Grass Roots Books & Music, a locally owned and independent bookstore, has maintained its strong community ties after moving to a new storefront in 2024. Grass Roots is a cornerstone business for events and engagement with Oregon State University, community members of all ages and environmental initiatives.

Grass Roots was founded in 1971 by Jack Wolcott and Sandy Smith. The idea behind the store came from the opening of the First Alternative Food Co-op. Wolcott, who was also helping out with the Co-op, wanted there to be enough resources on subjects like growing and making food, and eventually the collection evolved into a more traditional bookstore.

“We definitely still pull from those values, but we’ve also expanded to things like popular fiction. We try to fall more into what Corvallis is needing, trying to fit that niche,” said Jay Enghauser, the event promotion coordinator at Grass Roots. Enghauser graduated from the School of Writing, Literature and Film at OSU last spring and began working at Grass Roots after completing a summer graduate program in publishing.

Grass Roots used to be located on SW Second Street but relocated to Madison Avenue, where the Shoe Hutch used to be, last spring. When the Shoe Hutch announced it was closing, they took the opportunity for a close relocation.

“We’re actually seeing even more foot traffic because of Guardian Games on the corner, we feel like we have a lot of overlapping audience, and so even though it was unexpected, it just turned out to be really good,” Enghauser said.

The new location is close to other Corvallis downtown staples like Whiteside Theatre and the Book Bin, another independent bookstore with whom Grass Roots occasionally collaborates. It also receives foot traffic from farmers’ market patrons and from OSU students on weekends, as it’s about a 15-minute walk from the main campus.

Still, many of the customers in Grass Roots have been regulars in the store for decades and come by daily for the social atmosphere. The store’s adaptability has not decreased its significance to its original roots.

Inside the bookstore, you’ll find seasonal displays, staff picks, a few bargain books and many shelves of books and guides for the local environment, from identifying mushrooms to gardening to regional stargazing.

Grass Roots’ natural interests are also seen through their collaborations with the Spring Creek Project, a local interdisciplinary environmental initiative currently affiliated with PRAx.

On May 1, Grass Roots will be involved with Earth Words, the Spring Creek Project’s showcase of environmental writing. They’ll be selling the featured works of the authors, poets and journalists on the panel. They have done this in the past, notably for Robin Wall Kimmerer’s talk last spring.

Grass Roots also collaborates with the Corvallis-Benton County Public Library, with events like book sales for featured children’s authors during story time.

John Larrison, acclaimed novelist and senior writing instructor with SWLF, put Grass Roots in the acknowledgements of his most recent book.

“We’re super community-based, we wouldn’t be here without the community we’re serving,” Enghauser said.