Pictures show a time capsule shop which closed over 50 years ago - after its owner refused to go metric.<br /><br />Elliott's Store opened in 1902 and shut in 1971 after Frank Elliot, then 72, would not accept changes to the British currency.<br /><br />Frank closed the shop soon after decimalisation arrived - but kept it exactly as it was from then until his death in 1995 aged 96.<br /><br />Photos show the store still sporting brands and designs from the 1970s for products like Guinness, Rowntree's and Princes Salmon.<br /><br />The shop in Saltash, Cornwall, is now a successful museum run by the Tamar Protection Society.<br /><br />Gerry Sweets, 73, who helps run the museum alongside other volunteers and trustees, says it was a 'unique' glimpse into life during the 20th century.<br /><br />Gerry said: "The property is an amazing bit of social history. Frank lived in the shop with his family for almost his whole life - from 1902 to 1995. <br /><br />"It gives a rare glimpse into what life was like during the 20th century, when there was so much change. <br /><br />"Frank was an older gentleman who had been taught to use the old-style weights and measures, and currency. <br /><br />''So when the decimalisation took place it was a big change that he refused to take part in.<br /><br />"He didn't wish to change, and many shop owners of a certain generation refused to change like him. <br /><br />''They were, like many people, afraid of change and what it meant.<br /><br />"It was very much a cultural issue, and everything was working fine as far as he was concerned. But perhaps he was not considering the bigger picture.<br /><br />"He didn't like bureaucracy, or the town council. <br /><br />''He spent a long time fighting a battle against being charged business rates in the shop because he didn't want to pay them.<br /><br />"Even though he had closed, he kept his store stocked for decades, exactly as it is today, and as a result the Council tried to charge him business rates for years until he beat them in court.<br /><br />"Some of the items we have found in there are amazing though. <br /><br />''Some are genuine historical treasures, things that we could not even identify until we researched them."<br /><br />Volunteers say despite the museum's small size, it still faced the same scrutiny that a large museum such as the Victoria & Albert Museum in London would face.<br /><br />Gerry added: "Museums in the UK have a one-size fits all approach, so we had to go through the same process that the V&A Museum in London would have.<br /><br />"It was very difficult and took a long time to understand, because unlike the V&A we were not experienced staff - we were a small group of elderly volunteers with no idea what we were doing.<br /><br />"In the end we succeeded though on our first try, and today it is a fantastic museum. <br /><br />"We are now trying to digitise everything, which is required as a museum, but hope that one day people will be able to access all of our archives online.<br /><br />"We get so many visitors these days - many who are elderly who get to relive their youth through the long-lost brands and products you can see in the store.<br /><br />"Young children are also always amazed to see all the old products and posters, it's such a different experience for them - because they've grown up in a generation that has only really shopped in supermarkets.<br /><br />"We are glad that we've been able to fulfil Frank's dream though and make it a museum - but we are always looking for new volunteers to help keep it going."
