ

    Toys “R” Us at American Dream

    This two-level Toys “R” Us flagship revives the toy store as an outing rather than a quick errand. More than 10,000 toys share the space with interactive play, product demonstrations, a two-story indoor slide, and Geoffrey’s Café. The slide has its own shorter operating hours and participation rules, so the biggest attraction may require more planning than the shopping itself.

    View OddStopBrowse New Jersey OddStops
    0.166 mistraight-line from I-95

    I-95 ACCESS

    Verified highway access

    Verified exit
    Exit 19W — American Dream Sports Complex

    American Dream’s transportation guidance directs I-95 and New Jersey Turnpike traffic to the sports-complex interchange.

    I-95 Details & SourcesVerified

    Evidence notes

    The destination sits 0.166 straight-line mile from retained I-95 geography. Turnpike and American Dream sources support Exit 19W and the sports-complex access relationship.

    Public sources

06 · North to south

Pennsylvania

1 OddStop

Philadelphia brings a darker cabinet of curiosities to the route. The End Times Boutique mixes specimens, antiques, funerary pieces, occult objects, jewelry, and décor in a compact storefront just 0.622 straight-line mile from I-95.

  1. Interior displays at The End Times Boutique in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

    Philadelphia, PA

    The End Times Boutique

    The End Times Boutique assembles a darkly elegant cabinet of curiosities in Philadelphia. Wet specimens, taxidermy, animal and medical skulls, funerary pieces, occult objects, antique statues, jewelry, and unusual décor move the shop between natural-history collection and interior-design source. Its compact storefront invites a slow look, with memorable finds packed across shelves, cases, walls, and tabletop displays.

    View OddStopBrowse Pennsylvania OddStops
    0.622 mistraight-line from I-95

    I-95 ACCESS

    Highway proximity

    The East Dauphin Street storefront sits 0.622 straight-line mile from I-95 in Philadelphia.

    I-95 Details & SourcesVerified

    Evidence notes

    Federal highway evidence supports the 0.622-mile straight-line result, and the first-party site confirms the storefront. The available official material does not justify naming one preferred I-95 exit.

    Public sources

07 · North to south

Delaware

1 OddStop

Delaware’s stop occupies a historic Arden-area building and blurs store with independent museum. Oddporium sits less than a straight-line mile from I-95, with approaches from Exit 9 via Marsh Road and Exit 10 via Harvey Road.

  1. Interior of Oddporium with an articulated sparrow puppet on a glass case and books and curiosities behind it

    Wilmington, DE

    Oddporium

    Oddporium treats its historic Arden-area building as both shop and small independent museum. Displays bring together taxidermy, preserved specimens, antique medical instruments, funerary material, bones, crystals, spiritual goods, art, and other historical curiosities, with an emphasis on explaining as well as selling them. Confirm current hours before visiting.

    View OddStopBrowse Delaware OddStops
    0.976 mistraight-line from I-95

    I-95 ACCESS

    Verified highway access

    Verified exit 1
    Exit 9 — Marsh Road
    Verified exit 2
    Exit 10 — Harvey Road

    The Arden-area destination can be approached from Exit 9 via Marsh Road or Exit 10 via Harvey Road.

    I-95 Details & SourcesVerified

    Evidence notes

    The retained result is 0.976 straight-line mile from I-95. Delaware material supports both Exit 9 via Marsh Road and Exit 10 via Harvey Road, with no universal preference between them.

    Public sources

08 · North to south

Maryland

7 OddStops

Maryland is the guide’s deep dive: seven stops running from Havre de Grace through Baltimore and Ellicott City to Hyattsville. The group ranges from film costumes and visionary art to salvage, oddities, fantasy miniatures, and a brewery-general-store hybrid.

Havre de Grace · 1 stop

  1. Storefront of Washington Street Books in Havre de Grace, Maryland

    Havre de Grace, MD

    Washington Street Books & Entertainment Museum

    At Washington Street Books, ordinary browsing keeps colliding with the entertainment museum around it. Used and rare books, comics, music, fossils, crystals, militaria, toys, jewelry, and Star Wars collectibles share the store with original movie costumes and props. The appeal is the blurred boundary: a shopper can turn from a shelf of merchandise and find a genuine screen artifact displayed nearby.

    View OddStopBrowse Maryland OddStops
    2.361 mistraight-line from I-95

    I-95 ACCESS

    Verified highway access

    Verified exit
    Exit 89 — MD 155 / Level Road

    MD 155 and Level Road form Havre de Grace’s principal I-95 gateway toward the Washington Street destination.

    I-95 Details & SourcesVerified

    Evidence notes

    The destination is 2.361 straight-line miles from the retained I-95 point. MDOT and city sources identify Exit 89 and MD 155 as Havre de Grace’s documented highway gateway.

    Public sources

Baltimore · 4 stops

  1. Oddities displays inside Bazaar in Baltimore, Maryland

    Baltimore, MD

    Bazaar

    Bazaar compresses a natural-history cabinet, art shop, jewelry counter, and dark gift store into one Hampden storefront. Taxidermy, articulated skeletons, bones, resin-mounted insects, candles, apparel, and morbid novelties compete for attention, while workshops add a practical side to the fascination with specimens. The dense displays turn browsing into a close look at objects that are easy to miss at first glance.

    View OddStopBrowse Maryland OddStops
    4.222 mistraight-line from I-95

    I-95 ACCESS

    Highway proximity

    Bazaar is on Chestnut Avenue in Baltimore’s Hampden neighborhood, 4.222 straight-line miles from I-95.

    I-95 Details & SourcesVerified

    Evidence notes

    The current address measures 4.222 straight-line miles from I-95. First-party evidence confirms the Hampden storefront, but no official source supports one reliable preferred exit.

    Public sources

  2. Exterior of Housewerks Salvage in Baltimore, Maryland

    Baltimore, MD

    Housewerks Salvage

    Housewerks makes its building part of the inventory. Architectural and industrial antiques fill Baltimore’s 1885 Bayard Station valve house, where vintage lighting, doors, windows, hardware, mantels, furniture, and unusual garden pieces sit against preserved gasworks architecture. Browsing here feels somewhere between a salvage yard, design showroom, workshop, and industrial museum, with one-off stock shaped by what has been recovered from older regional buildings.

    View OddStopBrowse Maryland OddStops
    0.574 mistraight-line from I-95

    I-95 ACCESS

    Highway proximity

    The Bayard Street destination sits 0.574 straight-line mile from I-95 in southwest Baltimore.

    I-95 Details & SourcesVerified

    Evidence notes

    The retained measurement is 0.574 straight-line mile from I-95, and the first-party page confirms Bayard Station. No exact useful I-95 exit was sufficiently verified.

    Public sources

  3. Warehouse interior at Second Chance in Baltimore, Maryland

    Baltimore, MD

    Second Chance

    Second Chance turns reuse into a warehouse-scale treasure hunt. Its nonprofit retail floor ranges from reclaimed doors, windows, mantels, lumber, and cabinets to chandeliers, furniture, appliances, stained glass, artwork, and oversized architectural fragments. The constantly changing, one-off inventory makes wandering part of the point: you might arrive for a practical building material and leave contemplating an object that would overwhelm an ordinary shop.

    View OddStopBrowse Maryland OddStops
    0.125 mistraight-line from I-95

    I-95 ACCESS

    Highway proximity

    The Ridgely Street warehouse sits 0.125 straight-line mile from I-95 in southwest Baltimore. Use current navigation for the local approach.

    I-95 Details & SourcesVerified

    Evidence notes

    The current warehouse coordinate measures 0.125 straight-line mile from I-95. First-party material supports proximity to the interstate but does not identify an exact preferred exit.

    Public sources

  4. Interior of Sideshow at the American Visionary Art Museum in Baltimore, Maryland

    Baltimore, MD

    Sideshow at the American Visionary Art Museum

    Sideshow carries the American Visionary Art Museum’s eccentric point of view into a store that works as a destination of its own. Original art, unusual books and zines, jewelry, wearable art, toys, collectibles, clothing, museum goods, and curated mystery packs fill a kaleidoscopic space. Visiting only the shop is free and does not require museum admission, which makes a focused stop possible.

    View OddStopBrowse Maryland OddStops
    0.924 mistraight-line from I-95

    I-95 ACCESS

    Verified highway access

    Verified exit
    Exit 55 — Key Highway via McComas Street

    Key Highway reaches the museum campus from I-95 through the McComas Street connection.

    I-95 Details & SourcesVerified

    Evidence notes

    Current highway data supports the 0.924-mile straight-line result. MDTA documents Exit 55 and its Key Highway connection, while AVAM confirms the campus destination.

    Public sources

Ellicott City · 1 stop

  1. Storefront of Forget-Me-Not Factory in Ellicott City, Maryland

    Ellicott City, MD

    Forget-Me-Not Factory

    Forget-Me-Not Factory turns gift shopping into a fantasy environment inside a historic Ellicott City building. Fairies, bubble toys, stuffed animals, Alice in Wonderland characters, garden objects, and pop-culture collectibles mingle with elaborate Department 56 villages, Snowbabies, and seasonal miniature worlds. The theatrical displays matter as much as any single item, letting shoppers move from whimsical characters to tiny Halloween or Christmas streetscapes.

    View OddStopBrowse Maryland OddStops
    4.91 mistraight-line from I-95

    I-95 ACCESS

    Verified highway access

    Verified exit
    Exit 43B — MD 100 WestVerified for the northbound I-95 approach only.

    Northbound I-95 travelers can use Exit 43B to MD 100 West toward Historic Ellicott City.

    I-95 Details & SourcesVerified

    Evidence notes

    The store is 4.910 straight-line miles from the retained I-95 point. Tourism and MDOT sources support northbound Exit 43B to MD 100 West, not a universal approach.

    Public sources

Hyattsville · 1 stop

  1. Franklins storefront

    Hyattsville, MD

    Franklins

    Franklins fits a brewery, restaurant, toy store, general store, and ice-cream shop beneath one historic Hyattsville roof. A meal or house-brewed beer can lead directly into aisles of toys, nostalgic games, hot sauces, kitchen gadgets, jewelry, candy, funky socks, and Maryland souvenirs. The mix feels less like several tenants than one local institution refusing to choose a conventional retail category.

    View OddStopBrowse Maryland OddStops
    3.95 mistraight-line from I-95

    I-95 ACCESS

    Highway proximity

    Franklins is on Baltimore Avenue in Hyattsville, 3.950 straight-line miles from I-95.

    I-95 Details & SourcesVerified

    Evidence notes

    The current store coordinate measures 3.950 straight-line miles from I-95. The first-party site confirms Franklins in Hyattsville, but the evidence does not establish one preferred exit.

    Public sources

09 · North to south

South Carolina

1 OddStop

South Carolina supplies the guide’s southernmost stop after a long stretch without another entry. South of the Border needs little introduction from the highway, but its mix of retail, traveler services, monumental signs, and attractions rewards a closer look.

  1. South of the Border’s giant Pedro figure spanning the Mexico Shop East building in Hamer

    Hamer, SC

    South of the Border

    South of the Border expands a highway stop into a full roadside environment. Multiple souvenir shops, restaurants, fuel, and lodging gather beneath monumental signs, a giant Pedro figure, and the 200-foot Sombrero Tower, with an arcade and separately ticketed Reptile Lagoon nearby. Individual components keep different schedules, so a late or early arrival may offer only part of the experience even though the complex remains unmistakable from I-95.

    View OddStopBrowse South Carolina OddStops
    0.163 mistraight-line from I-95

    I-95 ACCESS

    Verified highway access

    Verified exit
    Exit 1 — Hamer

    The roadside complex sits directly at the first South Carolina exit after the North Carolina state line.

    I-95 Details & SourcesVerified

    Evidence notes

    The retained federal measurement is 0.163 straight-line mile. South Carolina’s official tourism guide identifies Exit 1 in Hamer and names South of the Border directly.

    Public sources

How We Built This Guide

All 319 published OddStopsUSA records were screened, including the 96 located in the 15 states traversed by I-95. Each store coordinate was compared with current I-95 highway geography, using one consistent straight-line method rather than estimates from map labels. Seventeen records fell within five miles and became this guide; stores outside that limit were not rounded in or substituted to fill geographic gaps.

These figures describe point-to-highway separation, not driving distance, ramp distance, travel time, or the convenience of a detour. Exit and local-access claims were checked separately against transportation-agency or official destination material. Twelve of the 17 entries have a supported exit or access relationship; where a useful exact exit could not be verified, the card says so instead of guessing.

Roads, ramp patterns, construction, business access, and operating schedules can change. Use this guide to identify possibilities, then confirm the current route and destination details before leaving I-95.

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